Unit 10 Final Post....Good luck everybody! :)

Hello all,
In Unit 3, I scored a 5/10 physically, 7/10 psychologically, and 2/10 spiritually.  I now see myself a little better with a 7/10 physically, 8/10 psychologically, and 3/10 spiritually.  I have made small improvements, but I say some is better than none!  As long as I'm not going backwards I think I'll be okay.  Physically, I have been sticking to my 2 mile walks that I complete after work 4-5 days/week.  During these walks, as I have said before, I am also taking in nature by listening to the birds, creek, and seeing some other wildlife.  Besides the snake I saw last week, it has been a very spiritual and relaxing experience for me.  With noticing all of my natural surroundings, I am recentering myself after working all day inside a hospital.  I am reconnecting with nature and sometimes I talk to the Almighty and thank him for my health and the beauty of nature He has given us that is present during my walks.  So, basically I am getting the benefits of exercise which is also hitting on the psychological and spiritual aspects of my goals. Sometimes I read from the Bible, but that hasn't been as regular as I would like yet.  I am definitely making great strides toward my goals and feel proud of myself for it.  This has been a wonderful course and it has greatly helped improve my health and well-being.  It has all been a rewarding experience.  The most difficult parts for me were the meditation exercises, but I will keep working on it and improve with time.  This course has given me a lot of tools to help me on the road to helping others improve their lives as well.  I feel I have a way to go yet, but I hope to one day become a very successful wellness coach for myself and others.    

Unit 9- Final Project- On the Road to Bigger and Better....

It is important for healthcare professionals to develop psychologically, spiritually, and

physically so that they can be the best teachers and healers that they can be for their patients and

clients. We have to be good role models to be able to convince others that what we have learned and

achieved ourselves is worth the time and effort for others to follow to also achieve integral health,

authentic happiness, and genuine wholeness. I hope to someday be a great role model for others to

follow, but I have a ways to go before I can help them. I feel that I am making great strides in mind,

body, and spirit, but not enough to be a great teacher for others, as of yet. I am still developing in all

three areas as far as my personal goals are concerned.

 In assessing my health, I would say I am above average. I am about a 7/10 in all three areas

because I feel that I am becoming more proactive about my well-being, by slowly starting to get on

the right track in the past two years or so. I have been consistent with my workouts lately, improved

eating habits, taking vitamins and flaxseed oil daily, quit smoking two years ago, trying to focus more

on meditation and deep breathing exercises, reading versus in the Bible throughout the week, and

changing my attitude towards people and stressful situations that I come acrossed throughout the day.

I feel I have improved in all of these areas lately and I owe most of it to this class and what I have

learned from it.

 My goals for each area are physically, to lose 10 lbs in the next month and to keep improving on

my energy by continuing to be physically active. Mentally, to improve on my attitude by focusing on

the positive of any and every thing and situation and evolve in my ways to lower stress levels when

stressful situations arise by practicing deep breathing exercises and meditation even more in the next

month. The spiritual part is the most difficult for me, but I would like to start praying every evening

by giving thanks for all of the things that I do have in my life and to begin feeling a stronger

connection in a religious sense. I also want to continue to read passages from the Bible more on a

daily basis instead of just randomly throughout the week by keeping it beside my bed.

 The strategies that I will be using to keep me on track for improving my personal health are to

keep a record of my walking and to stick with my routine. We have a program at work that I started

last week called the “Mile Mover” and you record how many miles you walk each month and at the

end of the month you turn it the paper and are entered for a chance to win a monthly raffle. This is

giving me an incentive to walk everyday after work. I also take a pair of shorts with me to work and

change after I clock out and go to the track that is across the street before I go home. This has been

working out quite nicely. I perform upper body strength training as part of my job, so that part is

easy for me. While I am walking I take in nature, by listening to the birds.  Part of the track is by the

creek so it is a nice after work stress reliever. Sometimes I will see deer, rabbits, etc. while I am

walking. This also contributes to my mental flourishing with the deep breathing and meditative state I

am in with the natural setting. I then come home and get a shower and then I put on some nature

sounds or music and stretch and sometimes just sit and deep breathe again with the room dimly lit.

The spiritual part is still a work in progress, but when I am walking I do think about how beautiful

everything is outside and how wonderful and intelligent God is for creating all of it, so as you can

see, the walking is very beneficial for me physically, mentally, and spiritually. So, physically the

exercises are walking and upper strength training, psychologically would be meditation and deep

breathing exercises, and spiritually are reading the Bible and prayer.

 I will assess my progress in all three areas by keeping a journal and writing in it on a weekly

basis to keep track of my strengths and weaknesses and focus the following week on improving in

these areas. The strategies I will use will be to keep up my journaling and working on ways to

improve and evolve my mind, body, and spirit until I feel ready to teach others and share my journals

so they can see how I came to be the qualified health and wellness professional that I hope to be

someday.

Unit 8- Most beneficial practices...

Hello everyone,
Out of all of the practices we have tried, I will have to go with the Subtle Mind and meditation/prayer to be the most beneficial for me.  I have, and will continue to incorporate them both into my life on a regular basis to help keep my stress levels at bay and to foster my mental fitness.  In just the few times I have used these practices I have noticed a difference in my mood and my outlook on life and the crazy things that happen in it.  I know that if I continue to use these techniques that I will continue to grow mentally, physically, and spiritually.  I hope to help others in the future to learn ways to foster their mental fitness as well and live happier and healthier lives because of it.   

Unit 7....Hello everyone....

I think that the older I get the more appreciative I am of things in my life.  I remember being younger and being angry about all the things I didn't have and now I value the simple things even more than ever.  I think that this class and the meditation exercises have helped me tune in even more to my inner thoughts and feelings and have made me even more aware of the beauty around me.  I have been able to focus more on the positive instead of the negative and I'm trying to notice the good qualities in everything and everyone.  That is how meditation and mindfulness have fostered an increase in my psychological wellness.  I have a ways to go with the spiritual aspect, but I am going to continue to work on it. 
The saying, "One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself," simply means that you can't teach someone something that you don't know anything about or that you haven't experienced on your own.  We must be able to create wellness for ourselves before we can teach and help others. 
I had some difficulty concentrating on this particular exercise.  I'm not good at the visions of light beams, but I did find the ocean sound in the background very soothing.  I have been completing stretches and deep breathing exercises in the evenings and it has helped me to relax more.  I have a long road ahead of me to get to true inner peace and well-being, but I am at a good start and I plan to enjoy my trip and see it as a challenge and adventure. 

Hello Professor and fellow classmates,
The universal loving-kindness practice was nice because it took the spotlight off of myself and shined it out to the rest of the world.  Instead of thinking about my own personal life, it had me wishing good thoughts for everybody.  I do already love myself (most of the time) but I have trouble loving and opening up to others anymore.  I mean, I love my boyfriend, my cats, my family, and a few friends and I, in no way, wish pain and suffering for anyone, it's just hard for me to get close to people and trust them.  I hope to oneday change how I feel and maybe this will be the beginning of me doing that.  For the integral assessment, the psychospiritual is the source of difficulty for me.  I really want to have a closer relationship to the big guy upstairs and I want to have the ability to find calmness, peace, humor, and positivity in any situation that comes my way.  I want to be stronger spiritually.  I will keep practicing the universal loving-kindness exercise as well as prayer and meditation to foster greater wellness in these areas and to oneday achieve these goals.  I hope everyone is having a wonderful Memorial Day weekend...mine, so far, has been very nice!  Blessings and peace to all!  :)   

Unit 5- The Subtle Mind....

Hello everybody,
Well, I just listened to the Subtle Mind and I must say I had a better experience with this than I did with the Loving Kindness.  I enjoyed the Subtle Mind exercise and it really did help to relax my mind.  I did wander off quite a few times, but I was able to bring it all back to the focus of my breathing.  Then, with the sound of the waves in the background, I ended up imagining I was sitting on the sand at the beach, watching the ocean.  So, I guess I did wander off yet again with that image, but it was a very peaceful, calming, and good feeling....and a great start to the control of my thoughts.  I do feel a bit more at ease after that experience and I know with practice, I will show great improvements in my ability to cope with stress in more positive ways.  There is definitely a connection between spiritual wellness with mental and physical wellness.  I truly believe that the spirit, mind, and body are all connected and all play a role in our health and well-being.  I believe that if we learn how to get in touch with our inner spirit, then we will be able to enjoy life and happiness more by not dwelling on stressors all of the time.  I hope everyone else has a good experience with this exercise...we are all a work in progress, and if we spend a little time and effort on ourselves, we can be awesome!!     

Unit 4 Loving-Kindness

Hello everyone,
Well, I just listened to the Loving-Kindness audio exercise and I must say, I need a lot of work in the concentration department.  I think it's a good idea and may be beneficial to others, but not to me, not yet anyway.  I have never really given any type of meditation a try, but that is my goal.  It is hard for me to wish love and kindness to rude people who I don't care for very much, but I am trying to improve in that area.  I have kept my feelings guarded and at a minimum for a very long time now, I think I may have some of the traits of a Type D personality that we are learning about in my Stress class.  It's kind of scary when you learn more about yourself and/or get confirmation of it, but also a good thing because I am hopefully going to learn ways to change for the better.  I want to feel passionate about things (and people) again, but I think I have a ways to go yet.  That's where the mental workout comes into play.  Mental workout is like any other type of workout, it takes practice and determination to get any results.  It is something you have to practice on a regular basis in order to achieve healthy outcomes.  Research has proven that mental workouts are beneficial to our health and well-being.  I think if I incorporate mental workouts into my everyday life, then in time, it will be easier to perform these exercises and easier to open up my heart again.  I hope this doesn't make me sound completely heartless, I do care about people and I don't wish suffering for anyone, it's just not easy for me to express how I feel.  I guess I feel I have to display a tough exterior so I don't seem vulnerable.  I don't know, maybe I'm crazy (ha ha). On that note, I hope all of the mothers out there are having a wonderful Mother's Day!!  :)