A basic explanation of what anatomy and physiology is is that physiology is the study of life, and life is shaped like the human anatomy. To answer the question, then what does it mean to me? It means everything to you, because “it’s all about you.”
We all care about something, when it comes to us. Ironically, the most important thing for us, which is our lives, we leave in the hands of many others, mostly in the field of health. Of course, not all of us are doctors and nurses, so we must trust those who are. Up to a point, and that’s the point I’m making here. We have a responsibility to ourselves to know what we are made of, so that we can make well-informed judgments when it comes to health issues.
I don’t mean just basic knowledge, I mean a good understanding of anatomy and physiology, which I say again “it’s about you”. If you can clear your mindset, that the body is about you personally and not a separate entity, then you will have a better understanding of the importance of getting to know it.
Let me give you an example. When the economy is at its peak, people will go out and buy a vehicle that appeals to them. Maybe they found out about it through an ad, or a friend has one. They do not base their decision on what they know personally, but rather on the word of others. Now, an important factor here is money.
If the economic situation is good, then you can afford to be more daring. On the other hand, when money is tight, people do much more research on purchases. For example, they are engaged in finding out how good the car is on gasoline, or how durable it is, or what exactly they get for the money. Now why is this happening? Simple, when money is tight, people have more to lose, so they are more careful, because they won’t have the means to replace it.
This is exactly how we are with our anatomy and physiology. When it seems to be working great, we just go about our daily routine, not even thinking about why it works so well and what we can really do to keep it that way. Then the unfortunate day may come when you’ve just had your medical exam and the doctor says there’s a problem.
For example, you can say that your thyroid is not working properly. You may not have even heard the word thyroid. So now you don’t even know how much trouble you might be in. Is it serious or what? Suddenly, you will start a crash course to learn much more about what the body is. At least when it comes to his problems. Most likely, you will access the Internet and type the word “thyroid”. By the time you’re done, you’ll be an expert at it.
I am not suggesting that you have to be a graduate student studying anatomy and physiology. I am saying that if you know your body well, then you are in a strong position to take preventive measures against disease. Plus, you’ll be better informed early on about potential problems you may face. I mean by not knowing the details of your body you could be creating a lot of unnecessary stress for yourself.