My Personal Cultural Identity

1288 Words6 Pages
Cultural identity has the ability to influence, and be influenced by, your experiences and background. Ethnicity, personal values, and upbringing are all contributing factors to cultural identity. In addition, cultural identity can shape how you perceive certain aspects of your life such as health and healthcare. A large contributing factor in cultural identity is ethnicity and religion. I was born in Canada, as were my parents and theirs before them. Therefore, if I had to label myself ethnically, I would say I am Canadian. My ancestors may have been of almost full German descent, but I do not identify as German. I believe it would be inappropriate as I do not know German, nor do I know any specific details about German culture. My family…show more content…
Both of my parents rely heavily on medications and the healthcare system to maintain their health. From a young age, I have been exposed to the good that the healthcare system can do. My mother has rheumatoid arthritis and the beginning stages of multiple sclerosis. Despite all of the hardships she has encountered with these two conditions, she remains positive. Medications have allowed her life to go on as normally and pain free as possible. Through her frequent trips to the doctor, and research of her own, she has the ability to steer us all in the right directions when it comes to healthcare. She can recognise when we need a doctor or if we just need some rest. Call it a mother’s intuition or knowledge, but she always the answer of what to do. If it where up to my father, on the other hand, the health care system would go out of business. Thankfully, my mother makes him go to all of his appointments and get his medications. The healthcare system is valued among my family in varying degrees. My mother and I believe in the good it does for people. My father is much more cynical, despite his reliance on it. He learned about his diabetes, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure after my mother made him go to the hospital because she became worried for his health. He ended up staying in the hospital for nearly a week while they ran tests and came up with treatment options. Looking back at this, one can see the bitterness he has toward the system; it can be scary to realise you were not as healthy as you had previously believed. It is fortunate that he was admitted when he was because he would not have been able to carry on at his previous state for very much longer. Seeing my parents go through these experiences has influenced my perception of health and healthcare. I realise that health in not something to squander and the health care
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