Unit 9 Final Project
Why is it important for health and wellness professionals to develop
psychologically, spiritually and physically? What areas do you need to develop
to achieve the goals you have for yourself?
In order for wellness professionals to make a
positive, lasting impact on their clients, I believe they need to practice what
they preach, psychologically, spiritually, and physically. True wellness can only be achieved when an
individual is happy and healthy in each aspect of their life. I think that in order for a healer to constructively
help clients, they need to have and understanding of life’s impact on healthiness,
and experience the labors, struggles, and pleasures in life. For healers to effectively care for clients
they must first be able to effectively care for themselves.
In order to achieve my current goals, I know that I
need to work on gaining a higher level of psychological and physical
wellness. I am very comfortable with
where I am at with my
spirituality, yet know I can always try to reach a higher level. I understand that it takes constant, and
never-ending work to truly flourish, and I do not think one can ever be
completely healthy in all aspects of life, because there is always a higher
level of wellness to try to attain.
.
Assessment: How have you assessed your health in each domain? How do
you score your wellness spiritually, physically, and psychologically?
I would rate my psychological wellness at 6, my
physical wellness at 8, and my spiritual wellness at 9.5.
I really need to work on my psychological wellness;
I grapple the most in this area. I feel I can adequately handle stress
and anxiety, and that I have strength and will, but I also feel that I need to
take better care of my mind. I acknowledge that I can get overwhelmed at
times, and that I let small things bother me, continue to build up, and then
get to a point that I resent that I did not do anything about my feelings
sooner. I also can take things too personally and I have a desire to
always try to make things right with difficult people and relationships. This
area is definitely where I should be focusing my full energy.
My physical wellness is definitely satisfactory. I walk 3~5 miles almost every day and I hike
and do Yoga once a week. I lost about
twenty pounds a couple years ago, have maintained my loss, and I pretty happy
with my physical appearance, though I could use some toning in my arm and
abdomen. I feel that I eat a healthy, balanced diet and I try to eat my
fruits and veggies, and I drink plenty of water.
Spiritually, I feel very happy where I am in my
life and rate myself at 9.5. I try to live every day to the fullest and
as if it could be my last. I appreciate
my Family and Friends, and am grateful for all I have. I try not to have regrets and take also try
to take time out to smell the roses whenever possible. My family and I
started going to a UCC Church about four years ago, and I get a lot of
fulfillment from attending service. It
is a very affirming and accepting Church and I believe it has strengthened my
morals and value. I have always been
accepting of all people, and worshiping with a group of people who feel the
same is a great experience.
Goal development: List at least one goal you have for yourself in
each area, Physical, Psychological (mental health) and Spiritual.
As far as my psychological wellness, I would like
to use some of the techniques and mental exercises I have learned in this class
and incorporate them into my life. I feel they could be very beneficial to my
psychological wellness. I would like to try
to “not sweat the small stuff” as much, and work on the strained relationship I
have with my middle Sister. She really
has a way of bringing me down and making me feel bad about myself, but I do try
to use my reaffirming techniques and reassure myself that I am a good
person. I do want to have a relationship
with my Sister, yet I realize that it is not healthy at this time, and therefore,
I would like to find a way that we can be in each others lives without the hurt
feelings that come with our relationship.
In regards to my physical wellness, I hope to stay
healthy so I am able to continue my current exercise routine, and eventually
incorporate some strength training. I know I could reach a higher level
of fitness if I tried a little harder. I
plan to continue eating well, and have seriously considered giving up red meat
for the health benefits.
I am very happy with the Spiritual wellness that my
Family and I are maintaining. My
Daughters and Husband have become as involved in the Church as I have and this
makes me happy. It was not a forced
issue for any of us, we went to a couple different Churches, and are all happy
with the choice we made. My younger
Daughter and I volunteer at monthly Bean Suppers and my older Daughter is the secretary
for the State Youth Counsel, so I feel this has had a positive impact on my
entire Family.
Practices for personal health: What strategies can you implement to
foster growth in each of the following domains; Physical, Psychological, and
Spiritual. Provide at least two examples of exercises or practices in each
domain. Explain how you will implement each example.
To foster my psychologically wellness I can
utilize visualization and meditation practices. For improving my physical wellness I need to
increase my strength training and flexibility exercises. Spiritually I would like to volunteer more
and give back some of the positive energy I feel I receive from attending
Church.
I currently attend Yoga once a week and find the
meditation portion very beneficial. It
helps me to let the stress and negativity melt away. I have been contemplating seeing a counselor
to deal with the feeling and emotions that come from my relationship with my
Sister, and I think this could be a useful tool at this stage of my life. Mentally, I hope to incorporate strength and
training exercises into my exercise routine.
I always say I will start tomorrow, and have been doing that since I
started taking classes again, but I realize there is not time like the
present. For my spiritual wellness, I
have been looking into ways that I can volunteer my time and give back.
Commitment: How will you assess your progress or lack of progress in
the next six months? What strategies can you use to assist in maintaining your
long-term practices for health and wellness?
I have a plan of where I want to be in six months
and I commit to try to achieve these goals.
Writing down my goals is a good way to access my
progress. To have them written down on
paper, and not just in my mind, is a good tool to keep me focused and on track.
My strategy is to keep a journal of my goals and refer to it often.
My whole Family is committed to living a healthy
life and we are keeping each other honest and on track.
Creating a mantra that I say out loud every morning
is a good tool for me to use to keep me focused as well, and appreciative of my
life. Some good vows that Dacher
recommends are:
I commit myself to:
· Enter
a personal process of self-development. I recognize that this requires an
inward turn that is supported by the necessary changes in my outer life and is
grounded in regular contemplative practice.
· Study,
understand, and integrate an integral vision and its principles and practices
into my personal and professional life.
· To hold a vision of health and healing whose final goal is
health, happiness, and wholeness – a possibility that exists for every person
regardless of individual circumstances. I recognize that health and
healing is this expansive sense can continue up to and through death.
· Uphold the ethical principles of a spiritual life. In
general, this can be defined as those attitudes and behaviors that serve to
eliminate suffering and promote peace, health, happiness, and wholeness for others
and ourselves.
· Meet every individual as a unique sacred being. The
individual’s circumstance, need, temperament, and capacities will define the
personalized process of health and healing. I recognize that deep,
unconditional listening is necessary to achieve this goal.
· Develop through personal contemplative practice a healing
presence that is acknowledging, comforting, reassuring, safe, nonjudgmental,
and infused with loving-kindness.
· Acknowledge and support the innate healing capacities in each
individual. I recognize that the individual is the ultimate source of his
or her health and healing and the author of his or her own life.
· Hold all life as unique and precious.
By utilizing the practices and vows I
hope to improve my overall mental health.
~ Cheryl
References:
Dacher, E. (2006). Integral Health: The
Path to Human Flourishing. Basic Health Publications Inc.
