A few summers ago I took a spontaneous road trip from Seattle to L.A. in a rental car. I had no definitive plans, which is how I always travel. When I made it to Hollywood, I decided to stay a night in the center of town. Once I got settled into my hotel room, I went for a walk to get an uncensored view of this famous place. I walked for awhile down Sunset boulevard until I came to a large building with a sign out front that read "Free tours, open from 10am to 10pm." Having nothing better to do and loving the word "free", I sauntered inside.
Trade pills for Fitness

To make a long story short, I ended up spending two hours wandering throughout this museum called "Psychiatry, an Industry of Death." I was blown away from beginning to end and the only reason I left the building was because I didn't want to walk all the way back to my hotel in the dark. It was beautiful and fascinating and like taking a trip back in time. There were stations set up depicting vivid images of the holocaust, the explanation of eugenics (the science of improving a human population by controlled breeding to increase the occurrence of desirable heritable characteristics).

There were replicas of "colored" and "white" drinking fountains on the wall straight out of the 60's. Straight jackets from the beginning of straight jackets, hospital beds that gave you goose bumps and an endless number of pill bottles signifying the American dependency on a cure in a bottle- prescribed by a trusted doctor and approved by the FDA. There were news stories plastered all over the walls about Psychiatrists who had sexual abused patients, kids who had been beaten and killed in institutions where they were supposed to be receiving "help" and stories of deceased celebrities who had popped too many prescription drugs.

Before this journey through the history of psychiatry, I knew nothing at all about the profession. I demand to always know both sides of a story because that's how I learn best. I don't like bias and will research a seemingly unimportant subject like an fiend until I've gone 360 degrees with it and feel I know most or all of the facts.

The museum was important because it helped me see another side of something I previously knew nothing about. I've gone through some difficult things in my life and feel stress just like the rest of the world- but I've always found salvation in a proper diet and exercise no matter what gets thrown at me. In fact, until I started prioritizing my health, I could never seem to get ahead with anything; finances, relationships or my career choice. You can say that it saved me in more ways than I can count. I'm a firm believer in living a natural, drug free existence and that goes for most over the counter drugs such as Ibuprofen and the like. I don't take cold medicine or sleeping pills either. I do advocate vitamins and minerals, but they are merely supplements and in no way can cure anything you have ailing you.

My point is that exercise, a correct diet and definitive goals can help you change your life for the long haul. You get out of it what you put into it, but the rewards you will reap are more satisfying than anything I have experienced. A healthy body and mind, built by you is a million times more powerful than Paxil or Wellbutrin or someone with a Ph.D compartmentalizing your psyche. Trust yourself, breathe deeply, break a sweat everyday, keep supportive people around you at all times- and there's nothing in life that you won't be able to handle!