Goals

As of now, I feel that I probably still rate at a 7 in both physical and psychological. As for spiritual, I have been going to church every Sunday, and am getting closer to God, so I think I have earned at least one point for that! To reach physical health, I hope to start an exercise regimen soon, as well as eat a little better and try to get more sleep each night, or at least take a small nap during the day. For psychological, I am working on the de-stressing, and am going to make time each day, if only for a few minutes, to tune the world out and focus on my mind to relax. This course has made me more aware of my self, physically, psychologically, and spiritually. I will try to improve my health and well-being in each area, even as this class ends.

Personal Application

Kamala Probst-Unit 9 Project

I.                    Introduction

It is important for health and wellness professionals to develop psychologically, spiritually, and physically because a patient needs and expects to see that from a healthcare provider. It is important to maintain good health in all three aspects of our whole self. A person who cannot take proper care of him or herself cannot be taking the best care of another person. To achieve the goals I have for myself, I need work in all three areas. To develop psychologically, I would like to spend more time alone with my mind by meditating or doing other relaxing practices. To develop spiritually, I would like to spend more time praying each day, and also just being more kind in general. Physically, I think I eat pretty well, but I could try a little harder. I also would like to get back into exercising, because I feel a lot better when I am exercising regularly.

II.                 Assessment

In each domain, I feel that I am very average. I would give myself a score of 5 (if it is between 1 and 10) in each area: Spiritual, Psychological, and Physical. This is because I feel that I am somewhat developed in these areas, but by no means the best I can be. There is definite room for improvement in all three areas.

III.               Goal Development

Physical-eat more vegetables and exercise at least every other day for at least 30 minutes each day.

Psychological-find time to meditate each day, even if just for a few minutes

Spiritual-find time to pray at least once more each day

IV.              Practices for Personal Health

Physical-Eat one more serving of vegetables a day. I will buy more produce at the store and find different recipes to make. Join the gym and go for 30 minutes every other day. I will try to make this a routine to become accustomed to.

Psychological-Each morning when I wake up, before getting ready for work I can go sit in the living room, close my eyes and meditate. I could also do this practice right before bed, or maybe when my kids are napping.

Spiritual-Each morning when I wake up, before getting ready for work and before or after I meditate, I can say a short prayer to God, and ask for a blessed day. At night before I go to bed, I can say an extra prayer of thanks for a blessed day.

V.                 Commitment

To assess my commitment to each of the goals I have set for myself, I could make a chart with each goal listed. I could maybe use a calendar so that I can see each day, and write the three goals on each day and check them off when I complete it. I think if I do this and set it in a place I see every day, I will be reminded often, and soon each goal will just be part of my daily routine. After six months, I feel that I would be so used to completing each goal daily that I will stick with it (I hope!) This will better me as a whole person, inside (psychologically), out (physically), and invisibly (spiritually).

Meeting Aesclepius

This practice was a little strange, and kind of difficult for me to do because I could not concentrate very well. I lose my train of thought when the breaks with the waves and music goes on and on, so I seem to always fast forward instead of staying focused. I have really not had a chance to meditate besides what I do for this class, but I hope to try at some point.
The saying "One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself" definitely applies to the health and wellness professional. I hate feeling like I am being preached to about something from a person that seems to be reading straight from a textbook instead of from experience. Not that I am saying I hope to learn from someone who has gone through something bad in order to be on the same page about it, but it helps when what you are learning about is being talked about by someone who truly knows the subject, even if it is not from direct personal experience. I think a health and wellness professional should strive to live healthy and well as best as he can, if not for himself than for his clients too. A patient would not like to see his healthcare provider in failing health because he does nothing about it. The same goes for mental health. I have never been a mental health patient, but if my therapist seemed crazy to me, I would make me wonder why he is a therapist when he can not even care for his own mental health.

Subtle Mind

I found the subtle mind exercise a little more difficult to do than the loving-kindness. With the loving-kindness, you actually imagine all the people you love and visualize taking away their suffering. WIth the subtle mind, you are essentially trying to tame all random chaotic thought that happens to wander in. I could not really concentrate enough to achieve any results. I understand the benefits of this exercise, but I think it will take a lot of practice to achieve, and a lot of awareness to make it happen all the time.

Being spiritually well can translate into becoming mentally and physically well, because it is all connected in some way. If we are spiritually healthy, we are very aware of it mentally, and being mentally healthy in turn can create physical health because we are no longer tied down to the negativity of a closed mind and closed spirit. We can let the daily stress and other negativity roll off and away from us rather than letting it in and dwelling on it. I really need to practice this because I let myself become stressed so easily, when it is just as easy to not allow stress to affect me.

Loving-Kindness

This was an interesting exercise. I think I will have to try again because I could not concentrate very well with my kids crawling all over me! I understand the point of it though, and I think it would relax me and make me feel like I have control over my loving-kindness.

The concept of a "mental workout" is just the same as a physical workout at the gym, but instead this is an internal workout of the mind. I would think a mental workout would be beneficial, as long as you can find the time/patience/quiet to do so. I would maybe have to do this in the morning since I wake up so early, and am up way before my kids get up.

Well-being

On a scale from 1 to 10, I give myself a 7 in physical well-being, a 5 in spiritual well-being, and a 7 in psychological well-being. This is because I am not whole in any area, and each could definitely use some improvement. A goal for physical well-being is to exercise. I do not exercise at all! (unless you count chasing kids around!) A goal for spiritual well-being is to go to church more often. I am Catholic, and I used to be an avid church-goer. Now I find myself going to church rarely. A goal for psychological well-being is to relax more to become less stressed. I stress out daily for many reasons, no matter how small. This has got to stop! Activities I could do to reach my physical well-being goal are to exercise at least a few times a week, get more sleep each night, and eat better. To reach my spiritual well-being goal, I will try to go to church as often as I can; at least on Sundays! To achieve my goal of psychological well-being, I will find a way to de-stress, or perhaps try not to stress out in the first place. I can talk myself out of worrying by practicing relaxation techniques, such as meditating or reading (which I already do!)

Journey On

When I first started listening to the relaxation exercise, I was a little bit skeptical. However, I did what the person said to do, and I found that it was working! I was telling my body to draw the blood from my abdomen into my arms and hands, and saying "My arms and hands are warm and heavy". I do not know which did it, but soon my arms and hands were tingling and feeling, well warm and heavy! I think I will incorporate this if I am ever stressed out or need to cool down, and if I have a few moments to myself. It really did relax me, if only for a few minutes!