Face ~ Body ~ Mind ~ Spirit
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Our Wellness Philosophy . . .
Wellness approaches life from the perspective that all human beings function at four levels: the physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual levels. For optimum health we need to look at the whole person. Each of these aspects/levels impact on the well-being of the individual. Just picking the dimension of wellness that you like and ignoring the others doesn't work in the long run.
The physical level focuses on the physical body, its health and sickness, its diet and nutrition needs and its fitness and exercise/activity needs.
The intellectual level focuses on the mind, its health and sickness, the impact of thoughts on a person's life, the power of thought, the play of negative and positive thoughts on our life, and the impact of other's thoughts on us.
The emotional level addresses issues of the impact of emotions on the individual, stress and its affects as well as relationships and how they impact on our well-being, as well as the social aspects and its impact on the individual and vice versa.
The spiritual level addresses the relationship with a higher entity, in developing a philosophy of the purpose of your creation on this earth. Looking at a bigger picture:
Healthy Self-Esteem
Wellness is caring enough about yourself to take a look at your life, making the necessary changes and finding the support to maintain your motivation. Take an objective and honest look at your own thoughts, feelings and actions for the purpose of learning from it. Know yourself, know what motivates you and what holds you back. Growth comes from working through the blocks, not around them. Being blind about yourself does not promote growth or well-being. Change requires the hard work of facing your fears and healing old wounds from your experience growing up in your families of origin and your community.
The Company You Keep
Who you surround yourselves with either helps you stretch your wings and soar, or clips them again and again. Healthy friends and family encourage wellness lifestyle changes. Toxic individuals, including those very close to you, can wear two faces and may not have your best interests at heart. Mutually beneficial relationships with friends, family and colleagues who care about you as people are what you need to seek and create in your lives. Rather than being envious or threatened by your personal growth, they support it.
Conscious Living
Becoming aware of all the choices you have and acting on them. It involves a realization that you don't have to run your lives on auto pilot. It means consciously working on your relationships, life goals, and maximizing our potential. Recognize that even when you think you are not taking action you are making a choice.
Responsibility
There are the risk factors of genetics, toxic environments and the like, but your emotional and lifestyle choices determine your health and well-being more than anything else. As much as you would like to cling to blame and cop-outs, you do have to be honest with yourself. Empower yourself.
Self-sufficiency
From strength comes the confidence and power that overshadows fear. Recognizing your interconnectedness, you grow tremendously when you can care for yourself on many different levels. Skills, higher education, information and tools that enable you to choose wisely, become more competent, etc., all increase your self-respect and self-confidence.
Meditation
As much as we all need time with others, we all need time apart and to connect with the beauty and solitude of nature. There is something very special about quietly observing our earth's flora and fauna which allows us to experience much inner peace. Alone time helps you relax and get beyond the distractions of modern life that prevent you from really knowing yourself. There are some powerful reasons that peoples from all around the world have spent time alone in order to gain vision about the direction and meaning in their lives.
Be Realistic
Extreme perfectionism is a shame-based process that feeds a really negative view of self. Often resulting in addictions. Extreme behavior is a way to distract yourself from some other issue that needs your attention.
Lighten Up
We all need to lighten up and not take ourselves (and wellness) so seriously. Integrate a healthy sense of humor and play into the workplace.
There is no concrete wellness formula. You have to discover what works for you. And don't try to be perfect in creating one... take it easy on yourself. ;-)
Embrace Youth and Vigor
Youth is not a time of life; it is a state of mind; it is not a matter of rosy cheeks, red lips and supple knees; it is a matter of the will, a quality of the imagination, a vigor of the emotions; it is the freshness of the deep springs of life.
Youth means a temperamental predominance of courage over timidity of the appetite, for adventure over the love of ease. This often exists in a a man of 60 more than a boy of 20. Nobody grows old merely by a number of years. We grow old by deserting our ideals.
Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm is to wrinkle the soul. Worry, fear, self-distrust bows the heart and turns the spirit back to dust.
Whether 60 or 16, there is in every human being's heart the lure of wonder, the unfailing childlike appetite of what's next and the joy of the game of living. In the center of your heart there is a wireless station; so long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer, courage and power from men and from infinite, so long are you young.
When the aerials are down, and your spirit is covered with snows of cynicism and the ice of pessimism, then you have grown old, even at 20, but as long as your aerials are up, to catch waves of optimism, there is hope you may die young at 120.
Nurture
The emerging field of positive psychology is bursting with new findings that suggest your actions can have a significant effect on your happiness and satisfaction with life.
Savor Everyday Moments
Pause now and then to smell a rose or watch children at play. Study participants who took time to “savor” ordinary events that they normally hurried through, or to think back on pleasant moments from their day, showed significant increases in happiness and reductions in depression.
Avoid Comparisons
While keeping up with the Joneses is part of American culture, comparing ourselves with others can be damaging to happiness and self-esteem. Instead of comparing ourselves to others, focusing on our own personal achievement leads to greater satisfaction.
Put Money Low on the List
People who put money high on their priority list are more at risk for depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem. These findings hold true across nations and cultures. The more we seek satisfactions in material goods, the less we find them there. The satisfaction has a short half-life -- it’s very fleeting. Money-seekers also score lower on tests of vitality and self-actualization.
Have Meaningful Goals
People who strive for something significant, whether it’s learning a new craft or raising moral children, are far happier than those who don’t have strong dreams or aspirations. As humans, we actually require a sense of meaning to thrive. Happiness lies at the intersection between pleasure and meaning. Whether at work or at home, the goal is to engage in activities that are both personally significant and enjoyable.
Take Initiative at Work
How happy you are at work depends in part on how much initiative you take. When we express creativity, help others, suggest improvements, or do additional tasks on the job, we make our work more rewarding and feel more in control.
Make Friends, Treasure Family
Happier people tend to have good families, friends, and supportive relationships. But it’s not enough to be the life of the party if you’re surrounded by shallow acquaintances. We don’t just need relationships, we need close ones that involve understanding and caring.
Smile Even When You Don’t Feel Like It
It sounds simple, but it works. Happy people…see possibilities, opportunities, and success. When they think of the future, they are optimistic, and when they review the past, they tend to savor the high points. Even if you weren’t born looking at the glass as half-full, with practice, a positive outlook can become a habit.
Say Thank You Like You Mean It
People who keep gratitude journals on a weekly basis are healthier, more optimistic, and more likely to make progress toward achieving personal goals. People who write “gratitude letters” to someone who made a difference in their lives score higher on happiness, and lower on depression -- and the effect lasts for weeks.
Get Out and Exercise
Exercise may be just as effective as drugs in treating depression, without all the side effects and expense. Other research shows that in addition to health benefits, regular exercise offers a sense of accomplishment and opportunity for social interaction, releases feel-good endorphins, and boosts self-esteem.
Give It Away, Give It Away Now!
Make altruism and giving part of your life, and be purposeful about it. Helping a neighbor, volunteering, or donating goods and services results in a “helper’s high,” and you get more health benefits than you would from exercise or quitting smoking. Listening to a friend, passing on your skills, celebrating others’ successes, and forgiveness also contribute to happiness. Researcher Elizabeth Those who spend money on others reported much greater happiness than those who spend it on themselves.
The physical level focuses on the physical body, its health and sickness, its diet and nutrition needs and its fitness and exercise/activity needs.
The intellectual level focuses on the mind, its health and sickness, the impact of thoughts on a person's life, the power of thought, the play of negative and positive thoughts on our life, and the impact of other's thoughts on us.
The emotional level addresses issues of the impact of emotions on the individual, stress and its affects as well as relationships and how they impact on our well-being, as well as the social aspects and its impact on the individual and vice versa.
The spiritual level addresses the relationship with a higher entity, in developing a philosophy of the purpose of your creation on this earth. Looking at a bigger picture:
Healthy Self-Esteem
Wellness is caring enough about yourself to take a look at your life, making the necessary changes and finding the support to maintain your motivation. Take an objective and honest look at your own thoughts, feelings and actions for the purpose of learning from it. Know yourself, know what motivates you and what holds you back. Growth comes from working through the blocks, not around them. Being blind about yourself does not promote growth or well-being. Change requires the hard work of facing your fears and healing old wounds from your experience growing up in your families of origin and your community.
The Company You Keep
Who you surround yourselves with either helps you stretch your wings and soar, or clips them again and again. Healthy friends and family encourage wellness lifestyle changes. Toxic individuals, including those very close to you, can wear two faces and may not have your best interests at heart. Mutually beneficial relationships with friends, family and colleagues who care about you as people are what you need to seek and create in your lives. Rather than being envious or threatened by your personal growth, they support it.
Conscious Living
Becoming aware of all the choices you have and acting on them. It involves a realization that you don't have to run your lives on auto pilot. It means consciously working on your relationships, life goals, and maximizing our potential. Recognize that even when you think you are not taking action you are making a choice.
Responsibility
There are the risk factors of genetics, toxic environments and the like, but your emotional and lifestyle choices determine your health and well-being more than anything else. As much as you would like to cling to blame and cop-outs, you do have to be honest with yourself. Empower yourself.
Self-sufficiency
From strength comes the confidence and power that overshadows fear. Recognizing your interconnectedness, you grow tremendously when you can care for yourself on many different levels. Skills, higher education, information and tools that enable you to choose wisely, become more competent, etc., all increase your self-respect and self-confidence.
Meditation
As much as we all need time with others, we all need time apart and to connect with the beauty and solitude of nature. There is something very special about quietly observing our earth's flora and fauna which allows us to experience much inner peace. Alone time helps you relax and get beyond the distractions of modern life that prevent you from really knowing yourself. There are some powerful reasons that peoples from all around the world have spent time alone in order to gain vision about the direction and meaning in their lives.
Be Realistic
Extreme perfectionism is a shame-based process that feeds a really negative view of self. Often resulting in addictions. Extreme behavior is a way to distract yourself from some other issue that needs your attention.
Lighten Up
We all need to lighten up and not take ourselves (and wellness) so seriously. Integrate a healthy sense of humor and play into the workplace.
There is no concrete wellness formula. You have to discover what works for you. And don't try to be perfect in creating one... take it easy on yourself. ;-)
Embrace Youth and Vigor
Youth is not a time of life; it is a state of mind; it is not a matter of rosy cheeks, red lips and supple knees; it is a matter of the will, a quality of the imagination, a vigor of the emotions; it is the freshness of the deep springs of life.
Youth means a temperamental predominance of courage over timidity of the appetite, for adventure over the love of ease. This often exists in a a man of 60 more than a boy of 20. Nobody grows old merely by a number of years. We grow old by deserting our ideals.
Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm is to wrinkle the soul. Worry, fear, self-distrust bows the heart and turns the spirit back to dust.
Whether 60 or 16, there is in every human being's heart the lure of wonder, the unfailing childlike appetite of what's next and the joy of the game of living. In the center of your heart there is a wireless station; so long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer, courage and power from men and from infinite, so long are you young.
When the aerials are down, and your spirit is covered with snows of cynicism and the ice of pessimism, then you have grown old, even at 20, but as long as your aerials are up, to catch waves of optimism, there is hope you may die young at 120.
Nurture
The emerging field of positive psychology is bursting with new findings that suggest your actions can have a significant effect on your happiness and satisfaction with life.
Savor Everyday Moments
Pause now and then to smell a rose or watch children at play. Study participants who took time to “savor” ordinary events that they normally hurried through, or to think back on pleasant moments from their day, showed significant increases in happiness and reductions in depression.
Avoid Comparisons
While keeping up with the Joneses is part of American culture, comparing ourselves with others can be damaging to happiness and self-esteem. Instead of comparing ourselves to others, focusing on our own personal achievement leads to greater satisfaction.
Put Money Low on the List
People who put money high on their priority list are more at risk for depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem. These findings hold true across nations and cultures. The more we seek satisfactions in material goods, the less we find them there. The satisfaction has a short half-life -- it’s very fleeting. Money-seekers also score lower on tests of vitality and self-actualization.
Have Meaningful Goals
People who strive for something significant, whether it’s learning a new craft or raising moral children, are far happier than those who don’t have strong dreams or aspirations. As humans, we actually require a sense of meaning to thrive. Happiness lies at the intersection between pleasure and meaning. Whether at work or at home, the goal is to engage in activities that are both personally significant and enjoyable.
Take Initiative at Work
How happy you are at work depends in part on how much initiative you take. When we express creativity, help others, suggest improvements, or do additional tasks on the job, we make our work more rewarding and feel more in control.
Make Friends, Treasure Family
Happier people tend to have good families, friends, and supportive relationships. But it’s not enough to be the life of the party if you’re surrounded by shallow acquaintances. We don’t just need relationships, we need close ones that involve understanding and caring.
Smile Even When You Don’t Feel Like It
It sounds simple, but it works. Happy people…see possibilities, opportunities, and success. When they think of the future, they are optimistic, and when they review the past, they tend to savor the high points. Even if you weren’t born looking at the glass as half-full, with practice, a positive outlook can become a habit.
Say Thank You Like You Mean It
People who keep gratitude journals on a weekly basis are healthier, more optimistic, and more likely to make progress toward achieving personal goals. People who write “gratitude letters” to someone who made a difference in their lives score higher on happiness, and lower on depression -- and the effect lasts for weeks.
Get Out and Exercise
Exercise may be just as effective as drugs in treating depression, without all the side effects and expense. Other research shows that in addition to health benefits, regular exercise offers a sense of accomplishment and opportunity for social interaction, releases feel-good endorphins, and boosts self-esteem.
Give It Away, Give It Away Now!
Make altruism and giving part of your life, and be purposeful about it. Helping a neighbor, volunteering, or donating goods and services results in a “helper’s high,” and you get more health benefits than you would from exercise or quitting smoking. Listening to a friend, passing on your skills, celebrating others’ successes, and forgiveness also contribute to happiness. Researcher Elizabeth Those who spend money on others reported much greater happiness than those who spend it on themselves.
