Unit 10 Final Post

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?

      As I reviewed my unit 3 assessment and reflected on all three areas I realized my  psychological, physical, and spiritual well-being were all solid, but there was definitely room for improvement. I gave myself an 8 on a scale from 1-10 in all three areas. Now my scores are the same. I still give myself an eight in all three areas, because for the most part I haven’t done things any differently.

Review the goals and activities you set for yourself in each area. Have you made progress toward the goals? Explain.

      My diet is still pretty good and I work out regularly, but the one goal I wanted to develop for myself to improve my physical well-being was exercise frequency. My plan was to make sure I rode my bike at least 3 to 4 times each week or every other day. Well, that hasn’t happened and I need to improve.

      The spiritual well-being goal I set for myself was to make sure I set aside time each day to pray and meditate. Also, I wanted to learn how to get more accomplished from within the spiritual realm. I haven’t really made any progress. When we’re doing the meditation exercises in class it’s one thing, but to do it on my own I just haven’t made time for it yet.

       My mind I believe is sound. However, the goal I set for myself is to strengthen my mind and use more of it by doing brain exercises, taking supplements for the brain and eating healthy brain foods. For the most part I have done that, but I know there is still room for improvement.

Have you implemented the activities you chose for your well-being in each of the three areas? Explain.

      Physically and spiritually I know I have not implemented the activities I chose for well-being. Psychologically I have been doing the breathing exercises, taking the supplements to enhance brain health and eating healthy.  

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?

      Personally my experience throughout this course has been beneficial. I believe I have improved my well-being. The breathing exercises have been most rewarding. The meditation and prayer is a goal I set for myself. However, it has been difficult for me to make time to actually stick to the goal I set. Over this 10 week course I have picked up several nuggets along the way. The information I learned and the different exercises we did were all part of a great experience.  My ability to assist others has already been improved based on the information we’ve learned and the experiences I’ve had throughout this course.

Unit 9 Final Project

 

     It’s important for everyone to develop psychologically, spiritually and physically, so for health and wellness professionals it is that much more important. As health and wellness professionals we should lead by example. I need to develop in all three areas; spiritually, psychologically and physically.

       I assessed my health based on a 1-10 scale with 10 being the highest. Spiritually, I gave myself an 8.  Physically I gave myself a 9 and psychologically I gave myself an 8.

      My physical goal is to have healthier eating habits, psychologically my goal is to use more of my brain and spiritually my goal is to learn more about God.

      Physically the strategy I plan to use is to have an accountability partner to workout with and someone to encourage me and help keep me focused along the way. Another physical strategy I will implement consists of me walking my dog, Jake. Jake is a very strong dog and he is hyper. His energy inspires me to do more physically. Jake helps me to build up my legs, physical endurance and stamina. He was an unlikely source for physical exercise however his contribution to my life both physically and emotionally is beyond measure.

      For psychological strategies I plan on taking 30 minutes every morning prior to starting my day and using the time to energize my mind thru mediation and yoga stretches. During this phase I will have the time to allow my mind the opportunity to be free and open for the events of the day. In doing these things every morning I think my mind will be more receptive to information coming from outside sources.

      For my spiritual strategies I would like to tap into my Cherokee roots and channel the spirit of my ancestors. I come from a strong line of warriors, willing to fight for what is right. I want to continue my spiritual growth thru spiritual contact. I would also like to commune more with nature as a part of my spiritual strategies. Nature has so many healing properties and I want to be able to draw from nature to build up my spirituality.

      Assessing my progress will be easy for me over the next 6 months because I will keep a daily log of my activities. The log will have all the goals and strategies that I have set for myself. As I complete each activity I will check it off the list adding the beginning and end times.  For example, as a measureable, if walking Jake a mile currently takes 20 minutes I should be able to walk him for 2 miles in 20 minutes in 6 months. That is a solid measurable goal. I would use the same strategy as a long term practice as well. I would add to my task in order to make the long term strategies more challenging however I will stay true to the initial exercise.

     

Week 8 Loving Kindness and Meeting Aesclepius

      I have actually enjoyed all the exercises and practice sessions in this course. The 2 I find to be most beneficial for me are Loving kindness and Meeting Aesclepius. It’s always a good thing to show love to anyone, including you’re enemies. I know that sounds good but it is a lot easier said than done. This meditation practice exercise is helping me to become a better person.

      With the meeting aesclepius exercise I was pleasantly surprised to enter a place I have never been before. It was awesome for me to spend time communicating with my grandmother and other ancestors. For me to receive some of my grandmothers qualities is a plus and only makes me stronger and more of a loving person as she was. I will continue to practice both of these exercises in my personal life to foster “mental fitness.”

Week 7 Meeting Aesclepius

       As always I enjoyed the meditation exercise. However, this time it was a much deeper experience for me. The wise and loving person who I respect and honor and know that we have a special connection is my grandmother. She passed away many years ago, but I still remember her and the times we had like it was yesterday. She is the one who introduced me to her God to begin with. We had a very spiritual connection through this meditation practice. It seemed that I was in touch with several of my ancestors.

     Meditation has fostered an increase in my psychological and spiritual wellness by simply assisting in quieting my mind. When the mind is quiet the body will follow and this allows one to hear from their spirit more clearly. This was the most powerful meditation experience I have had and I’m looking forward to continuing these sessions.

"One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself"

      This applies to the health and wellness professional in that if you have not experienced a thing for yourself, whether it is your own personal experience or from studying and research to where you have an understanding of what it is all about then there is no way you can properly teach another about that thing.

      I believe we do have an obligation to our clients to be developing our health psychologically, physically, and spiritually. These people put their lives in our hands, they trust us and they look up to us. So, I think we should at least let them see that we know what we are talking about by being an example before them. I don’t believe in practicing what you preach, but I do believe in preaching what you have already practiced and what you know works.

      Prayer and meditation is a great way to implement psychological and spiritual growth in your personal life.