It is important for all health and wellness professionals to develop themselves psychologically, spiritually, and physically in order for them to truly be healers for others. It is a well known fact that we cannot see something that we are unaware exists. Therefore if a health care professional is only developed and learned in the importance of physical health, they will attribute all aliments of their patients to the physical body. While a patient may be getting headaches because they have a psychological issue that professional would only be able to treat the physical headache. This would be a temporary solution to the symptom, but until the source of the pain is found and treated appropriately, the headaches will persist. Personally in order to become a good therapist, I need to develop in all three areas. I cannot help a patient with a psychological problem who has a debilitating and untreated physical ailment, nor one without some connection to their own spirituality.
When we assessed our heath in Unit 3 I scored myself at a 2-3 out of 10 physically, a 6-7 psychologically, and a 5 spiritually. I fell like those are still pretty accurate. I am only a 2-3 in physical health because I am quite overweight. With further consideration I think I am closer to a 5 physically. While I am overweight, I am not suffering from any major illnesses or ailments. I think I scored myself so low because it is a physical issue that I can control. Psychologically I would rate myself at a 8, maybe a bit higher. I have a very strong foundation of information in psychology (a bachelors degree worth, almost) and I am in therapy. I have good self-reflection and am able to be objective most of the time. Also I have a willingness to assume responsibility for myself and make changes when necessary. Spiritually I am doing fairly well also. I would rate myself around a 7. I was feeling very disconnected to my spirituality back in unit 3, but I realized that I wasn’t disconnected from my spirituality, just my church and that’s okay. I have a strong sense of connection to my creator and to this planet. I am LDS (mormon) and it was difficult at first for me to meditate. I felt like I was breaking some rule. I felt especially guilty when I started to feel more connected through meditation than I did with prayer. With prayer I always felt like I was taking to myself, or that I was talking to someone who wasn’t there, I was too consumed with my own thoughts and feelings of being rejected too listen for a response. With meditation I was forced to quite those thoughts and feelings, after a while I could really let go. I think a combination of the two will be my key to a very strong sense of spirituality. I will be able to use the practices of meditation to calm my heart and mind enough to pray to my Heavenly Father on a completely different level, a level where I can really listen to that still, small voice in return.
Going forward I am most concerned with my physical health. There is a fitness center here called The New Well (link). They are a weight loss program that works with your nutrition, offers counseling and stress reduction, and really takes a holistic approach to weight loss and overall physical health. I joined them last week and I really look forward to permanent results. Also the projected that I could reach my goal in 9 months and I am going on a cruise in 10 months so it works out quite well! For my psychological health I will continue to see my therapist. I also have been working very hard to limit my stress. I live in a house with a husband who is ADD, a son who has Asperger’s, and two sons with ADHD. Needless to say I am the only one in my house who is ever even slightly organized. I have “SuperNanny’d” our house. I have put our entire household on a routine and I have put visuals throughout the house of our routine, menu for the week, and chore charts. I have also put those three boys on a reward system which they earn beads for all kinds of positive things and can spend those beads on all kinds of rewards like TV time or a new toy. It has been working very well. As part of my personal routine, I have included 10 minutes per day of dancing, just turning up the tunes and shaking my tail feather. I can’t explain it, it is physically a workout, but it is also fun and exhilarating. As far as my spiritual wellbeing I am committed to doing 10 minutes of meditation per day to start. I think I will do a short meditation exercise before my nightly prayer as well. This will allow me to slow down, get out of my own head, and truly commune with God. I have also committed to hiking more. This will help me in all three ways, physically I will be getting exercise, psychologically it is a great way to clear your head, and spiritually there is no where I feel more connected than in the mountains. Once I get a bit healthier physically I am planning on going to my sister in-law’s yoga studio where she teaches hot yoga. They do yoga in a room at 100-something degrees. I used to love yoga before I had my babies, and I am excited to do it again.
In order to track my progress I plan on keeping a journal. Also my coach at The New Well will be in touch with me three times per week to talk about how my goals are going. This will be a good support. I tend to get really excited about changes like this and stick to my goals very well for the first several weeks or months, but I lose momentum and eventually end up back at square one. I think I will set up a reward system for myself to keep me going during this time. As part of my weight loss plans my husband and I are putting ten dollars in savings for every pound I lose, when I reach my goal I get to take that money and buy some new clothes. That is a goal that I think will keep me motivated. I am also a very routine based person, I think that once I get in the routine for a few months, it will become just a part of my day. I am excited to take the wealth of information I got from this course and build a new me!
