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.
No comments:
Post a Comment