Unit 10

1.   Review your unit 3 personal assessment of your psychological, physical, and spiritual well-being. Reflect on these areas. How did you score yourself on a scale from 1 to 10 in unit 3? How do you score yourself now? Has the score changed? Why or why not?

In unit 3 I gave myself the following scores:

          Physical: around a six or a seven – a little better than average but with room for improvement.

          Spiritual: about the same as physical.

          Psychological: undetermined.

Now I would give myself the following scores:

          Physical: same as then

          Spiritual: same as then

          Psychological: an overall score is still difficult to determine, some days being better than others, but overall I think it has improved. I now have some tools that are beginning to even out the differences between the good and bad days

2.   Review the goals and activities you set for yourself in each area. Have you made progress toward the goals? Explain. 3. Have you implemented the activities you chose for your well-being in each of the three areas? Explain.

          Physical: I have not yet found a formal (with instruction) location for exercising so my yoga/pilates is still just what I can get from books/videos but it is going alright. With the weather finally getting cold, being disciplined about going for walks may get difficult.

          Spiritual: I found a small group at church to join once they are done with their current topic.

          Psychological: I found a counseling place nearby that my insurance should cover, so I just need to make an appointment.

4. Summarize your personal experience throughout this course. Have you developed improved well-being? What has been rewarding? What has been difficult? How will this experience improve your ability to assist others?

          While some parts have been difficult and frustrating, overall I have enjoyed this class and I think benefited from it. The most lasting benefit I talked about in this week’s discussion post and do not care to repeat myself here. The Loving Kindness exercise was one of the most frustrating exercises at the beginning but it has become key to some of what I gained and will in time make me better able to help others. 

Unit 9

Introduction
Why is it important for health and wellness professionals to develop psychologically, spiritually and physically?

There are several reasons for health and wellness professionals to emphasize their own psychological, spiritual, and physical development, both for their benefit and their clients or patients benefit. If a professional is perceived as not following their own advice, a client or patient is not as likely to follow the advice either. As a health and wellness professional, we should be models of the pursuit of ideal health in all of its aspects. Also, if we do not take care of ourselves psychologically, spiritually and physically we will not be able to care for others as we should. By continuing our own development we better equip ourselves to help guide others. Furthermore, as people who have studied health and wellness we know, or should know, enough that to disregard these aspects of our own lives is either irresponsible or lazy.

The development of an inner life is the most unique and precious opportunity given to humans. Although there are other intelligent species on the planet, only humans possess what we refer to as a ‘mind’ or a ‘spirit/soul’. To neglect the development of this inner life is, as Dacher says, “to ignore the final aim of human life – the opportunity to alleviate needless suffering and to gain health, happiness, and wholeness” (2006).

What areas do you need to develop to achieve the goals you have for yourself?

I think one of the biggest areas that I need to work on developing currently is interpersonal. I need to get out of the house and get involved in something in my community. I have been thinking of looking for volunteer opportunities on-line. I need to find something that both gets me out of the house and pulls me out of my comfort zone a little bit which should not be hard because my comfort zone is pretty small. I have been thinking volunteer because I believe it would give me a sense of being useful and contributing to the world outside of my immediate family.

Assessment
How have you assessed your health in each domain?

I have a workbook, The Art of Peace and Relaxation Workbook by B. Seaward, that has numerous questionnaires, quizzes etc that are meant to help determine an individual’s physical, spiritual and psychological health and identify problem areas. Without going into detail on the workbook I would give myself the following ratings on a scale of one to ten with ten being ideal:

Physical wellbeing would probably be around a 6 or a 7; in other words, a little better than average but still with room for improvement.

Spiritual wellbeing is probably about the same as physical.

Psychological wellbeing - I do not know what I would rate mine at. Some days would get a higher rating than other days and I am unsure what the average rating would be. There is a quote that I like which sums it up pretty well, “damaged people are dangerous – they know that they can survive.” I tend to see myself as being somewhat damaged, due to depression, anxiety, and a few other things but overall I have survived and will continue to do so.

Goal development
List at least one goal you have for yourself in each area:

Physical: My physical goals are more centered on maintenance than on anything else; I am in decent condition and mainly just do not want to lose what I currently have. For physical activity I am somewhat limited in what I can do by bad knees so I recently began working on endurance and core strength (bicycling, walking and yoga/pilates). I also recently discovered a small fitness center near my home that offers yoga etc that I would like to look into but have not yet found the time to do so.

Psychological (mental health): I would like to start seeing a psychologist again. I am not dealing with any specific issues right now but I know from past experience that I am better off when I meet with someone on a regular basis. Also, I intend to continue doing the Subtle Mind and Loving Kindness exercises that were taught in this course.   

Spiritual: I would like to be more involved in my church than I currently am. I have taught Sunday School and helped out with Wednesday night activities for kids in the past but I would like to be more involved in one of the small groups. There is one study group that I am interested in joining, after they have finished their current topic.

Practices for personal health
What strategies can you implement to foster growth in each of the following domains (Provide at least two examples of exercises or practices in each domain. Explain how you will implement each example):

Physical: An activity to enhance one’s physical wellness can be as simple as going for a walk every day. Any physical activity (when it is enjoyed) can be beneficial in strengthening the body and flushing the body of the chemicals/hormones produced by stress. With this in mind, two exercises or practices that I can do on a regular basis include bicycling and yoga. With winter coming soon, the bicycling will have to be done indoors on a stationary bike but I have access to one so that is not a problem. Yoga I occasionally do but based on books rather than personal instruction. As I mentioned previously, I found a small center that seems to offer this but I still need to look into it more fully.   

Psychological: Meditation is a good way to clear the mind, relax the body and gain greater understanding. Studies have shown physical benefits, in addition to the psychological benefits, of meditation. With these considerations in mind, two exercises or practices I can do on a regular basis include the Subtle Mind and Loving Kindness exercises. I have found that doing anything of this nature in the mornings just puts me to sleep, so afternoon or evening is a better time for me. To keep myself accountable I will be adding them to my progress chart.

Spiritual: Prayer, at its most basic level, is thought(s) directed toward a power or energy beyond that of humans/the five senses. Most people seek a sense of peace, acceptance or a sense of the connectedness of all things from prayer. Prayer can have psychological benefits which lead to or enhance physical well-being. With this in mind, I have decided to work on my prayer life. I have let this area of my life slip over the last two years or so and now feel it necessary to work on strengthening it again. In the past this has been a part of my evening routine so that is when I will take time to pray each day. I am hesitant to add this to my chart because I do not want to do it just for the sake of getting another sticker for the day. So perhaps I will just make a conscious effort to spend time in prayer each evening before I pick up my book.

Commitment:
How will you assess your progress or lack of progress in the next six months?

I can monitor my progress, or lack thereof, through periodically filling out a few of the quizzes in the workbook I mentioned in a previous section and keeping track of the changes.

What strategies can you use to assist in maintaining your long-term practices for health and wellness?

I have found that for me personally, keeping a progress chart is one of the best ways to keep myself focused and motivated. I also like to keep Excel spreadsheets that are similar to my progress charts, but as this is digital and not something I can hang on a wall it is less effective as a motivator and mostly just for future reference. In addition to the progress chart, having someone keep me accountable either by periodically checking on my progress or by doing some of the activities with me is another method which I have found to work well for me.

Unit 8

Choose two practices that you have determined to be most beneficial. How can you implement these practices in your personal life to foster “mental fitness”?

1.    Subtle Mind: I like exercises focusing on the breath. There are a few things about this exercise in particular that I like. First, it can be done anytime, anywhere and for any length of time – the versatility is great. For me, the mental chatter can be so loud and distracting at times; it can feel like I am actually being pulled in several different directions at the same time. In addition to the mental benefits, I like how physically relaxing this exercise can be. Hopefully with continued dedication to doing this exercise daily I will be able to increase my focus and not be so easily distracted.

2.    Loving Kindness: at first I really disliked this exercise. I still cannot honestly say that I like it but I understand it better now and with that understanding has come an appreciation for what it seeks to accomplish (especially the first part of the exercise). For a long time I suppressed emotions; I subconsciously thought that feeling nothing would be better than feeling as lousy as I otherwise tended to feel. Allowing and encouraging myself to feel, even good things, is often difficult. So even though I still have trouble with this exercise I think it will be beneficial for me to continue doing it. 

Unit 7

1.    Meeting Aesclepius: I found this exercise to be kind of weird. First I tried thinking of my grandma who died last year but that was hard and a little creepy. So I made up a figure to focus on, and that went a little better. For the week as a whole, I had trouble staying awake every time I tried to do any of these exercises; I hope I am not going into chronic fatigue/mono stuff again. Other than an increase in this general feeling of peace I do not know how to describe how the mindfulness/meditation has increased my psychological or spiritual wellness. I think I will need to continue to do these practices for a while before I see more benefits.

2.    “One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself.”  I think this quote is pretty self-explanatory, though I am not sure that I completely agree with it. After all, you can give someone directions to a place you haven’t been yourself. They may not be the best directions but they can still be accurate. For health and wellness professionals I think it is beneficial if they follow their own advice but not necessarily mandatory. At this point, I think we know enough about health and wellness (physical, spiritual, and psychological) that it is foolish or lazy to disregard these aspects in our own life regardless of what profession we end up in.

Unit 6

1.   Practice the universal Loving Kindness (meditation) exercise on p. 93.

2.   Complete the Integral Assessment discussed in chapter 11 (p.115).

3.   Describe the exercise and assessment process. What did you discover about yourself? What area have you chosen to be a focus of growth and development? Why? What are some specific exercises or activities that you can implement to foster greater wellness in this area?

So, it was kind of like praying but I don’t think I made it a full ten minutes. I did have a little trouble with the word “all.” There are just so many people in the world that it is hard to wrap my head around. The assessment was harder. For one thing, I do not feel like sharing personal stuff right at this moment. And for another, it is kind of hard to concentrate (not to mention type) with my finger throbbing. So, I am not going to post particulars of what I discovered about myself (although I think on some level I was already aware of it).

Area to be a focus of growth and development: interpersonal. I need to get out of the house and get involved in something in my community. I was thinking of looking for volunteer opportunities – there’s got to be a few good websites for that sort of thing. Something that pulls me out of my comfort zone a little bit which shouldn’t be hard because my comfort zone is pretty small. This last week I called an old friend that I had kind of lost touch with who was always able to get me to do things I wouldn’t otherwise do (but not in a bad way) maybe she will have some ideas too.

Unit 5

1.   Compare and contrast the Loving Kindness exercise and the Subtle mind exercise. Explain your experience including the benefits, frustrations etc.

Loving Kindness: I do not like to say it, but the first half of this exercise is completely wasted on me. It does not seem to matter how many times I try it, I just do not get it. I have been doing a little better with the second half of the exercise. I still find the whole concept weird but as I said, it is getting a little better.

Subtle Mind: In general I like breathing exercises, even if they do sometimes make me a little dizzy. This exercise comes more naturally to me; I think because I have instinctively done something very similar for a long time now.

2.   Discuss the connection of the spiritual wellness to mental and physical wellness. Explain how the connection is manifested in your personal life.

I suspect that a lot of people instinctively know/feel that there is more to human life than the physical body and the mind; there are many names for this third aspect but spirit is the one that I have grown up hearing and using. I have a really hard time putting this into words. That spiritual, mental, and physical are interconnected has always been a given assumption/belief for me – how do you explain something that just is. I have dealt with anxiety and depression for many years now. I do not think I need to go into the physical or mental effects of depression here. I have been thinking about it a lot lately and I really do not believe that the fact that I still continue to have anxiety & depressive symptoms reflects a spiritual deficiency in my life (at least not a major one). I think if I was less spiritually aware/developed it would be worse, but I also believe there is still room for growth.

Unit 4

1.        Describe your experience. Did you find it beneficial? Difficult? Why or why not? Would you recommend this to others? Why or why not?

2.        What is the concept of "mental workout"? What does the research indicate are the proven benefits of a mental workout? How can you implement mental workouts to foster your psychological health?

1.    Describe your experience: I’m sorry but I have a really hard time with this sort of thing. I am not comfortable with it and therefore have a hard time taking it seriously. The relaxation/breathing exercises that have you focus on relaxing specific body parts etc are so much easier. The whole “faucet of loving-kindness” has no significant meaning to me. Once they start adding stuff about emotions and visualizations of suffering, wholeness, peace, etc I get completely lost. (If you haven’t yet noticed/figured it out – anything to do with focusing on emotions is hard for me. It is too vague and intangible) The best part was what sounded to me like waves on a beach and some faint pipe/flute music during the pauses. Would I recommend this to someone? That would depend entirely on the person and their needs.

2.    Mental workouts: Making myself do something like this particular exercise repeatedly is definitely a workout. I totally understand and agree with what Dacher says about many relaxation techniques providing short-term benefits only (that has always been one of my problems with them – shortly after completion the calm feeling is gone). In theory I can see how this exercise may prove to be more lastingly beneficial than some others I have tried. But for me personally…I do not know. I am trying to keep an open mind but that is the best I can say for it so far.

unit 3

1)    Ratings

Physical wellbeing would probably be around 6 or 7; in other words, a little better than average but still with room for improvement. Spiritual wellbeing is probably about the same as physical. Psychological wellbeing - I do not know what I would rate mine at. Some days would get a higher rating than other days. “Damaged people are dangerous – they know that they can survive.” I would say that this applies to me but I do not know what sort of rating to give it.

2 & 3) Goals and Activities

For physical activity I am somewhat limited in what I can do by bad knees so I recently began working on endurance and core strength (bicycling, walking and yoga/pilates). Spiritual goal/activity: it would be nice to be more involved in my church. I go every week but I have not been involved in any of the small groups in the last couple of years. Tomorrow I will ask around to see if help is needed anywhere in particular or if there is a study group that might be interesting. Psychological goal/activity: nothing in particular comes to mind for a goal. I think I would like to start seeing a psychologist again. I am not dealing with any specific issues right now but I know from past experience that I am better off when I meet with someone on a regular basis.

  

4)  Crime of the Century

Occasionally guided relaxation exercises are nice but lately I have just found them to be annoying and frustrating. I am not sure how to put it into words. The “soothing” voice that the person tries to use just gets my back up and makes me want to be stubborn and do the opposite.

still unit 2 - relaxation exercise

Finally got the link to work - something about missing a plug-in. I did not get much out of the exercise. Perhaps I am just in too much of a contrarian mood. Every few seconds I am getting that irritating error message again. So I am giving up for now and will try again later.

Unit 2

I think I subscribed to other blogs through the reading list function. I have not had time to get everyone on there yet but I started the process. I could not get the "journey to relaxation" link to work - too bad because this blog thing has me so wound-up I could use the help relaxing. I keep getting an error message so I do not want to type anything else at the moment for fear of losing it and having to start over.