True Wellness Inside of Well-Being: Body and Soul on the Same Road

6-13-2025

By Dr. Howard Friedman MD | Veteran | U.S. Army Medical Corps | Internal Medicine | HHOM LLC

Wellness is the road. Well-being is the traveler. When the journey honors both, healing becomes possible—not just in the body, but in the soul.” —Dr. Howard Friedman, MD

The skin may glow, the steps may track,

Yet truth lies deeper, far and black.

Not in a pill or perfect chart—

But in the quiet of the heart.

Wellness begins where noise must cease—

A place of purpose, rest, and peace.—

----Dr. Howard Friedman, MD

Introduction: A Word That’s Lost Its Weight--True Wellnes

I’ve practiced medicine for over 30 years. During that time, “wellness” has exploded into a billion-dollar industry. We now track our steps, monitor our heart rates, down supplements and superfoods, and aim to optimize every detail. That’s not a bad thing—prevention matters. At HHOM LLC, we encourage screenings, healthy diets, exercise, and de-stressing. We've written extensively on the science of inflammation and how to lower it through lifestyle choices.

But wellness, as it’s sold today, can feel hollow. It’s often about how you look, not how you feel. That’s where well-being comes in. Wellness is the body. Well-being is the soul. And when they’re out of sync, no supplement will set them right. True Wellness.

Tooting My Own Horn—With Purpose

I was eight years old when I decided I wanted to become a doctor—to heal the world one patient at a time. This site, HHOM LLC, is the realization of that childhood vision. Through these blogs, I write about healing—not just with medicine, but with understanding. Many of our pieces are in the “wellness” lane—diet, sleep, inflammation. Others lean toward well-being—gratitude, imagination, purpose. To truly be well, you need both. Body and soul. Car and driver.

Redefining Wellness: The Internal Compass

Social media wellness is a performance—green smoothies, sunrise yoga, perfect skin. And yet burnout and anxiety are everywhere. You can be fit and still be unwell. Why? Because wellness doesn't come from the outside. It begins within. True wellness is coherence between your actions and your values—between the pace of your life and the peace of your mind. And that, by definition, brings you into the domain of well-being.

The Car and the Driver: A Working Analogy

Think of your body like a car. Do you fuel it properly? Maintain it? Clean it? That’s wellness. But even the best car is useless without a driver. That driver is your well-being—your sense of purpose, direction, and joy. The two must work together. A well-tuned car without a driver goes nowhere. A driver without a working car? Still stranded.

Veteran Insight: Healing Is Not Linear

Healing is a journey, not a straight line. New experiences, setbacks, and insights shift the path. At HHOM LLC, we offer a new stop on that path.

Veterans understand this better than most. The military teaches toughness, discipline, and resilience. But real healing doesn’t come from stoicism alone. It comes from meaning, self-compassion, and connection—things that don’t fit neatly in a prescription pad, but matter just as much.

Science Meets the Soul

Let’s be clear: there is real science behind the connection between wellness and well-being. Chronic stress increases cortisol, which promotes inflammation—the very thing we seek to reduce. We've written about NAD+, the cellular marker of aging. We’ve explored the effects of loneliness on the heart. These are not just feelings; they are physiological realities.

The more aligned your life becomes, the more your body responds. You cannot heal the vessel without also healing the voice inside it.

A New Prescription

Healing doesn’t live in a pillbox. It lives in your life.

So here’s a soft prescription: Instead of buying another supplement, call a friend. Instead of tracking steps, track what lights you up. Instead of pushing harder, consider slowing down.

This is your life. Your journey. And at HHOM LLC, we’re here to walk beside you—not to dictate the route, but to help you find your own.

Closing: Full Circle

So what does it mean to be well—not just look well? It means your wellness and your well-being are aligned. That your car is tuned, and your driver is ready. That you're not just on the road—but on the right one.

At HHOM LLC, we don't hand out shortcuts. We offer direction. Thank you for joining us.

—Dr. Howard Friedman MD

Board-Certified | Internal Medicine | Veteran | U.S. Army Medical Corps

Founder of Howard’s House of Medicine (HHOM LLC)

https://www.hhomllc.com

Frequently Asked Questions:

Q: What’s the difference between wellness and well-being, and why does it matter?

A: Wellness is often about physical health—what you eat, how you move, how much you sleep. It’s the metrics we can measure. Well-being, on the other hand, is internal. It’s your sense of meaning, connection, emotional resilience, and peace. You can have wellness without well-being—and many do. But true health requires both. At HHOM LLC, we believe aligning the two is where real healing begins.

Q: Can lifestyle changes really make a difference if someone is already taking medications?

A: Absolutely. Medications can stabilize symptoms—but lifestyle is what sustains health. Anti-inflammatory eating, restorative sleep, regular movement, and meaningful relationships all support healing at the cellular level. Science shows that habits can influence gene expression, lower cortisol, and even lengthen telomeres. Wellness is not a replacement for treatment—it’s the terrain that makes treatment work better.

Q: What does it mean to “heal the voice inside the vessel”?

A: It means tending to the part of you that isn’t on a lab result. The grief, the purpose, the spiritual questions that often surface in times of illness or transition. If the body is the vessel, then the voice is your inner compass—your thoughts, beliefs, and longings. Healing happens when that voice is heard, honored, and aligned with how you live. In our practice, that’s the bridge between medicine and meaning.