1.      We have all heard the phrase, “You must practice what you preach”.  I would say that most people would agree with this statement, but the question is why?  Why is it important for wellness professionals to develop psychologically, physically, and spiritually?  Empathy is something that is important in many aspects of life, but becomes even more when you have the task of guiding someone through development.  A wellness professional must have the knowledge to direct someone who has come to them, but knowing what they are going through and feeling, because of personal experience is invaluable.  If wellness professionals have never walked down the path they are trying to send people down, they will have a hard time connecting with the client, and also displaying any passion for the subject.  The definition of leadership is the ability of influencing others to accomplish a mission by providing purpose, direction, and motivation.  Motivating clients can be tricky, but in my opinion passion and excitement is the best way to motivate.  People can see when someone cares about what they are doing as it shines through in everything they do.  A wellness professional may be effective without truly developing psychologically, physically, and spiritually, but will never reach their full potential as a mentor.

2.      Before I can assess my spiritual, physical, and psychological health, I must define spirituality and physical and psychological health.  When this class first started, I would have said I was not spiritual, I am in good shape, and psychologically I am fine.  This is simply just not true.  There weren’t really any new methods of judgment that were used, but the way I perceive myself has changed.  Spiritual health, the domain in which I thought I had scored the lowest, is actually my strongest suit, as I believe it is in all of us, if allowed to shine through.  We have all been in a situation before where we made a conscious choice to help someone.  In this situation, there would be no consequence for not helping, and zero incentive to help.  That drive and instinct that pushes us to help others is our spirit, and if we train ourselves to approach all aspects of our lives, with our spirits leading the way, we inevitably treat everyone that comes across our paths with loving-kindness.  I have also learned that I used to judge my physical health mostly on body composition.  I maintain a pretty decent physique throughout the year, but I have learned that I am not healthy just because of that.  I need to pay more attention to my macro and micronutrient intakes, as well as my sodium and cholesterol.  Psychological health assessment I save for last, as I truly have a lot of work to do here.  I have experienced some traumas in my life that I have never dealt with, I am not sure how that has affected me throughout my life, but plan to address these issues, and will definitely note the impact.

3.      My physical health goal is simple, begin to eat in a way that will help my body.  I have always paid close attention to what I eat, but only in a caloric budget sort of  way, with maintaining a certain look being my focus.  This goal should not be very hard for me to accomplish, as I am educated when it comes to the principles of nutrition, I just need to make it a priority.  Spiritually, my plan is to connect with others on a spiritual level.  The first step to doing that is meeting some like-minded individuals.  The only way to accomplish that goal, is discussing things of spiritual nature with people.  Not only is it great to be surrounded by other spiritual people, but learning new ideas and ways to expand my own spirituality as well.  I plan to improve my psychological health by changing the way I react to certain things.  Anger is an emotion I feel every day, but strangely enough, it is usually just when I am driving.  The fact that these incidents occur under the same circumstances, it will be easier to focusing reacting to things in a more effective and positive manner.

4.      I plan to focus more on the overall healthiness to the foods I eat.  I am not a planner or scheduler, so I will not be making any lists.  I want to be able to approach any situation knowing that I not only have the knowledge to make a healthy nutritious choice, but also the discipline.  Focusing on cooking more meals at my home will also have an impact there.  Taking the time to season things with spices, herbs, and vegetables will replace firing up the ol’ George Foreman grill.  Spiritual growth only happens through practice.  Spending an afternoon working in my front yard, washing the cars, or even going on a long run, will all bring me satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment, but not that spiritual happiness that many are missing.  That feeling inside that swells inside of us when we are able to put a smile on someone else’s face by selflessly helping them is a spiritual experience.  An effort must be made to volunteer, and also encourage others to volunteer.  Psychological growth can sometimes be difficult without guidance.  I plan to change my perspective on certain things in life, and also not take others actions so personally, as they generally have nothing to do with me.

5.      I am not sure if assessing one’s progress when it comes to physical, psychological, and spiritual growth is that important.  I think assessing the growth as a priority in one’s life is important, also, how much effort and thought is put into development.  I do not think there needs to be a scale where a score is kept, because the journey to wholeness can last a long time.  Also, I feel like grading and evaluating can cause a person to be content, as one looks back on the progress that has been made.  There needs to always be a hunger to improve oneself, and the integral vow must always be kept.

      

The most beneficial practices so far, have been loving-kindness, and the subtle mind.  It is actually a hybrid of the two for myself.  I can focus solely on breathing for a short period of time, usually about one minute, that makes it easier for me to start the loving-kindness exercise.  I have actually begun to use the loving-kindness exercise on a regular basis, a shortened version, or combat version.  I have been able to envision my "happy place" while still carrying on a conversation, and this has proved to be very helpful.  I deal with the general public on a daily basis and depending on frustration levels, communication can become difficult.  Taking the time out during the day to do some visualization has really helped.

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I had a much tougher time this week with the practicing of the subtle mind, when compared to the exercise from last, loving-kindness.  There was more direction with the first exercise, as it was easier to visualize a loved one and focus on that.  When focusing on my breath only, as the exercise predicted, my mind began to wander.  I had a hard time holding my focus on my breath.   With practice, I could see this exercise being beneficial, as it will help remove negative thoughts, and also slow my mind down.  I actually would probably pursue this technique over the loving-kindness, as I like a challenge, and tend to think that the more difficult things are, usually there is a bigger reward.


The connection between physical and mental health to spiritual health is a difficult one for me.  I actually see it as the missing piece for most people.  Being spiritually well brings light to many parts of life.

Loving-kindness

Practicing Loving-kindness is an awesome way to alleviate potential stress by changing the way we may react to situations.  I believe that the state of mind and clarity that can be reached during these exercises, may help keep negative reactions out of sight and out of mind.  Other people can feel the way we are thinking and our energies as well.  So taking fifteen minutes out of our day to think about things, may also change the way that other people react to us.  I would say the only thing that is difficult about this kind of exercise is making it a routine.  I have done this kind of thing for years, in a reactionary way, almost taking a timeout after something had happened.  This kind of psychological preemptive strike could be beneficial to anyone.


Research is indicating that this type of mental exercise can lead us past the psychological steps of loving-kindness.  If we naturally begin to understand that other people's reactions towards us, tend to have more to do with them and their inner dramas, the more we can do to improving relationships.  The more naturally loving-kindness comes to us, more purpose and intent can be put to better use.


 

Unit 3 (Self-Awareness)

1.  On a scale of 1-10 I would rate my physical wellbeing at about a 9.  While my physical fitness by most standards are probably pretty good, I could be more fit.  Outside of that though, I am healthy, able-bodied, and generally feel well physically.  I would rate my psychological wellbeing at about a 7.  Most people I know tend to get irritated with certain things in life, I am not unlike most people in this sense, but I tend to get over things pretty quickly.  I am a problem solver, so although I can become stressed like anyone, I tend to operate best when challenged.  Spirituality is a little bit tougher for me to judge on a scale between one and ten.  I am not religious, and that is the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about spirituality.  So I guess a big fat zero.

2.  Physically I would like to be bigger, stronger, and faster.  That's not asking for too much, right?  Psychologically I would love to always be able to maintain my cool.  Things happen during the day that I know don't hold a lot of significance, but still find a way to irritate me.  I would love to be able to just shrug them off, and only spend as much energy on them as they are worth.

3.  If I want to get bigger, stronger, and faster.  I have to work harder, and more often.  I can't keep thinking about it, I have to be about it.  I think I am still in the contemplation phase.  Psychologically, I would love to just be able to see things for what they are.  When someone cuts me off, no harm is being done to me, so I should just be able to move on like it didn't happen.  Literally contemplating these things when they happen, as opposed to just reacting would help a lot.

4.  The exercise was not irritating or frustrating, but I do not think that it was very beneficial for me.  I do believe that I could benefit from relaxation techniques, but being talked through the process is not for me.  I begin to think about following directions too much.