Reassessment of Well-Being

Taking a look at my project a few weeks ago- an assessment of my physical, psychological, and spiritual well-being- I noticed a  few things of interest.  First of all, though I do work on all of the aspects of my journey on a daily basis, I wouldn't score myself any differently than I did then, for a few reasons.  For me, the issues I outlined are lifelong ones, and ones I am prepared to work on, develop, and probably see little change in for a long time.  Also, though this class has given me a lot to think about philosophically, the exercises that we did weren't the kind that have a big effect on me (though I can understand they might for others).  The activities I outlined, like yoga, hiking and creative pursuits, are ones I love and depend on for sanity, so I engage in them almost if not every day.  My personal experience throughout this course has been positive, I've learned good things and have been able to add elements of understanding to parts of integral health theory that I wasn't aware of before.  Thank you!!

Wellness Plan

Introduction:

According to Elliott Dacher, the goal of true integral health is to heal, restore and nurture the entire being (Integral Health, 2005).  As practitioners, we cannot expect to guide or aid our patients on their own path if we are not consciously developing on our own. The psychological, spiritual and physical aspects of our humanity are all equally important and valuable, and deserve concentrated work to develop and inspire.  For me personally, one of my greatest challenges has been to nurture my psychological health, so in order to achieve my goals I need to cultivate freedom and compassion in that area.

Assessment:

After assessing my “health level” in each domain, I can safely say I am moderately high in well-being in my spiritual and physical lives, but have more instability in my psychological aspect.

Goal Development:

My goal for my physical development is to continue to develop my interests- yoga, dance, and hiking- to further my well-being.  My goal for spiritual development is to continue to read about Taoism, and ethnic mythological beliefs, as well as cultivate greater awareness and connection between my senses and inner world.  For my psychological health, I am working on ways to create more stability and the ability to let go if negative thoughts instead of letting them take hold and control my feelings about myself and my life.

Practices for Personal Health:

My physical practices, dancing and hiking, are both very nurturing of my well-being as they get my heart rate up, foster confidence, and get me outside in the fresh air.  Hiking, as well as yoga, are also very spiritual experiences for me as they connect me with myself as well as the greater forces at work around me.  My psychological health is greatly improved by physical activity, as well as creative work such as writing, painting, and playing music.

Commitment:

Integral health is a lifelong practice that incorporates work in several planes of consciousness (Dacher, Integral Health, 2005).  I constantly assess my “progress” based on the way I feel, as well as the way I react to others.  My goal is to keep growing, learning and developing in confidence, creativity, awareness, and kindness, in order to gain as well as give the most I can in life.

Reference:

Integral Health

Elliott Dacher, 2005

"One cannot lead another where one has not gone herself..."

Even though I'm not one to get a lot out of normal daily meditation practice, I have been trying to notice my thought processes more, especially when I'm in the midst of something that I believe brings me closer to myself. Being outdoors and active, especially hiking, is one of these ways.  In Meeting Aesclepius, the part that struck me the most is to look for an inner healer, or our subtle mind, as the manner in which we find the answers.  I've had this experience many times when I'm outdoors, doing what I love, and I call it reconnecting with myself.  There is peace, and understanding- the freedom for any thoughts or feelings to surface, which may need some attention.  The saying "One cannot lead another where one has not gone herself" is very pertinent for a health practitioner, especially in the integral health field, as this work requires true empathy and connection.  And how can we, as practitioners, connect with someone who is struggling to develop spiritually, when we are not on a similar path of learning ourselves?

Integral Assessment

After completing the Loving Kindness meditation exercise, I had a lot to think about.  It's an excellent exercise, but like most guided exercises, it doesn't work well for me.  However, the Integral Assessment was very interesting to me, as it presented some valid points for me to consider developing in my life.  I definitely struggle with my attitude towards work, and that came out loud and clear during this assessment.  Confidence issues have always also been a source of pain and growth for me, and this Assessment reminded me of that as well.  Yoga, hiking, and making art are all activities I've found to be beneficial for me for both of those areas of growth, so I will continue to pursue them in hopes of greater learning.

Subtle Mind

This week, having two exercises to compare and contrast, was interesting for me as someone who normally doesn't participate in guided exercises at all.  I found the Subtle Mind exercise more helpful and enjoyable for me personally, as it was more concentrated in the self, as opposed to the Loving Kindness exercise which was concentrated just as much on others, on the outside.  For me, it's easier to propagate kindness and compassion towards others when I spend time alone in nature, reconnecting with my sense of smallness in the big world around me. However, I can see how exercises like this can be helpful for many people who may not be as cynical as me :)

Reefs

Loving Kindness

For someone like me who is fiercely independent, it can be hard to sit still and participate in a program directed and narrated by someone else, so this has been an interesting exercise for me to experience these audio exercises in this class.  A kind of mental workout, if you will :)  Usually, I don't feel a big difference during these exercises as opposed to my normal ways of reconnecting to my awareness.  This exercise wasn't much different, though it certainly gave me a lot to think about.  I think mental workouts are very interesting and can be extremely beneficial for people to play with.  And as everyone has different needs and different ways of thinking, I believe everyone should have their own ways of working out mentally.  Some of mine include creative developments (such as making collages, writing impromptu poetry about tiny details around me, improvisational dance) and ones related to physical activity and endurance (hiking, cycling, yoga).  These have proven effective for me to develop a lightness and sharpness in the connection between my mind and body in order to respond best to my life and environment.

Cliffs

Reflections on Well-being

The three aspects of well-being that we are reflecting on this week are one that I consider daily, and am constantly working on ways to improve.  I would say my physical well-being is about an 8, my psychological well-being is about a 6 or 7 (depending on the day) and my spiritual well-being is about a 7 or an 8.  My goals in the physical realm have always centered around feeling good in my body, and developing an awareness for what makes it feel better, or worse.  My psychological well-being is an area I have spent a lot of time working on throughout my life, and am happy to say that I have made great progress in that area by working on my issues of anxiety, insecurity, depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder.  My goals in this area are to constantly keep a check on my state of well-being and find constantly new ways to enrich my psychological life, whether it's through hiking, going out with friends, or making a creative project.  My spiritual well-being is of course determined by what's going on in my life at the time- there are definitely times that we all feel lost or tumultuous.  And though I'm not religious, I feel my spiritual life is most enriched by being creative, appreciating nature, and loving the people I care about to the best of my ability.
The relaxation exercise was interesting because I noticed a substantial portion of the work was done in a similar way to the chakra system of the body, though it wasn't called that in the program.  For me, such relaxation program tend to frustrate me, as I do a lot better when I can let my mind flow and open up to notice thoughts that come and go in my mind (this is especially beneficial when I am doing something physical at the same time, such as hiking or yoga).

Journey On-Relaxation

Listening the the Journey On relaxation session was interesting, because in some ways it reminds me of the relaxation aspect of most yoga sessions I've participated in.  The gift of freedom that conscious relaxation lends is substantial, and delightful.  But one part was different- the philosophy that we are in control of the relaxation of different parts of our body through awareness, imagination, and suggestion.  And this is a strategy I've always used to energize myself when I'm in the midst of an overwhelming situation- but I tend to cal it "coming back to my body". Which makes sense.

Mountains

Welcome, fellow travelers

Who knows what will come in our journey together thorough the exploration of integral healing? It's exciting, because we are in control of how much we learn, and how we learn it.  My name is Alison, and I'm looking forward to our communal experience in this class, as I am a passionate believer in integral healing as a genuine way for us to connect to our true essence.  That's a beautiful thing, and even more, because in truth, it's all we have to hold onto in this life.