I feel that it is important for health
and wellness professionals to be connected to one’s self. It would be very beneficial
for both new and old health care professionals to take this course to develop
and also maintain optimal health. The health care area is very stressful and
there needs to be a maintenance package for the individual because if the
professional is stressed they cannot help the patient to better them.
For me personally I still need to
develop in each of the areas. I need to expand psychologically and learn to distress
daily, I am getting better at this but it is a must to do it every day as to
enter each and every task at hand with a solid mental state.
For me spiritually I do need to connect
more with God. I do not go to church every Sunday and for me that works well, I
just need to talk to God more often. I feel that where ever you talk to God
that is right for you, you will want to do it more. I feel that if I talked to
him everyday instead of every few days or when he is a must in my life that I
will build a better image with him and I will not feel as though I only call on
him when I am in need. I also must remember to thank him instead of ask from
him.
As far as the physical part I feel I
have got a good handle on that. I walk every single day.
This same question was ask of me on February
17, 2012 and the answers I gave that day are: My optimal well
being for physical would be an 8 because I feel I am pretty balanced and I do
not think I am overly stressed by my lifestyle. My spiritual well being would
be a 5 because I do not practice faith like others, I do not go to church every
Sunday, but I do go for major spiritual holidays like Christmas and Easter.
Could I be better at going, yes, and I am working on that. Now my psychological
well being is a high 8, simply because there is room for improvement on
distressing, but by walking and exercising I feel that this is a great way to
distress.
Now to asses my current ratings, my
physical aspect would be an 8 still simply because I am getting better but I am
not at a level higher than that. It will take me being excepted into the YMCA
and actively going daily to see this rating go up, other than that as far as
the stressful nature of my lifestyle I still do not see me as being overly
stressed but since I am more aware of it, this rating may change in the near
future. My spiritual rate is a 6 just because I talk to God more frequently. I
still have not starting going to church to worship, I do make an effort to talk
to him at least four times a week now. As for the psychological rating, I would
still say I am a high 8. I still have not mastered the distressing part of it,
but I am working on it. I have taken up Krav Maga which has taught me a lot, because
in the beginning of each class the instructor makes us meditate for 20 minutes
before the beginning of the lesson as to free us of all distractions and have
us start with an open mind so we can fully take in everything from that day’s
lesson. There will always be room for improvement
on these ratings because there is never a perfect trend. I will continue to try
to meditate outside of my Krav Maga class to distress more often, so maybe I
can get to a place in the future where I am mostly stress free. Spiritually I want
to be on a speaking level with God daily, not so much church, just speaking to
him daily. Physically I want to be in a routine at the YMCA for at least a year
before I reassess my rating. I have a workout partner ready I am just waiting
to hear if I am accepted.
In
the physical area the main goal for me is to get back on a daily workout schedule
so I can get strong and lean again. It is not so much about losing weight but
just being tone. I would also like to become more flexible. When I was younger
and before my knee injury I was very flexible so I would like to get back there
again. Also strengthen my core. I have 3 lower discs that are bad so I need to
get a strong core so I do not throw my back out anymore.
As
far as my psychological assessment the one main goal is to be more stress free.
I need to do this because I need to be able to distress easily. Some of the exercises
are hard for me to grasp. I think I need more practice. I need to start to
practice the exercises from past units like the loving kindness exercise or the
visualization exercises.
Spiritually
I think I am pretty good but do have one goal and that is to talk to God every day.
To define the goal a little better I want to talk to him as well as thank him
instead of just asking for him when I need something. I need to just open up
and talk freely to him as though he was on the phone.
In
the physical domain I can implement a daily workout routine which I will make a
spreadsheet list each of the days of the week and make boxes almost like a calendar,
in fact I will purchase a calendar and list items to do each day and then
designate one day off per week. For example Sunday will be leg strengthening,
cardio and yoga. Monday will be swimming laps, cycling, and a 30 minute cardio
class. Tuesday will be arms, abs, and yoga. Wednesday will be Krav Maga,
walking, buns and thighs. Thursday will be stretching, running and swimming.
Friday will be strength, cardio, arms. Finally Saturday will be a free day and
I can pick whatever it is I feel I need to work on that day. I can also
implement a stream lined eating routine to couple with the workout routine. I
need to get more lean protein in my diet especially since I will be working out
quite heavily. Also my daily water intake must come up. I need to be drinking a
gallon a day and as of right now I’m lucky if I drink any. I also need to start
to make a weekly meal plan. I recently purchase a meal planning service called that
lets me pick the meals for the week and then prints off a complete grocery
list, so I am excited to start that. They also list the calorie intake along
with a bunch of other facts. To go along with this strategies I have also
installed an application (app) for my cell phone and through this app
it takes my height and weight and then my goal weight and I can enter the food I
eat and the amount I exercise and it figures out for me where I am at with all
my daily intake which is very helpful to see where I am at each day and then
they send me a report each week showing me where I am over and why.
My
psychological domain I would have to say that the first strategy would be to distress
more. I feel that I can distress more through meditation and yoga. I plan to continue
to take Krav Maga with the hope of becoming certified. The second strategy is to practice
loving-kindness to everyone. My goal is to smile at everyone I walk past. I
want to be able to make just one persons day a little better by smiling at
them.
Now
for my spiritual domain I would have to say that the first aspect to implement
is talking to God more. I must make time each night even if it is while I am in
the shower to just talk to him, thank him for what I have and just talk about
the day. I actually think that is going to be my new thing, in the shower
talking to God because in my busy life schedule it just makes sense and I need
to shower everyday so in turn I need to talk to God every day as well, it is a
perfect reminder. The second practice kind of goes with the first one, but it
is to thank God. I do a lot of asking from him but never thanking him for much
if anything in life. I feel that if I thank him at the beginning of each time I
talk to him I am giving him gratitude.
I
feel the easiest way for me to track my progress is on my cell phone. I always
have my cell phone with me so I will not forget to keep track. I just
downloaded an application that is like a notepad but it is set up like a daily calendar
so I can write in it and sync it to my computer. After tracking it on the
application and syncing it to my computer I will then up load it all into an
Excel document so I can put it in a pie chart to see where I have been doing well
and then the areas that are not so good. I believe that if I can do it daily
for 6 months that it will become a life style habit. I also feel that the
easiest way to maintain a new life style is to include everyone in the family
so that way I am not alone and I have to lead by example.
