By Curtis Thill, M.D.

In thirty-some years of practicing family medicine here in southern Indiana, I’ve learned a few things beyond the medical school curriculum. Here’s one you may identify with: a southern Indiana woman will dutifully drive forty-five minutes to take her grandson to the dentist, then turn around and drive forty-five minutes home—and never once think to schedule her own mammogram or check-up on the same trip.

With the above in mind, I’d like to remind you that May is National Women’s Health Month. This time around I’d like to offer some suggestions to make it real for you.

Last month I wrote an open letter to the women of our communities about the annual wellness visit—what I called one of the most powerful preventive tools we have in medicine. The month of May is a good time to try out some new ideas, because spring out here practically begs us to step outside, take stock, and start something new.

Let’s start here. Rural living comes with real gifts: fresh air, neighbors who actually know each other, legendary sweet corn and fresh tomatoes in the summer, and a restoring pace of life that big city people can only dream about.

But it also comes with real obstacles. Longer drives to specialists. Fewer evening appointment slots. And the quiet, unspoken expectation that Mom—or Grandma, or Auntie—will keep the whole operation running.

What women in rural areas face

National data tell us that rural women face higher rates of heart disease, diabetes, and depression than their urban counterparts. Not because country life isn’t healthy, but because the system is harder to navigate when the nearest specialist is an hour away and somebody still needs to feed the chickens.

So here are three things I’d ask you to consider this May. They are simple, they are doable, and—if you’ll humor me — they are how a person builds a life of sustained good health, not just a one-month wellness sprint.

Schedule the visit you keep putting off

You know the one. Maybe it’s the well-woman exam. Maybe it’s the mammogram you’ve rescheduled twice. Maybe it’s the blood pressure or blood sugar check you keep meaning to do “once things settle down.” Let’s be honest. Things never “settle down.” They just shift. So pick one—just one—and put it on the calendar before the month is out.

Most insurance plans cover annual preventive care at no out-of-pocket cost. But if you are uninsured, please call us anyway. We will work with you.

This month, move your body, outdoors, on purpose, as many times as you can

Spring in southern Indiana is one of the great unsung blessings of American life. Walk the dog. Walk without the dog. Pull weeds. Take the grandkids to a trail at Patoka Lake.

You don’t need a gym membership or matching designer workout clothes—you need twenty or thirty minutes of intentional movement, three-to-four times a week. Your heart, your bones, your blood sugar, and your mood will all send you thank-you notes within a very short time.

Tend your mental and emotional health like you tend your tomato plants

You know what I see almost everyday? The caregivers in our communities are world champions at running on fumes.

My point? Sleep matters. So do honest conversations — with a friend, your faith community, or, when the load gets heavy, a counselor. One in four adults will face a mental health concern this year. You are neither alone nor an exception, and there is no judgment here.

May is one month in twelve, but a healthier you starts with one step. Pick one of the three. Take it this week. Then call us if we can help.

You matter to the people around you. And you matter to us. Make the month of May your month!

---

A board-qualified family physician, Dr. Curtis Thill has been providing services for women and families for more than 30 years in southern Indiana.