Introduction

                As a health and wellness professional it is important to develop psychologically, spiritually and physically in order to maintain a balanced and healthy lifestyle. When we focus all of our attention to healing one area of our lives, the other areas begin to suffer and when any one area of our lives suffers it in turn affects the areas that we once thought were healthy. We must focus on maintaining a healthy balance in our lives. We must give our minds the time and attention they need in order to destress and clear from the busy lives we sometimes live. We must make time for ourselves even when for some of us our lives revolve around caring for others. We can cause permanent damage to our minds and bodies if we do not properly care for them.

                In my personal life all along I have felt that it was my spiritual side that needed the most work, but as time passes I am finding that it is not my spiritual side that is lacking as much as it is mental health in general. I don’t exercise my mind like I should or do mental workouts. I don’t distress or de-clutter my mind properly. I have been interested in meditation for a long time, but have never practices regularly. I find it much more rewarding as well as easier for me to help heal others regularly rather than to deal with my own life stressors and care for myself. Some may think this is a negative quality, others a positive quality for a nurse to have and for me I simply just think of it as part of myself and who I have become and something I will continue to work on.

Assessment

                Personally I assess my health and wellness in each domain with how secure I feel in that area. Am I strong in that area? Do I feel as solid as a stone or are there still cracks in my stone that are coming together? Is this an area that I feel I have mastered? Personally I don’t feel that until I have every domain of my life in check and my mind, body and spirit are running as a well-oiled machine that I have anything mastered. I believe there is always room to be made for personal growth and development. Currently I feel secure with all areas of my life, but not solid spiritually or in some emotional aspects.

                I don’t place a “score” on my wellness spiritually, physically or psychologically. A score is what I look for in a game, but nut a number I wear on my mind or on my back. I have filled out questionnaires that have asked me to rate my health on a zero to ten scale, and these are such subjective questions. Can we define what perfect health is and what having a middle of the line type of body and mind is? If that was the question with a definition I might fail, but I don’t “score” myself as failing. I am satisfied with simply saying I am content with my life, my life is not perfect but nor is it miserable my mind is not unstable, but on the road of mend on a daily bases after the repairs have begun from what I have subjected it to each and every day.

Goal development

                Physically my goal is to participate in physical activity for 60 minutes 3-5 times weekly. This is my goal for strength and toning as well as for my Psychological health which also benefits from the satisfaction of working out. Psychologically I plan on not only focusing on working out physically, but also to become comfortable with meditation. My ultimate goal would be meditating for at least 15-20 minutes daily, but for more realistic goal at this time I focus on trying to meditate 2-3 times weekly for 15 minutes each. Spiritually I plan on finding a new church where I feel comfortable. Focusing on my spirit and finding what feels right for me and my religion, and connecting myself with God and living a life driven more by religion then by myself.

Practices for personal health

                I joined a fitness center where I really enjoy working out and enjoy the people that I am in class with. The people you go to class with may not seem like it should be a big deal, but if they make you uncomfortable or they cause your mind more stress and your body more tension then for me it is greatly taking away from your experience. I also chose two different workouts that I enjoy one being very structured while the other is more fun and energetic. Psychologically I can participate in free sessions and join local meditation groups with people that can give advice and words of recommendation. There are also always books available as well as CD’s. Spiritually a currently feel incomplete as I don’t belong to a church or organization and I haven’t found one that I am comfortable with yet. Finding a place to call “home” would help as well as reading and prayer for spiritual healing.

Commitment

                Assessments can be made by looking at how often I am missing fitness class or how many times  am putting off meditation. Tracking my progress in a planner to maintain my commitment and to help with holding myself accountable would be a good tool of success for me personally. Spiritually, making a list of churches to visit and sticking with the commitment to try them would assist in the hunt. There are many ways to hold ourselves accountable and tracking to see if we continue to be successful.

                A good way to make sure we make sure we continue on our path to a holistic and healthy life might be to set away one day a year in order to put ourselves back in check and make sure we maintain a healthy focus. One day to evaluate where we are in our status, view our goals, reset goals if needed and to get started.