How Healthy Are You Really?

Are you healthy in your mind, body AND spirit?

How healthy are you really? You may be thinking, OK I got my annual checkup, my annual flu shot, I haven’t had a cold in years, I try my best to work out at least three times a week, I eat pretty healthy (minus those quick runs to McDonald’s every once in a while for the “kids”). So I think I’m pretty good!

But hey, not so fast. Have you considered your total well-being or wellness? I ask that question because most people think that living life free of illness, working out and eating good makes them healthy.

Focus on optimal wellness

Many of us may have made and already broken New Year’s resolutions around eating healthier, working out more frequently and weight loss. Those goals are usually centered around our desire to look and maybe feel better, and in some cases are purely preparation for the summer. But it is vital to consider these goals as a preface to achieving optimal wellness, which includes not only your physical needs but also you mental, emotional, psychological, and spiritual needs as well.  

Your mental processes are the most important influences of your health because they determine how you deal with your physical and social surroundings. Additionally, spiritual awareness can lead to a healthier life as you will likely experience feelings of compassion, peace of mind and harmony within yourself.

The key to achieving this balance starts with awareness. Being aware is both a means to an end and an end in itself. Wellness is personal and refers to a feeling, a conscious perception, and an awareness of your whole person so that all of your components are not only under control but working together in harmony as a unit.   

Checklist for sustainable wellness

So as you begin to be more in tune to your internal needs, here are some questions to consider:

1. Are you embracing your true talents? Are you aware of your real passion?
2. What loose ends haven’t you tied up? What are you trying to ignore?
3. What are you holding onto? Who haven’t you forgiven?
4. Where are you placing blame and how can you take responsibility?
5. In what areas of your life have you not forgiven yourself for past mistakes?

Sustainable wellness requires you to let go of old ways of seeing and being, and embrace new tools. As you begin to nurture the whole of you it’s important to find meaning in your life and in living, discover the feeling of joy and satisfaction in your daily tasks, live in way that emphasizes good relationships with other people, and avoid destructive habits. Lastly, be more conscious of yourself for yourself!

Take charge of your wellness

One view of health places most of the responsibility for health on the shoulders of the healthcare industry – physicians, nurses, hospitals, and insurance companies. However, each of us has the responsibility for optimizing our own well-being.

Your personal lifestyle is what you have the most control over and can do the most to change. As the old saying goes, “Everything ain’t for everybody”. The best judge of what works for you is you, so I encourage you to press pause on the autopilot and take care of the “whole” you.