July: A Month Of Honoring Freedom

I love the month of July.  Nationwide, and even throughout the world, the right of FREEDOM is celebrated. And it should be!

What is FREEDOM?  The dictionary states:  FREEDOM is the quality or state of being free, the absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action.

Recently I have enjoyed a commercial on TV wherein someone is given a choice.... "You can pick any puppy you want!" To which the girl picks a cute little ball of fur and is quickly told, "No, you can't pick that one, here is your new pet."  The new pet is a llama. How cuddly are llama's anyway? ;)   


How many times have you had your FREEDOM of choice taken away from you? I hope you are all thinking about this and please keep in mind that just because you don't like the choices available doesn't mean you had your choice taken away. Most of the time I can remember my FREEDOM of choice being taken away was when I was a child.  Parents are supposed to know best and when a child tries to make a choice and that choice would be too dangerous the parent intervenes and makes a more appropriate selection for the child.  As we grow and mature, our choices also grow. It doesn't mean that we will always make a good choice, just that we are FREE to choose.


While serving as Social Services in a skilled nursing facility I recall one resident being very upset because she thought we (the facility) were taking away all of her choices.  The reality of the situation was that all of the  choices she had made in her life that contributed to her not being able to care for herself were actually removing the choices available to her.  She had taken her own FREEDOM away.  Yes, there were still choices, but they weren't the ones she wanted to choose from.


I think we undervalue FREEDOM of choice, especially in our health care situations.  When a health care situation arises and we need to choose which route to take through the illness, surgery and recovery, we generally let someone lead us along the path without regard to our unique circumstances.  For instance, after surgery and when being discharged to your home with home health, you should be able to choose who you would like to serve you.  I recommend calling a couple of different companies and asking them what they have to offer, do you prefer a male aide? See if they have one available.  Do you prefer morning visits? Ask if that would fit into their schedule. Ask family and friends who they would recommend, perhaps they have had a good experience with a certain company.  

During this month, please think about the choices available to you and how many of them you participate in.  Honor FREEDOM, so many have fought and even lost their lives for this wonderful gift.  I am so thankful for the blessing of FREEDOM.