You’ve heard the proverb, “Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.” Most agree that we feel better and may be much more productive after a great night’s sleep. But what about those late-night talk show hosts? They seem healthy, they’re certainly wealthier than most of us, and while we can’t measure their wisdom, they’ve got more wisecracks than all of us combined.

Understanding your health and medical situation is much more complex than eating an apple every day or following your favorite old wives’ tales. The days of one-stop health care and relying on someone else to look out for you from birth to death are long gone. Today’s health system requires you to be proactive and to take charge of your well-being. You need to create your own personal health care system. You need to find the best medical experts and facilities for you and your health care situation. Whether you’re in sickness or in health, you need to understand your conditions and options.

Our goal in Section I is to show you how to do all of this. We provide you with a new, personalized method of understanding your health and your health care. Think of it as a map to navigate today’s crazy health care maze. You begin by taking everything you know about your health care, no matter how complicated or technical it seems, and breaking it down into your own personal health care system. Next, we help you select your providers and facilities. Lastly, we help you think like a doctor. We outline the information your physicians need that you can and should provide to improve your health and medical situation.