Hello all,
After reviewing my unit 3 assessments on my psychological, physical, and spiritual well-being, i had rated myself accordingly:
Physical: 8
Spiritual: 6
Psychological: 9
My physical and spiritual scores are the same as they were back in unit 3; sadly to say I would have to admit my psychological well-being has dropped to probably about a 7 or a 8 because of the stress these past few weeks. I think in order to get my psychological well-being back on track, I need to implicate meditation exercises into my weekly routine, or even yoga because I am attracted to anything that helps with my physical well-being as well. Also, I think keeping a journal would help because I can write out all of my frustrations, that way that are not kept bottled up inside of me. I had set a goal of running a marathon in my final project and I really want to start training for that. I exercise on a daily basis, but I need to start implementing more cardio into my workouts.
This course really has taught me a lot about integral health and the importance of incorporating these techniques into my life. I have seen how important it is to find that inner peace because as a health and wellness professional we need to be ready for any situation that comes our way, whether it be in our own life, or the lives of our future clients. The most difficult aspect about this course was concentrating during the subtle mind exercises and so forth. I have a hard time drowning out distractions because I am such a go-go-go type of individual. I have learned the best time to do these exercises are at night, right before bed time. Experiencing this course will help me to assist others because it has made me more aware of the importance of taking others feelings into consideration. Typically, I am not one to have much sympathy towards others because I was raised to be a strong individual no matter what the case, but sometimes opening up is the better option. This has been a hard task for me to overcome, but I need to be able to sympathize with others in order to be a successful wellness coach.
Given this will be my last post on the blog, I sincerely wish all of you the best in your futures and will maybe see some of you down the road in future courses!!
-Joncie Winter
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Unit 9 Final Project
Final Project
Joncie Winter
Kaplan University
HW420: Creating Wellness: Psychological
and Spiritual Aspects of Healing
August 28, 2012
Introduction
It is important for health and
wellness professionals to develop psychologically, spiritually and physically
because in order to integrate these concepts into the lives of others, we must
have been become aware of our personal inner growth through flourishing
psychologically, spiritually and physically. In order to connect the world
through wellness, we must develop awareness for others through our personal
experiences, whether they are physical, spiritual or psychological. As a health
and wellness professional, it is our responsibility to help clients improve
their well-being by working one-on-one with them. Promoting a healthy mind,
body and spirit is one way to bring health and wellness professionals and the
community together (Health and Wellness Professional Network, 2012).
The
greatest area that I need to conquer in order to become psychologically,
spiritually and physically flourished is making that mind/body connection;
physically and spiritually speaking, I am set. Although I believe there is
always room for improvement in any area of ones’ life, the mind/body connection
is an aspect I have struggled with but have become more aware of the past few
months. The mind does not pose any limitations when developing the qualities of
the mind, however, there is a biological limit to physical fitness; our minds
are capable of limitless development. This is the exact area where I need
flourish in order to obtain my goal of being psychologically flourished
(Dacher, 2006).
Assessment
Assessing my psychological,
spiritual and physical health is important in order to become aware of any
improvements or changes that I need to change or implement into my life.
Psychologically speaking, I have assessed this domain of my life by becoming
aware of how important it is to train the mind. Knowledge is key here because
in previous months the phrase, “train the mind” was nonexistent in my
vocabulary. Simply becoming aware of this powerful tool forced me to really sit
back and make a consciousness “list” of what psychological areas needed
improvement. For example, I have developed a better sense of loving-kindness
towards others because I am beginning to train my mind to be more open to their
adversities; with this said, I score my psychological wellness as a five, going
on six out of ten.
Spirituality has been a main focus
ever since I can remember. Again, specifically
these past few months I have grown and reached a new level of spiritual health
because certain events forced me to assess this domain of my life. Realizing
the power of God has been my comfort place and the entity I turn to; for
example, prayer. I score my spiritual wellness as a seven out of ten.
Assessing my physical health is
something I do on a daily basis. Physically speaking I am in the best shape of
my life because of a major lifestyle change I implemented a few years back. I
would say that was the time I assessed my physical health the most. I remember
looking in the mirror and not being satisfied with what was looking back at me.
Ever since, exercise and proper diet are two areas of my life that I keep on
the top of my priority list; I score this domain as a nine out of ten.
Goal Development
I believe creating goals is a great way
to keep us accountable for our behaviors. My physical goal is to train to run a
marathon; increased aerobic endurance. I set this goal because my fiancé is a
runner and would like to participate in a marathon together. My spiritual goal
is to pray more often than I do now. Prayer is great tool I use to strengthen
my faith and stay spiritually stable. Psychologically speaking, my goal is to
better train my mind in order to experience a better inner peace so that in
time I can foster a greater outer peace.
Practices for personal
health
In order to foster growth
physically, psychologically and spiritually, partaking in certain strategies
and exercises is important. Exercising my physical health can be done at the
gym. One exercise that will keep me accountable and foster growth for my
physical health is running. Another exercise that will aid in my physical
health is signing up for that marathon I previously mentioned. Taking this
action will force me to start the initial marathon training.
Attending church more often will
foster my spiritual growth. Also, reading the Bible is a good strategy to
foster spiritual growth because it opens door to a new and peaceful experience.
One exercise I need to incorporate more into my life in order to implement
growth psychologically is, meditation. Meditation is easy to learn and practice
and can bring inner peace. Meditation is also beneficial for stress reduction
because it brings about a sense of calmness, which balances our emotional and
overall health and well-being. Another exercise that would benefit me
psychologically is practicing the exercise of the subtle mind because it will
lead me towards psychospiritual flourishing. I will implement this exercise by
taking a few moments before bed time and focusing my attention on any negative
thoughts, feelings, and sensations and then slowly releasing them with every
deep breath, creating stillness and a peaceful mind (Dacher, 2006; Mayo Clinic
Staff, 2012).
Commitment
Assessing
our physical, spiritual and psychological progress, whether lack or gain, is
crucial for maintain long-term practices for health and wellness. I will assess
my physical health in six months based off the goal I set of running a
marathon. The assessment technique I will use is simple, did I finish the
marathon or not? Spiritually speaking, I will keep a mental note of my church
attendance and assess my progress in six months. I have a wonderful fiancé and
social network that will keep accountable for attending church because that is
one domain in their life they see as a priority. Assessing my psychological
wellness will be the most difficult, but keeping a journal or a diary is the
best way to accurately assess this area of my life. This way I have “record” of
my thoughts and feelings and I can go back and look six months down the road to
see if I have flourished or not. Using these strategies will help me maintain
my long-term practices for health and wellness because it is something I will
be doing physically that will benefit me consciously, thus creating better
psychological, spiritual and physical health and wellness.
References:
Dacher,
E. (2006). Integral Health. Laguna
Beach, CA: Basic Health Pub.
Health
and Wellness Professional Network. (2012). Retrieved on August 28, 2012
From: http://www.hwpn.org.
Mayo
Clinic Staff. (2010, August). Meditation:
A simple, fast way to reduce stress.
Retrieved on August 28, 2012 from: http://www.mayoclinic.com.
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Unit 8
Hello Everybody,
I found the meditation and visualization exercises the most beneficial because both of the exercises really put my mind into relaxation mode. The meditation exercise was the more difficult out of the two because I can sometimes have a hard time relaxing and concentrating on a specific area of my life. I especially enjoyed the visualization exercise because it made me thankful for the positive people in my life. Being able to visualize those types of people really created a sense of inner peace and thankfulness. These two exercises help with my personal mental fitness because it forces me to outweigh the bad and replace these negative thoughts with positive thoughts. For example, I have started looking at negative situations from a different, more positive perspective. If I am feeling overwhelmed, I am learning to stop, take a second and view the "problem" or situation from a more positive outlook or perspective (glass half full perspective). Being able to function this way has allowed a better self control of my thoughts and feels, which in turn, reduces the stress levels in my life!
-Joncie Winter
I found the meditation and visualization exercises the most beneficial because both of the exercises really put my mind into relaxation mode. The meditation exercise was the more difficult out of the two because I can sometimes have a hard time relaxing and concentrating on a specific area of my life. I especially enjoyed the visualization exercise because it made me thankful for the positive people in my life. Being able to visualize those types of people really created a sense of inner peace and thankfulness. These two exercises help with my personal mental fitness because it forces me to outweigh the bad and replace these negative thoughts with positive thoughts. For example, I have started looking at negative situations from a different, more positive perspective. If I am feeling overwhelmed, I am learning to stop, take a second and view the "problem" or situation from a more positive outlook or perspective (glass half full perspective). Being able to function this way has allowed a better self control of my thoughts and feels, which in turn, reduces the stress levels in my life!
-Joncie Winter
Friday, August 17, 2012
Unit 7
Hello All,
The beginning of this exercise was easy for me because I automatically thought of and visualized my father because he is someone I have great respect for and honor towards. I felt a calmness and peacefulness come about when I was visualizing him and having him as my focal point. I have a great relationship and connection with my dad so this made me feel at ease and not uncomfortable. This exercise made me feel very fortune to have such a great role model in my life, which is beneficial for my psychologically. Being able to recognize the positive people in my life helps me to foster a greater spiritual and psychological wellness.
I think the phrase, "one cannot lead another where one has not gone himself" is very beneficial to health and wellness professionals because sometimes the best advice comes from a person who has been through the exact situation as the one who is currently going through it. For example, my goal is to become a wellness coach post graduation. I foresee having many clients who will want to achieve weight loss. Before starting school, I lost about 25 pounds. I think this will benefit me a lot when trying to help my clients achieve weight loss because I have been down that road before and know the struggles firsthand.
-Joncie Winter
The beginning of this exercise was easy for me because I automatically thought of and visualized my father because he is someone I have great respect for and honor towards. I felt a calmness and peacefulness come about when I was visualizing him and having him as my focal point. I have a great relationship and connection with my dad so this made me feel at ease and not uncomfortable. This exercise made me feel very fortune to have such a great role model in my life, which is beneficial for my psychologically. Being able to recognize the positive people in my life helps me to foster a greater spiritual and psychological wellness.
I think the phrase, "one cannot lead another where one has not gone himself" is very beneficial to health and wellness professionals because sometimes the best advice comes from a person who has been through the exact situation as the one who is currently going through it. For example, my goal is to become a wellness coach post graduation. I foresee having many clients who will want to achieve weight loss. Before starting school, I lost about 25 pounds. I think this will benefit me a lot when trying to help my clients achieve weight loss because I have been down that road before and know the struggles firsthand.
-Joncie Winter
Thursday, August 9, 2012
Unit 6: Integral Assesment
Hello All,
After assessing areas of my life, I came to realize I need to develop a better attitude about some personal relationships in my life, particularly with my brother. My brother is my best friend and he is currently in training in the Army and will become a Green Beret in May of next year. At first, I was upset he decided to join the army because our relationship would not be as close as it has always been. I feared for him and became very overwhelmed with emotion. After completing this exercise, I came to the understanding that no matter where we are psychically in the world, we will always share that "brother-sister" bond, even if he is across seas. This is an area in my life that needs growth and healing because sometimes I do not know how to deal with the stress of him being away, or even the thought he may not ever come home. In order to foster a better awareness of this, I have turned to prayer as an exercise. Prayer keeps me stable and optimistic that he will indeed be alright given whatever situation he may be in. I am blessed to have family and friends who share these same emotions, so keeping positive thoughts in our heads is a big focus for my family.
-Joncie W.
After assessing areas of my life, I came to realize I need to develop a better attitude about some personal relationships in my life, particularly with my brother. My brother is my best friend and he is currently in training in the Army and will become a Green Beret in May of next year. At first, I was upset he decided to join the army because our relationship would not be as close as it has always been. I feared for him and became very overwhelmed with emotion. After completing this exercise, I came to the understanding that no matter where we are psychically in the world, we will always share that "brother-sister" bond, even if he is across seas. This is an area in my life that needs growth and healing because sometimes I do not know how to deal with the stress of him being away, or even the thought he may not ever come home. In order to foster a better awareness of this, I have turned to prayer as an exercise. Prayer keeps me stable and optimistic that he will indeed be alright given whatever situation he may be in. I am blessed to have family and friends who share these same emotions, so keeping positive thoughts in our heads is a big focus for my family.
-Joncie W.
Monday, August 6, 2012
Unit 5 Power Point- new link
Unit 5 Power Point
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B8EA0Q7Tp-7ARmd2VjgtNGxlTkU/edit
this is my Unit 5 Power Point. Hope it works.
-Joncie Winter
this is my Unit 5 Power Point. Hope it works.
-Joncie Winter
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