Physical exercise has always been a part of my life. As a child, I remember loving to dance freely, play handball and volleyball, play rope during school breaks or simply go for a walk. I always felt that movement freed me from external noise and allowed me to embrace the joy of life.
The years go by, and natural movements start to become more limited by the responsibilities that life brings us. Studying or working at a desk, driving for hours on end, watching films and series on the sofa and often with no space to move your body.
I was fortunate enough to have three maternity wards that made me take emotional leaps outside of my knowledge that led me to many moments of great fragility and vulnerability. I started by learning to move around the house in my daily routines, enjoying every moment in a fun and light way. Arriving home after a day of work and school has become a special moment when we take 30 minutes to relax, when we dance freely, letting our joy shine through and letting go of all the tension of the day. After that, I go through the routine of hygiene, eating and preparing for a lighter night's rest for everyone.
Whenever the weather permits, I go out with them into nature, walking freely and observing my children, who reflect all my feelings - after all, they represent part of me.
A few years ago, I discovered the power of walking and started going for long walks. I realised that the more I walked, the more my mind opened to deep reflections on my existence. As I walked, I left behind everything that didn't belong to me, but that I carried as such. In the silence, I remember behaviours and reactions that I want to change so that life can be light and wonderful just as it is.
Health, defined by the WHO as biopsychosocial, is a responsibility that must be seen and heard every day of our lives.
Health, defined by the WHO as biopsychosocial, is a responsibility that must be seen and heard every day of our lives.
Various studies indicate that the movement of the body nourishes the mind and the lack of it makes people ill.
The movement of the body works in all areas of health, and it is in the body that all our emotional needs are deposited. The body gives us all the clues, it reacts to survive, and it is in this self-knowledge that I have learnt to govern my life.
Movement frees my emotions, and silence allows me to reflect on them. My daily choices and decisions determine the life I want to have, putting the responsibility for my life on my body and mind. And knowing today that we are all connected so that, together, we can keep humanity in harmony with nature, every day is a day of great collective and individual learning.
Because we are all deserving of a life of pleasure, rest and happiness, seeking our place in the world because we all have that space.
After all, the inclusion that is talked about so much begins with us, it begins in our hearts, in our families, in our streets and in our communities.
Inclusion is nothing more than self-love. When we include our life as it is, nothing stops us from moving towards our dreams with purpose and courage. Without guilt and without fear of being happy.
By Patricia Quintans, a graduate in pharmaceutical sciences specialising in strategic human resources management, president and founder of the Atípicas Association.