Unit 10

I would still rate myself an 8 spiritually since I am a spiritual person.  I rate myself a 7 in physical cause I like to push myself when it comes to physical training.  I have been training for my 10K in April and on some days I am not motivated to do so.  Other days I am a go getter.  I handle stressful situations better and have gained better control of understanding how I am feeling. I have seen a lot of improvement in being whole in the last few months in regards to my professional and personal life. I am now open to new ideas and expansion with regard to my overall well-being. I rate myself a 7 mentally because I have all these small projects that take up so much of my time that I find it hard to manage time for myself.  So when this week is done, I can sit back and relax and practice some calm abiding moments or just taken time for myself.  My scores hasn't changed much from last week because I have just been preoccupied with other things.   I have not made progress yet because I am trying to finish classes this week.  But I am setting up goals next week like adding an extra 30 min on one of the days in a week and adding Pilates to it.

This course has definitely improved my personal health and wellness for many reasons. It has taught me the benefits of achieving good health habits and practices. It has also helped me identify the regular stressors in my life and the way I can deal with them. I have also maintained regular physical activity and keeping a check on my eating habits. A positive total outlook on life is very essential to my wellness because I feel I can accomplish anything. I set aside some time to enjoy leisure time, spiritual time, time to exercise, take the time to be socially involved and have a positive emotional mental outlook.

I hope everyone enjoyed this class as I did and I wish everyone success in their future.
 

Integral health assessment

It is important for health and wellness professionals to develop psychologically, spiritually, and physically because it helps them to better understand themselves first and then be of better assistance when working with their clients. They can pinpoint problems that a client may have and address any arising situations. They need to be role models, determined, energetic, show empathy and credibility so that clients can feel comfortable with them by their actions and what they preach.  The areas that I need to develop to achieve these goals for myself are in all three areas (psychologically, spiritually, and physically) along with health, happiness, and wholeness. In addition, love, forgiveness, and gratefulness are critical components to wellness because they are all ways to make me feel better and I am able to clear my negative thoughts. These concepts can be integrated in my life by making sure I take the time to love those around me, forgive those who I may have hurt, and be very grateful for all that I am blessed with. All these areas will help in my journey along the path of integral health and well-being. My goals are in work in progress.  I need to grow in every level, spiritually by a closer walk with God, physically by practicing healthy behaviors like eating nutritiously and exercising four or five times a week.  I also need to grow psychologically by sharpening my mind and staying focused in my goals.

II. Assessment – How have I assessed my health in each domain? How do I score my wellness spiritually, physically and mentally? I first make a mental list of which area needs attention. Depending what is going on at certain points of my life, I select an area that needs some adjusting in the specific lines of development. Using a scale of 1 – 10 with one equaling the lowest and 10 the highest score available,I rate my spiritual level a seven. I am a spiritually based person so this area was neither new to me or hard to grasp.  My spirituality  has increased significantly since taking this course. I used to only think of myself and my family. Now I am including those around me and far from me throughout the world in regards to my spirituality.  I pray when I drive, before I go to bed as well as when I am at work.

Physically I scored  and eight. I live a fairly healthy lifestyle. I am aware of what I am eating and I engage in healthy physical activities on a daily basis. My body is in good health, rarely getting sick and maintaining good physical strength.
Psychologically I scored a seven in this too. I have learned how to increase my psychological score and continue to practice and improve. I used to think differently before I this class, I didn't think mind/body was connected and closely related.  I now have a different perspective and have a completely different outlook on how I should think.  I handle stressful situations better and have gained better control of understanding how I am feeling.  I have seen a lot of improvement in being whole in the last few months in regards to my professional and personal life.

III. Goal Development – List at least one goal I have for myself in each area 

Spiritually - Recently, I bought a 365 days devotional planner and I plan to journal and put this in practice every day.  I plan to study the bible every morning and evening, learn scriptures and verses and encourage my kids in learning to pray daily as it is important in our family.  Physically - I will strength 2 times a week, go on longer hikes as the trails in Colorado are very majestic and it is great to have the calm abiding moment when I am on top of the hill.  I like to incorporate Pilates with stretch exercises daily and strength exercises every other day.  I will add running five days a week for 30-45 minutes, incorporating warm-up before and cool-down afterwards with Pilates, or strength exercises every other day.

 Mentally: I plan to set time everyday for myself at least 15 or 30 minutes a day whether it's relaxing or meditating so as to release any stressful events. I would like to set aside some time and be able to read more books and engage in social network activities.  

IV. Practices for Personal Health – What strategies can I implement to foster growth in each of the following domains; physical, psychological and spiritual? Provide at least two examples of exercises or practices in each domain. Explain how you will implement each example.

Practices implemented for spiritual activity include: pray with and for others, study the bible, share my faith, and learn lessons from nature and life experiences. I pray for all close and far family members for their good health and ask that they be blessed every day.  I pray for others in my daily devotional prayer time as intercessory prayer for needs and spiritual enlightenment. I pray for God's intervention and wisdom.  These life experiences help me to trust more and more in a closer walk with Christ. With that being said, I feel humble, and I am able to help others with their needs.   I already go to church every Sunday and I plan to volunteer with church activities and other events in my church.

For physical health practices I will walk or run 30-40 minutes daily outside in the fresh air and sunshine and if weather permits, the elliptical will work. Before this class I used to take long hikes with my family now I will include walking with friends and join a running club which will help me to network with other people. Besides Pilates and strength training, I have been in favor of martial arts for a long time so I will implement Karate in as part of my physical training.

For my mental practice, I would like to implement prayer meditation by memorizing scripture and Bible verses and listen to Journey On and practice Subtle Mind exercises to free the mind and create peace.  I would also like to visualize during stressful events to get my mind off the negative thoughts causing distress. Since it's been snowing where I live, I have been not taking my dog for longs walks like I used to in the summer.  I would like to spend more time taking my German short-haired pointer for long walks.  Pets have unconditional love and this can help with my mental health as far as tension and improve mood.  They make great companions and it can be a great social networking.  Last summer when I used to take my dog to the dog park, I socialized with many dog owners while walking my dog.  Pets are natural icebreakers and other pet owners love to talk about their animals.   I have always had the love to share.  I love to teach whether to my kids, friends or family.  Teaching others about what I have learned will assure long-term success and improvement. I find that when I share what I have learned with others, I not only retain what I have learned, but it motivates me to continue learning and spreading the news.

V. Commitment - How will I assess my progress or lack of progress in the next six months? What strategies can I use to assist in maintaining my long-term practices for health and wellness? Time management was and still is a biggest challenge for me. When I am complete this semester, I have ample time to put these goals into practice! I will find the time of day that best fits applying these practices, so that I can continue to make the goals successful. Having a healthy sleep schedule will lead me to a healthier lifestyle and reduce stress.  I have kept a journal in the past and will continue to do so.  

I can assess my progress through my writings and make short and long term goals.  I typically write about how I feel, what I am thinking and what I am learning at that very moment. I can look back through my work and see how much I have progressed or regressed. The strategies I can use to assist in maintaining my long-term practices for health and wellness is that I could make a to do list or have a month to month calendar of the days I plan on doing these activities and at the end of every two weeks or after one month, I can re-evaluate my goals and see what I still need to work on or if I have accomplished my goals and make changes accordingly.

            Without any doubt, fear or negative emotions,  I know I will make progress towards achieving integral health fulfilling joy, health and wholeness to the commitment of these practices mentioned above.

Good luck to all of you and I wish everyone best wishes in their future endeavor

Unit 8

I found the relaxation and the visualization exercises more beneficial than the others. I found I was more calm and at peace. When I am stressed or anxious at times, I know I can implement this exercise into my life to foster my mental fitness.

When I do my daily exercise regiment, it helps me be more relaxed throughout my day.  I am less irritable and more at ease, less negative and happier with myself.  The visualization exercise helped me visualize what I wanted to do or how I will accomplish my goals.  For example I am working towards my 5k run in April.  I can visualize my run, place, time distance and can see a greater outcome by visualizing things first before committing which gives me encouragement, confidence and desire to accomplish my goal if I put my mind to it.

 

Unit 7 Blog

The Aesclepius practice was long. I visualized Jesus Christ to be my wise person because he is my only wise person and Savior.  It was hard to visualize a white light from the crown entering into my mind. The meditation did help my biological well-being. The experience this time has helped me psychologically by reducing the mental chatter, the untamed mind, leading me to witnessing my mind by being in the present moment constantly, thereby giving me calmness.  Calmness has kept me from being as stressed and that is something I will continue to practice the Sublte mind so stress will not cause any more illness in my body.

The saying (p.477), "One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself" to me is like the saying, if we have not had the experience that we are trying to teach our clients, how can we effectively teach them? No matter what profession that we are in, if we do not have the knowledge and experience, then we are not qualified to help our clients. I have an obligation to develop my total health and well-being so that I can be a model or even a mentor that will go much further in helping my client, by focusing on their needs rather than my own and helps me to actively show loving-kindness in a professional way.

 

Consciousness & Healing: Integral Approaches to Mind-Body Medicine. Schiltz, M., Amorok, T., and Micozzi, M. S. (2005). Elsevier, Inc.: St. Louis, Missouri.

Unit 6 Blog

The first part of the exercise was a little easy. It was a little difficult giving loving kindness to strangers. I realized that we all need the same things which is love,  protection and integrity from this perspective I was able to wish this for the world. This is an area that will need more work and practice. By making myself more available to others and listening more empathetically I think I can develop this practice. During the integral assessment, I realized I need to focus more on the interpersonal aspect.  During my quiet time, I need to practice to quiet my mind cause I find it bouncing all over the place.  I believe this would be a focus of growth and development for me as it would allow me to identify my true self being and helping others. I believe this is where true integral health comes in as it would make me feel quite happy to know that I can give to others and at the same time receive the same benefit in return.

Specific exercises would be regular, physical activity and mental activity. Physical activity such as hiking, running, swimming, martial arts etc help to stimulate the body as it delivers nutrients and oxygen to the tissues of one’s body. It also aids in the circulatory process by “circulating blood through the heart and blood vessels” (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2009).” Daily mental activity such as the mind exercise which involves yoga, meditation, prayer and fasting also helps the psycho spiritual and biological aspect of one’s life, that is, the mind/body/spirit experience. These types of exercises would help to prevent high blood pressure and other diseases of the body such as cancer, heart disease and so on (Dacher, 2006). All these exercise activities essentially increase one’s equilibrium and metabolism thereby boosting one’s health and wellness. In order to more toward a more sustained health, happiness, and wholeness, I need to continuously practice meditative exercises because I feel stress level with school and household holds me back from reaching these three aspects in my life. 

Reference

Dacher, E. S. (2006). Integral Health: The path to human flourishing. Laguna Beach: CA, Basic Heath Publication Inc.

Mayo Clinic Staff, (2009). Fitness. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/exercise/HQ01676

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

The first part of the exercise was pretty smooth and easy.  I enjoyed the ocean waves and the narrators voice. It did make me calm and peaceful.  I was able to transfer some feelings from loved ones and my own.  This is an area that we all need to work and practice on.  I think if we develop this practice each week, we can listen more empathetically and make ourselves more available to others. The subtle mind is an exercise to let go of thought as is passes through the mind. The subtle mind exercise took a little practice. I had trouble focusing on my own thoughts as I was constantly thinking.  I was able to see how easily random thoughts could distract. It was hard to tame my busy mind. I found that the subtle mind was a little more challenging than loving-kindness. It took more effort to maintain my focus; this could possibly due to the prolonged period of time before the narrator returns to give more instructions

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

For me spiritual wellness holds everything in place together.  The connection of spiritual wellness to mental and physical wellness is vital for an individual if he or she is to experience human flourishing. It is important for one to maintain a spiritual connection to the higher power – God, through meditation and prayer. In doing this it does not only help the individual spiritual connection that gives the individual a deeper sense of his or her spiritual awareness but it also helps the mental and physical aspect of the individual’s life.  In my personal life, when I have the spiritual connection, it allows me experience peace, joy, calmness, love, forgiveness, and being kind and patient with others even if they are not.  

Loving Kindness

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

I found this experience to be peaceful and calming.  I like any sounds of ocean in the background with a calming voice. It sounded peaceful.  I think that this exercise was beneficial than meditating and focusing on my body relaxing. This exercise was concentrating more towards “inner love” and feelings that are associated with love and other feelings that are associated with discomfort.  I found this type of exercise to be useful and you feel rejuvenated.  It doesn't take too long to fit this into my busy schedule. I believe people can really benefit from the loving kindness exercise. In today's world, we all need that to be able to give others the kindness and more importantly love others.  So the concept of loving kindness is important and needs to be a part of our routine.

What is the concept of “Mental Workout? What does the research indicate are the proven benefits of a Mental Work Out? How can you implement mental workouts to foster your psychological health?

"Working" out your mental health is very essential.  Mental Workout is where you put forth the effort and training needed to bring yourself to the point of being able to incorporate the loving-kindness practice and the subtle mind practice into your daily routine.  It also allows us to have unity within our minds with our thoughts, emotions, and actions. This will help us to be a more loving, kind, wise, and calmer person. Just like I implement working out every day, I can implement mental workouts within my daily routine. I need to set short term and long term goals and commit to them. I would start by meditating in the morning and evening on a daily basis. This will give me a clearer and calmer path to be patient, calm and show loving kindness towards myself and more importantly to others. I also need to focus on breathing techniques that will calm the mind and body.  A mental workout helps us think faster, give quicker reaction times, stay sharp and focus and improve our cognitive processes.