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Meet the doctor spreading her preventive care message to the entire country.

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Cigna 2017

LaTasha Seliby first knew that she wanted to become a doctor after her aunt passed away at a very young age.

Her aunt had died of a "very, very preventable" ailment that could have been treated if she had just gotten the proper care. And when Seliby realized that, it lit a fire inside of her.

All images via Cigna.

After all, family always came first for her. That's why, soon after the incident, she decided to dedicate her life to health care and make sure nothing like what happened to her aunt ever happened again — to her family and to others.

"I wanted to be kind of a catalyst of change," says Seliby. And today, that's exactly what she is.

Because on top of being an accomplished physician, Seliby is also creating change in ways that go beyond the definition of her profession. In fact, you can see exactly how she's doing that in the amazing video below:

This is a day in the life of a doctor who is trying to make preventive health care the norm.

Posted by Upworthy on Friday, July 28, 2017

Seliby is redefining how we think about health care by putting preventive care at the heart of everything she does.

"Medicine has been looked at as sick care — you go to the doctor, and you find out what's wrong," she explains. "What I want to do is change that. Let's go to the doctor and find out everything that's right — and how to keep it right."

What's one easy way to do that?  Well, you can start by keeping an eye on your health before something goes wrong. Head to your doctor for a regular check-up and know your four health numbers — blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, and body mass index (BMI). That way, you can easily spot red flags and worry less when it comes to your health.

Taking care of yourself, though, is especially important for young people.

With the modern world becoming faster than ever and the daily grind for many getting more pressure-packed by the minute, it can be easy for a young person to let their well-being fall by the wayside. In fact, in a survey conducted by Zocdoc, 9 in 10 millennials admitted to avoiding regular doctor visits — skipping check-ups and screenings altogether.

And that's exactly what Seliby wants to change. Because consistent visits to your primary care provider, according to a study by UCLA, can lead to fewer ER visits and hospitalizations in the long run.

That's why Seliby is taking her mission to Capitol Hill to get the word on preventive care out to the entire country.

She regularly speaks with various lawmakers about how she can translate her firsthand experience into actionable bills that get as many people as possible understanding the value of preventive care.

"You feel like you're a part of a bigger purpose when you're able to go speak to lawmakers about things that will affect entire populations," she says.

And she's not stopping there.

Seliby is also affecting countless lives through her work as a writer and editor for Heart and Soul magazine, a national publication that "focuses on women of color, health prevention, fitness, and wellness."

Everything Seliby does is about one thing: getting people to take care of themselves before they get sick.

It's the first step needed to redefining how we all view health care. And it's the step that Seliby has worked her entire professional life to help everyone take.

Because if more people are able to practice regular preventive care moving forward, the more "catalysts of change" we'll see for generations to come.

"I feel like I'm doing what I said I want to do," says Seliby. "And I'm working to leave the legacy that I really want to leave."

Learn more about how to take control of your health at Cigna.com/TakeControl.

Family

A guilt-free, doctor-approved guide to indulging when you need it.

Seriously. Doctor's orders.

True
Cigna 2017

Self-care is a term for the things we do for ourselves to manage stress and to maintain or improve our health.

But we're diverse people from all walks of life, so self-care naturally means something different to each of us. In recent years, the self-care conversation has attracted everyone from fitness trainers to spiritual coaches to activists.

But what might an actual health expert have to say about self-care?

Meet Stuart. That's short for Dr. Stuart Lustig, M.D., M.P.H.

Lustig harvests greens from his backyard garden on a sunny day in San Francisco, California. Photo by Maz Ali/Upworthy.

Lustig is a psychiatrist for children and adults and supports doctors all over the country. Self-care, as you might guess, comes up in his work pretty frequently, for all sorts of reasons and for both patients and health care professionals. Over the years, he's stood by one piece of advice when it comes to self-care and stress management: "Have a PLAN for yourself."

PLAN is an acronym representing the most basic components of a sound self-care strategy.

P is for a period of time.

Image via iStock.

"It should be regularly planned time that's yours alone to do what you want with it," he says. On most nights, for example, Lustig knows he can count on at least 30 minutes of relaxation once his kid's tucked in and his wife starts her own self-care rituals.

L is for a location.

Image via iStock.

Think of it as your "happy place." Have a few locations in mind that put you at ease and that are easily accessible and reliably there for you, whether it's your bedroom, your favorite café, your gym or yoga studio, or the nature trail just beyond your fence. One of Lustig's go-to places is his backyard, amid the beauty and abundance of his garden.

A is for an activity.

Lustig also happens to be a beast on the piano. Photo by Maz Ali/Upworthy.

"When we ask people, 'What's your activity?' we'll get responses like, 'brushing my teeth,'" he says. "Sure, that's good hygiene, but it's not long enough, and we kind of have to do that. Or we hear things like, 'going on vacation.' But how often can you do that?" Instead, he says, choose activities you want to do and that you can integrate into your regular schedule. As for Lustig, he finds escape in the intricacies of classical compositions right from his piano bench.

N is for the name of someone you can count on.

Image via iStock.

"For some people, it’s their mother or their best friend. For some, it’s a therapist," Lustig says. The idea is to have that someone who will listen to what you’re going through, empathize with you, and share with you in that moment to help relieve stress.

How will you know if your self-care practices are actually working?

According to Lustig, to commit to better self-care is to acknowledge that you deserve time to yourself, to accept that it's OK to indulge a little — so long as it doesn't engender too much guilt — and to "turn off" the parts of your brain that are overworked.

Image via iStock.

If you're doing self-care well, you'll feel it. Your stress will become more manageable. You'll tackle the tasks and challenges of your day with greater ease. And you may even begin to feel better physically.

"When we’re stressed mentally, we have a lot of physical problems as a result," he says. "We have more headaches, we have more ulcers, we have more back and joint pain, and we go in for all sorts of other things."

Mental stress also triggers behaviors that can make matters worse, like eating more unhealthy foods or retreating into extended periods of inactivity. "As a result, your cholesterol goes up, your blood sugar goes up, and so on," he says.

Cigna's Go. Know. Take Control.℠ preventive health campaign educates people about their four health numbers: blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, and body mass index. Images by Cigna.

Self-care has the potential to make the world a better place — one person, one family, one community at a time.

"When we’re in a good space, we do a better job of communicating and understanding each others' perspectives," Lustig says, channeling his own experience as a husband and father. "When it’s been a long day and we’re exhausted, we are not terribly empathic."

Image via iStock.

"When we feel we have everything we need for ourselves, we’re more generous and willing to share what we have more openly and lovingly," he adds.

He then closed with a final doctorly reminder to take good care: "Get your needs met — your physical needs, emotional needs, spiritual needs, cultural needs, community needs, all of it — and we’ll all be much better off.”

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