Emotional Health's Role in Overall Health

Interviewer:  You mention emotionally and spiritually, getting a chance to recharge.  How big of a part of overall health is that?  I mean, what you eat can be one thing in what you do but how big of a part is that?

Paul Nison:  I know of a lot of people that eat unhealthy and they appear to be doing okay.  Their attitude is much better.  Their attitude isn't so stressed out and so on.  I would say stress and emotional stress and mental stress is probably, and spiritual stress is harder to deal with than eating a bad diet.  The body was built amazingly.  There are people who are eating a terrible diet and doing pretty good.  Then there are people who are eating a wonderful diet and are not doing too well.  And I do believe the emotional, mental, and physical stress is a big part of that.  So it plays a bigger role than diet, I believe. 

Interviewer:  Um-hmm.

Paul Nison:  And I'm not discounting diet.  I definitely think that's important.  But the body can overcome that much quicker and it takes a much longer time for it to wear down than if somebody is getting stressed out emotionally and physically.  So that's what I tell people.  Look, if you're going to work everyday and you don't love your job, everyday, day in, day out, you know you can't be healthy doing that.  You have to love what you're doing or at least enjoy what you're doing.  And find a way to do it.  So that's a big, important thing.

Interviewer:  And reducing stress is tough for a lot of people.  Like you mentioned, they work 7 days a week.  But even you have a tough travel schedule.  You speak quite a bit.  I mean, how do you, what's your recommendation for trying to reduce that stress?

Paul Nison:  Well, I can give you some recommendations that I'm thinking of right now.  One obviously is understanding that our creator is smarter than we are and deciding and trying and making the best effort to listen to him.  Knowing that he's in control of all things.  There are things that appear to be tragedies to us sometimes but he lets these things happen.  We might not know the reasons but it's a big stress relief knowing that.

The other thing is, Yeshua, which some people call Jesus, is the only spiritual belief in the world that says it's not on our shoulders.  He takes our burden for us.  And boy, that really does relieve a lot of stress.

And then we look at the physical things.  Getting enough sleep every night.  I don't care what somebody's doing.  If they're not getting enough sleep, they're going to be stressed the next day.

Interviewer:  Um-hmm.

Paul Nison:  So try to get enough sleep every night.  And, it's a tremendous help.  So things like that.  Taking care of your body.  And then, really, having a passion and living your passion.  And not doing things you hate in life.  It gives you a reason to get out of bed in the morning.  And it drives you to keep going.