Better Safe Than Sorry

I find that prevention has become more and more important as time goes on. I really wasn’t always like this, though! I think it’s all the experiences I’ve had over the years that allow me to think ahead.

I have a lot of stories about times when I wasn’t so prepared. I remember one time, when we were going on a family trip, we were rushing out of a taxi. We tried to make sure we had all of our bags and hadn’t forgotten anything. Unfortunately, in our haste, we left behind a bag containing all our personal belongings! So now, whenever we go on a trip, we’re each responsible for certain bags. Everyone needs to make sure they can account for those bags. We learn from experience, and it makes us more careful, better organized, and more forward-thinking.

Today, I try to prevent, as much as possible, what could go wrong. I think that’s the case for a lot of parents. As time goes on, we become more and more used to trying to plan everything for our children. It becomes kind of second nature to us.

An experience that marks a turning point in my relationship with prevention is the hosting of L'épicerie broadcast on Radio-Canada. As part of the program, we worked with a team of professionals to conduct a number of product tests. We checked the quality and reliability of different products so we could give viewers the facts and help them make better choices. After testing so many products, I realized that effectiveness varies greatly from one product to another and that it’s important to do research to determine what best suits our needs. You can avoid problems by choosing a proven product from the start.

Facts have also become more important to me over time. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for prevention, but I’m mostly about the facts. Because facts don’t lie. I believe professional recommendations are important, because I know they’re based on facts. I know I can rely on them. I’m not going to pretend to be an expert on everything, even if I have a lot of different interests; that's why following professional recommendations is really the best way to make sure you’re prepared.

This is especially true for health recommendations, where prevention really is part of everything. Think of all the anti-smoking prevention campaigns, or the campaigns to remind people why it’s important to have certain medical exams. The same is true of hearing health. We focus a lot on prevention. Because the faster you act, the sooner you can make corrections and get better results.

However, statistics show that people still wait too long before consulting a hearing health professional about their hearing loss, even if they suspect they have it. The point is that sometimes people simply aren’t aware and don’t know about the options available to them. Other times, though, people are reluctant to think ahead. It’s as if prevention makes it more real. Think about it: just because someone decides to see a nutritionist doesn’t automatically mean they have to go on a diet. Just like having a hearing assessment doesn’t mean you’ll need hearing aids. It’s simply a way to check in and make sure we’re able to make the best decisions for ourselves. By acting preventively, we’re limiting the consequences as much as possible. Of course, you can’t control everything—sometimes, even with foresight, things don’t turn out the way we’d hoped. Despite this, our best asset is still to stay abreast of the information provided by professionals in order to make more informed choices.

All my love,