We Will Not Be Controlled

If this isn't a health and wellness issue, what is?

I was 6 years old and belting the words to “I Am Woman” in the shower.

It was 1971 and even though I was a little kid, I knew that everyone around me was fighting for women’s rights.

In numbers (and a dress) too big to ignore.

That’s how I learned the word “invincible” — from that Helen Reddy song — two years before the Roe v. Wade decision gave American women the constitutional right to control their own bodies.

I never dreamed I’d be standing here fifty years later and having to fight for our rights again. Heck, I’ve had two kids and zero abortions but I sure breathed easier all those years knowing that I could get one if something happened. That my life didn’t have to be over because I was pregnant.

Now, as I watch America react to this devastating 50-year setback, this truth becomes so clear to me again:

We will not be controlled.

Oh no, buddy. No way, no how.

We Will Not Go Back

You can’t put this genie back in the bottle.

A people, once free, will not easily tolerate chains again.

And no matter how much anyone tries to subjugate women, we will rise again.

Our spirit is invincible.

There will be many women hurt and affected and possibly even killed by the new and coming bans on abortion — and there will be much strife … but we will keep pressing on.

We will not be controlled.

Why Am I Talking About This?

I write a lot about the intersection of mind and body — and freedom sits right at that nexus.

Without the freedom to control our own bodies, our minds will never be free.

And without the freedom to decide not to bear a child, women will always be second-class citizens … and not free.

So this battle we are entering? It sits smack dab in the middle of Health & Wellness for 51% of the US population.

And while I know the Fitness Industry would love to ignore this hot-button topic and call it “politics” … you simply can’t ignore the subjugation of women if you work in Health and Wellness.

You can’t say, “Oh, I only write/coach/speak on fitness.”

The freedom to control your own body sits at the heart of fitness.

You can’t say, “I only talk about nutrition … or weightlifting … or running.”

The freedom to control your own body sits at the heart of nutrition, weightlifting, running, and any other sport or activity you can name.

We literally teach about how to control your body during a lift or a sport, but many folks in fitness seem reluctant to talk about lack of body control being forced upon 51% of the US population.

So I ask you this:

If you are in the health and wellness field, can you really ignore a major factor impacting health and wellness for 51% of the US population?

I’m sorry to interrupt the keto and cleans extravaganza — or any discussion of deadlifts (because you know I love deadlifts), but there’s something really big going on here … and I don’t think any of us can act like nothing happened.

Like It or Not …

Whether any of us wants to be in this whirlwind or not, you and I are in it.

Every American just got dragged into it. (Heck, I don’t even have a uterus anymore and I’m in it.)

And here’s the thing: all of your women clients and friends are watching. And you ignore them at your own peril.

Abortion is a difficult subject to mention, let alone discuss — and our polarized nation doesn’t make it any easier. Both sides act like only extreme positions exist and they ignore the nuanced human being in front of them. Human beings like you and me — who love folks all over the spectrum of ideas — we struggle to find our footing to discuss and reach a nuanced consensus … to share our stories … and to find the humanity in all of us, not just those who agree with our opinion.

But we must get to talking (not so much arguing) with each other again or things are only going to get worse for all of us.

Acknowledge the Elephant

Start by acknowledging the elephant that sits in the room in the US now. The elephant that women see so much bigger and more clearly than most men simply because the elephant can crush them at almost any moment.

Because staying silent tells us one thing: you don’t take women’s health seriously.

So go find your guts and start the conversation, whether that’s in person or on Instagram or other social media. Address the elephant in the room instead of pretending it’s not there. You don’t have to go in-depth or obsess about it. But at least acknowledge that something major is going on here.

51% of Americans just lost a constitutional right that pertains to their health. I suggest you speak to the moment … or get left behind by those who so clearly hear your silence.

Because — remember this and carry it deep in your soul — we will not be controlled.

(Click the link and listen to her hymnal snippet. Beautiful.)

thebengsons

A post shared by Abigail & Shaun Bengson (@thebengsons)

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P.S. And to those of you who spent the pandemic yelling about “medical freedom” and not getting a vaccine because you owned your own body?

Your silence speaks so loudly now. How was the vaccine a health and wellness issue you were willing to lose clients over … but this medical freedom issue is not?