After looking at my earlier assessment scores, I would have to say that my scores are unchanged. I’m I have not made any significant progress over the last few weeks. I think I tried to do too much at once, which almost always causes me to stall. After finishing the work for unit 9, I decided to take my own advice—just focus on one thing. So I’m focusing on my physical development and it’s starting to work. I got 7 ½ hrs of sleep last night! Whoo-hoo!! That trick of getting out of bed when I wake up (even if it’s before the alarm goes off) is working. I could barely keep my eyes open last night and I ended up going to bed at 9:30 pm; that’s SUPER early for me. Once going to bed and getting a good night’s sleep has been accomplished and a part of my routine, I’ll move to psychological health.
Overall, I enjoyed this course. I love the concept of integral health and human flourishing. I’m hoping that I can successfully incorporate everything I’ve learned into a successful stress management program.
Good luck to you all in your future courses and your careers!
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Integral Assessment & Plan
Introduction
Health and wellness professionals need to develop psychologically, spiritually, and physically (mind, spirit, and body) for various reasons. Pursuing integral health will increase our effectiveness with clients. Psychological and spiritual health helps us to remain open, objective, caring, and patient with clients. Our physical health keeps us alert and energized. Perfection might not be achieved but we need to constantly journey towards integral health. In doing so, we grow closer to flourishing and we inspire our clients to the same end.
I need to develop myself in all three areas of health in order to achieve my personal and professional goals. For example, one of my goals is to work as a group fitness instructor (and I am very close to achieving that goal). In order to be an effective instructor, I need to continue to increase my level of fitness (physical); remove mental obstacles that might prevent me from receiving constructive feedback (psychological); and get more connected spiritually so that I can connect with class participants in a loving manner (spiritual).
Assessment
After assessing my health in each domain, on a scale of one to ten, I give my spiritual, physical, and psychological wellness a score of six. If I were to take a test, I think I might score a little higher but I’d rather need too much development than too little. I do not have any major issues in any areas; my biggest problem is consistently practicing good habits.
Goal development:
Physical: Get 7-8 hrs of sleep a day. As an adult, I have always struggled with getting enough sleep; I stay up late even when I have to rise early in the morning. It keeps me sluggish mentally, physically and spiritually.
Psychological: Daily contemplative practice. The calm abiding and subtle mind exercises quiet my mind, reduce my stress, and help me to think objectively. My goal is to make them a part of my daily routine. Right no, I’ve been sporadic in my practice.
Spiritual: Attend church regularly (every Sunday). I used to go to church every Sunday and sometimes even attend two services (we had three at the time). Our pastor at that time took a position at another church (in a different part of the country) and since then, my attendance has been spotty. I do go once a month and to some special events, but that is because I sing in a choir.
Practices for Personal Health
Physical:
Establish a daily workout routine. Morning workouts are my favorite; I feel energized for the day. Meeting my goal of obtaining 7-8 hrs of sleep a day will help me to meet this goal. At the beginning of each week, I will set a schedule. I like variety so the schedule will not just include a time-frame but also the workout that I will do that day.
Get out of bed when I wake up; I typically wake up naturally every morning between 5:00 am and 6:00 am but just I go back to sleep. However, the earlier in the morning I wake up, the earlier in the evening I become sleepy and hopefully this will force me to go to bed early enough to reach my goal of 7-8 hrs of sleep a night.
Psychological:
Loving-kindness exercise. Preferably, in the morning before my workout.
Calm abiding exercise. I will do this exercise in the morning, after the loving-kindness exercise.
Spiritual:
Daily bible reading. I’ve tried this so many times before but I always fall off. I will select a bible reading program (i.e. read the bible in a year) and commit to following through.
Daily prayer. Praying directly after the contemplative exercises is amazing (I did that once during this session). It’s something I want to make a habit of doing.
Commitment:
I was recently hired as a group fitness instructor at the local YMCA. Two of the classes I teach will be in the morning from 6:00 am to 7:00am. In order to meet that schedule successfully, I will need to achieve my goal of getting 7-8 hrs of sleep a day. On the days I don’t have class, my plan is to do my personal workout. If I don’t have time to do my contemplative practice, bible reading and prayer before my workouts, I will definitely have time afterwards (my work day starts at 9:00 am). So I think this new job will help me to be successful in reaching all of the goals I have set for myself. I will do another integral assessment in six month to gauge the progress of my development.
Health and wellness professionals need to develop psychologically, spiritually, and physically (mind, spirit, and body) for various reasons. Pursuing integral health will increase our effectiveness with clients. Psychological and spiritual health helps us to remain open, objective, caring, and patient with clients. Our physical health keeps us alert and energized. Perfection might not be achieved but we need to constantly journey towards integral health. In doing so, we grow closer to flourishing and we inspire our clients to the same end.
I need to develop myself in all three areas of health in order to achieve my personal and professional goals. For example, one of my goals is to work as a group fitness instructor (and I am very close to achieving that goal). In order to be an effective instructor, I need to continue to increase my level of fitness (physical); remove mental obstacles that might prevent me from receiving constructive feedback (psychological); and get more connected spiritually so that I can connect with class participants in a loving manner (spiritual).
Assessment
After assessing my health in each domain, on a scale of one to ten, I give my spiritual, physical, and psychological wellness a score of six. If I were to take a test, I think I might score a little higher but I’d rather need too much development than too little. I do not have any major issues in any areas; my biggest problem is consistently practicing good habits.
Goal development:
Physical: Get 7-8 hrs of sleep a day. As an adult, I have always struggled with getting enough sleep; I stay up late even when I have to rise early in the morning. It keeps me sluggish mentally, physically and spiritually.
Psychological: Daily contemplative practice. The calm abiding and subtle mind exercises quiet my mind, reduce my stress, and help me to think objectively. My goal is to make them a part of my daily routine. Right no, I’ve been sporadic in my practice.
Spiritual: Attend church regularly (every Sunday). I used to go to church every Sunday and sometimes even attend two services (we had three at the time). Our pastor at that time took a position at another church (in a different part of the country) and since then, my attendance has been spotty. I do go once a month and to some special events, but that is because I sing in a choir.
Practices for Personal Health
Physical:
Establish a daily workout routine. Morning workouts are my favorite; I feel energized for the day. Meeting my goal of obtaining 7-8 hrs of sleep a day will help me to meet this goal. At the beginning of each week, I will set a schedule. I like variety so the schedule will not just include a time-frame but also the workout that I will do that day.
Get out of bed when I wake up; I typically wake up naturally every morning between 5:00 am and 6:00 am but just I go back to sleep. However, the earlier in the morning I wake up, the earlier in the evening I become sleepy and hopefully this will force me to go to bed early enough to reach my goal of 7-8 hrs of sleep a night.
Psychological:
Loving-kindness exercise. Preferably, in the morning before my workout.
Calm abiding exercise. I will do this exercise in the morning, after the loving-kindness exercise.
Spiritual:
Daily bible reading. I’ve tried this so many times before but I always fall off. I will select a bible reading program (i.e. read the bible in a year) and commit to following through.
Daily prayer. Praying directly after the contemplative exercises is amazing (I did that once during this session). It’s something I want to make a habit of doing.
Commitment:
I was recently hired as a group fitness instructor at the local YMCA. Two of the classes I teach will be in the morning from 6:00 am to 7:00am. In order to meet that schedule successfully, I will need to achieve my goal of getting 7-8 hrs of sleep a day. On the days I don’t have class, my plan is to do my personal workout. If I don’t have time to do my contemplative practice, bible reading and prayer before my workouts, I will definitely have time afterwards (my work day starts at 9:00 am). So I think this new job will help me to be successful in reaching all of the goals I have set for myself. I will do another integral assessment in six month to gauge the progress of my development.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
My Favorite Contemplative Exercises
The two practices that I find the most beneficial are the calm-abiding and meeting Asclepius exercises. The meeting Asclepius exercise I do in the morning; it sets the tone for the rest of my day. I feel at peace, wise, loved and loving. The calm-abiding exercise I do whenever my thoughts become hectic or when I have an unpleasant interaction with someone or I get angry, or I feel overwhelmed (just to name a few examples). It clears my mind; I can think objectively and make unbiased, unemotional decisions. The calm-abiding exercise also helps me to let go of disturbing thoughts and feelings.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Meeting Asclepius
I did the Meeting Asclepius exercise this morning and it was powerful! As I imagined the beam of light entering my head and moving throughout my being, I felt energized in a way that kind of blew me away. I think I need to start everyday this way. I was totally unaffected by things that normally annoy me at work. I hope this exercise worked as well for everyone else.
My thought on the saying "one cannot lead another where one has not gone him or herself" is this.....we might not make it there ourselves, but that doesn't mean we can't show people the way.
My thought on the saying "one cannot lead another where one has not gone him or herself" is this.....we might not make it there ourselves, but that doesn't mean we can't show people the way.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Integral Assessment
As always, the loving-kindness exercise left me feeling happy, hopeful, and peaceful. It was easier to do the assessment because I wasn't so hard on myself; I could see myself objectively. the area I've decided to work on in self-regulation. While it is part of the biological aspect of my life, I can see how self-regulation, or my lack of self-regulation, is affecting the other aspects. For instance, I don't get enough sleep. I just can't seem to get to bed early enough to get a good night's sleep. I prefer to work out in the morning, and I have the time but because I don't go to bed early enough, I always oversleep. Because I'm tired, I have trouble staying mentally focused and things that ordinarily wouldn't bother me, affect me greatly. Because I'm tired, I'm not as productive at work and my relationships suffer because I'm down and withdrawn instead of my usual upbeat self. Wow, all of this because I haven't trained myself to go to bed when I'm tired. I haven't thought of any exercises yet to help me outside of contemplative practice, but I think that's a good start.
Friday, October 21, 2011
Loving Kindness vs. Subtle Mind
After doing the Loving Kindness exercise, I have a smile on my face. I’m full of love and I feel like I’m the Star Trek episode “This Side of Paradise”. It’s the one where the crew lands on a planet and the spores form a plant make everyone lovey-dovey.
After doing the Subtle Mind exercise, I feel a bigger sense of calmness and serenity, I feel less stressed, and I feel more in tune with myself. I’m definitely going to have to incorporate these exercises into my daily routine. I want to be more conscious of what I think about, how I feel and I want to be better at dismissing thoughts that cause emotional unrest. That’s sounds kind of dramatic but it’s true :)
In doing these exercises, I think I can start to solidify the body-mind-spirit connection within me. Like most people, I’ve been guilty of thinking of them as separate entities. But they are relates, they are one. I wouldn’t say this connection is manifested in my life yet but I am going to works towards it.
After doing the Subtle Mind exercise, I feel a bigger sense of calmness and serenity, I feel less stressed, and I feel more in tune with myself. I’m definitely going to have to incorporate these exercises into my daily routine. I want to be more conscious of what I think about, how I feel and I want to be better at dismissing thoughts that cause emotional unrest. That’s sounds kind of dramatic but it’s true :)
In doing these exercises, I think I can start to solidify the body-mind-spirit connection within me. Like most people, I’ve been guilty of thinking of them as separate entities. But they are relates, they are one. I wouldn’t say this connection is manifested in my life yet but I am going to works towards it.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Mental Workouts
I practiced the Loving Kindness exercise three times, once when I read it in the text and twice with the CD. I tell you, I felt pretty good. Starting with someone you love and care for deeply and then turning that love and caring towards yourself is very powerful. I was overwhelmed with happiness and joy. Now, sometimes when I do these meditation exercises, my mind wanders but having permission to let my mind wander and experience whatever feelings arise was great. Any unpleasant thoughts or feelings were kind of diminished; they just seemed not so important anymore. The one part I had trouble with the thinking of a loved one who was suffering; I couldn’t think of anyone. But as I am writing, I remember that my grandmother is dealing with lung cancer right now. I know it seems terrible that I forgot about that but we only just met in October of 2008, and since my father died (her son whom she hadn’t seen since he was a baby—long story) we haven’t really talked. To some, that’s probably still not an excuse but it is what it is. All that to say…the next time I do this exercise, I will think of her.
The concept of a mental workout is just saying that we can train our minds, and grow our psychospiritual life if we practice. Research shows that we can reduce disturbing emotions and increase positive ones (Dacher, 2005, p. 63). The research that was done by Candace Pert shows that our emotions can influence our health.
I think I’m going to start my mental workouts with the Loving Kindness exercise. I’m going to start with twice a week for now. It takes about 21 days to develop a habit; I’ll let you know in 21 days if the exercise is a part of my daily/weekly routine.
The concept of a mental workout is just saying that we can train our minds, and grow our psychospiritual life if we practice. Research shows that we can reduce disturbing emotions and increase positive ones (Dacher, 2005, p. 63). The research that was done by Candace Pert shows that our emotions can influence our health.
I think I’m going to start my mental workouts with the Loving Kindness exercise. I’m going to start with twice a week for now. It takes about 21 days to develop a habit; I’ll let you know in 21 days if the exercise is a part of my daily/weekly routine.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Self-Awareness
I think that one of the keys to health is to have self-awareness--to pay attention to how you feel, how you think, as well as to your spritual health. I like to think that I am self-aware....
How do I rate?
Physical Wellbeing--If I were to rate my physical wellbeing on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being optimal wellbeing), I would give myself a 7.3. I still have about 50lbs to lose but thanks to my personal trainer, Trainer Pete, my strength and stamina have improved a lot. I also have fibroid tumors and they have been causing me some minor discomfort over the past few months. When I was first diagnosed, I opted not to have surgery when my doctor told me that he didn’t know what caused them and that they might come back. I found this awesome book, Healing Fibroids Naturally by Dr. Allan Warshowsky. I followed the recommendations mentioned in the book (all related to nutrition and exercise) and my symptoms went away completely. I’ve gotten away from those recommendations over this past year (why is it when we think a problem is fixed, we go back to doing the very things that caused the problem in the first place?) which explains why my symptoms have returned.
Spiritual Wellbeing—I have to give myself a 7.0. Although I’ve gotten away from going to church regularly, I have been working on my faith and maintaining my relationship with God. I think having my father’s funeral at church was a mistake, lol. I can’t seem to go there without crying. Another thing is we have a new pastor. He’s good but not as good as our former preacher and I find myself not completely satisfied after hearing his sermons. But I don’t want to lose my connection to God and my beliefs so I try read my bible and pray regularly. I know that it doesn’t completely take the place of going to church….I’m a work in progress, aren’t we all?
Psychological Wellbeing—I’m going to give myself an 8. I like to think and reflect and figure out why I do the things I do, say the things I say, and feel the way I feel. I also seem to be breaking down some mental barriers and I feel more confident. I feel great, psychologically speaking!
What can I do?
Physically—Eat better, move more. I think that’s going to be my mantra going forward. I’m going to start teaching a group fitness class at the local YMCA starting in November, so I’ll definitely be moving more. I had a bad run-in with a salad a few weeks ago. The high sodium content in a pre-packaged salad caused my feet to swell up. And I should know better but I was taken in by the huge “only 230 calories” label. After about 2 ½ weeks, I read the ingredient list and found that salt/sodium was listed 14 times!!! Adding to that, I finally realized how much my personal trainer is costing me a year--$3240. So from now I “eat better and move more”.
Spiritually—I already mentioned that I’m not going to church very often. I sing in a choir and I only go to church when we have to sing. Let me just say that used to go every Sunday, sometimes I would attend two services, and also go to bible study and special events. I know that I was mad at God for a while after my father passed and it just seemed rude to go to church. It’s like going over a friend’s house while you’re still pissed as hell. I’m not mad anymore, but I broke myself of what I thought was a good habit and I’ve been having trouble getting it back. In the meantime, spending time in daily meditation and prayer will help. I try to do it in the mornings but I’m always oversleeping. I need to find a time that works (or maybe just commit…)
Psychologically-For me, growing spiritually helps me psychologically—does that make sense? As for an actual activity to do to improve psychologically…I don’t know. I got it, feel more. I don’t like to feel stressed or upset but I realized that suppressing those emotions can cause damage. So I’m going to cry when I feel like crying, scream when I feel like screaming, smile when I don’t have a reason to but I want to anyway. It might hurt at first, but practice makes perfectJ.
Relaxation Exercise
After doing The Crime of the Century relaxation exercise, I felt sleepy. Relaxation exercises tend to put me to sleep. I guess it’s because they relax me, sometimes a bit too much. At the same time, I felt extremely positive, hopeful, peaceful and strong.
How do I rate?
Physical Wellbeing--If I were to rate my physical wellbeing on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being optimal wellbeing), I would give myself a 7.3. I still have about 50lbs to lose but thanks to my personal trainer, Trainer Pete, my strength and stamina have improved a lot. I also have fibroid tumors and they have been causing me some minor discomfort over the past few months. When I was first diagnosed, I opted not to have surgery when my doctor told me that he didn’t know what caused them and that they might come back. I found this awesome book, Healing Fibroids Naturally by Dr. Allan Warshowsky. I followed the recommendations mentioned in the book (all related to nutrition and exercise) and my symptoms went away completely. I’ve gotten away from those recommendations over this past year (why is it when we think a problem is fixed, we go back to doing the very things that caused the problem in the first place?) which explains why my symptoms have returned.
Spiritual Wellbeing—I have to give myself a 7.0. Although I’ve gotten away from going to church regularly, I have been working on my faith and maintaining my relationship with God. I think having my father’s funeral at church was a mistake, lol. I can’t seem to go there without crying. Another thing is we have a new pastor. He’s good but not as good as our former preacher and I find myself not completely satisfied after hearing his sermons. But I don’t want to lose my connection to God and my beliefs so I try read my bible and pray regularly. I know that it doesn’t completely take the place of going to church….I’m a work in progress, aren’t we all?
Psychological Wellbeing—I’m going to give myself an 8. I like to think and reflect and figure out why I do the things I do, say the things I say, and feel the way I feel. I also seem to be breaking down some mental barriers and I feel more confident. I feel great, psychologically speaking!
What can I do?
Physically—Eat better, move more. I think that’s going to be my mantra going forward. I’m going to start teaching a group fitness class at the local YMCA starting in November, so I’ll definitely be moving more. I had a bad run-in with a salad a few weeks ago. The high sodium content in a pre-packaged salad caused my feet to swell up. And I should know better but I was taken in by the huge “only 230 calories” label. After about 2 ½ weeks, I read the ingredient list and found that salt/sodium was listed 14 times!!! Adding to that, I finally realized how much my personal trainer is costing me a year--$3240. So from now I “eat better and move more”.
Spiritually—I already mentioned that I’m not going to church very often. I sing in a choir and I only go to church when we have to sing. Let me just say that used to go every Sunday, sometimes I would attend two services, and also go to bible study and special events. I know that I was mad at God for a while after my father passed and it just seemed rude to go to church. It’s like going over a friend’s house while you’re still pissed as hell. I’m not mad anymore, but I broke myself of what I thought was a good habit and I’ve been having trouble getting it back. In the meantime, spending time in daily meditation and prayer will help. I try to do it in the mornings but I’m always oversleeping. I need to find a time that works (or maybe just commit…)
Psychologically-For me, growing spiritually helps me psychologically—does that make sense? As for an actual activity to do to improve psychologically…I don’t know. I got it, feel more. I don’t like to feel stressed or upset but I realized that suppressing those emotions can cause damage. So I’m going to cry when I feel like crying, scream when I feel like screaming, smile when I don’t have a reason to but I want to anyway. It might hurt at first, but practice makes perfectJ.
Relaxation Exercise
After doing The Crime of the Century relaxation exercise, I felt sleepy. Relaxation exercises tend to put me to sleep. I guess it’s because they relax me, sometimes a bit too much. At the same time, I felt extremely positive, hopeful, peaceful and strong.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Aesclepian Healing at home
After reading this week about Aesclepian healing, I wondered if there was any such place that I could go to replicate what the Greeks experienced when they went to their healing centers. Guess what I found? Aesclepios Wellness and Healing Retreat in Costa Rica http://asclepioscr.com/home.htm.It looks amazing and I wish I had the funds to go there right now! Instead, I'm wondering what I can do at home to experience Aesclepian healing. I can spend time each day in meditation and prayer; I can go to the gym, take a spinning class, and maybe spend a little time in sauna; and I can read a good book or go to a play. In essence, I can take time out for myself to get centered, to refocus, and to develop my inner resources. I might not be able to "get away from it all" and spend two weeks in Costa Rica, but I can create an atmosphere of health and wellness in my home and so can you!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
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