Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Unit 10 Blog

  1. Review your unit 3 personal assessment of your psychological, physical, and spiritual well-being. Reflect on these areas . How did you score yourself on a scale from 1 to 10 in unit 3? How do you score yourself now? Has the score changed? Why or why not?
 
Then : Physical well-being: 7.5
Spiritual well-being: 10

 
Psychological well-being: 8.5

 
 
 
Now: Physical well-being: 8
Spiritual well-being: 10

 
Psychological well-being: 9
 
Yes, My over all health has improved.
 
Review the goals and activities you set for yourself in each area. Have you made progress toward the goals? Explain.
 
Yes, I have made improvements. Though I haven't had a major decrease in weight lose, I have had decrease in pain, and increases in my physical fitness levels.
 
Have you implemented the activities you chose for your well-being in each of the three areas? Explain.
 
Yes, I have increased both my cardiovascular fitness training, and my resistance training as well. I have taken time out to focus on my person health, mental fitness, and spiritual well-being. Taking time out to focus on myself has been very beneficial to my health.
 
Summarize your personal experience throughout this course. Have you developed improved well-being? What has been rewarding? What has been difficult? How will this experience improve your ability to assist others?
 
My experience during this course has been very beneficial. I have learn new techniques to manage various situation that I would have never thought of otherwise. Having multiple techniques to manage stress can be very beneficial, and very rewarding. The most difficult part of this course for me was the visualization techniques. for some reason when asked to do so I struggled with it. I do believe This course has equipped me with some vital tools that I can take in to the work force to help improve my patient client, relationship, and  help me better understand others.

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Unit 9 Final Project Blog


I - Introduction:

 

Why is it important for health and wellness professionals to develop psychologically, spiritually and physically? What areas do you need to develop to achieve the goals you have for yourself?

 

It is very important for any professional to want to be as developed as possible in their personal life prior to engaging in trying to help others. We need a solid foundation on order to provide the best service possible. If we are lacking as a healthcare profession it may begin to affect our work, or our judgment. Being well balanced psychologically, spiritually, and physically will help a professional provide the best service possible.

 

According to (Dacher E.S., 2006), the benefits of healthcare professionals implement integral health in to their own lives helps them to better understand issues, and ailments that affect their patients. This gives them a more complete understanding of their suffering and allows them to determine what avenues that patient may need to take to accomplish human.” These professionals will than want to end needless suffering to the best of their ability and therefore, “the soul of medicine returns.”

 

Some areas that I need to develop in order to achieve balance and optimal psychological, spiritual and physical wellness are to focus in on exercise, and nutrition. My psychological, and spiritual well-being have improve drastically over the last 10 years, and improving on my physical well-being and nutrition are the 2 areas that will bring my life in complete balance.

               


II - Assessment:

 


How have you assessed your health in each domain? How do you score your wellness spiritually, physically, and psychologically?

 

I assess my spiritually, physically, and psychologically health by how far I have progressed or digressed over the time. I am able to honestly evaluate my life and list those areas that need improvements as well as those that have develop over time, and life experiences. There are numerous exercises that can allow progression, and improvement. I will need to develop better mental fortitude to accomplish complete balance, and human flourishing. According to (Dacher E.S., 2006), an assessment process can also be completed by asking a series the following five questions which promoted focus on healing and integral development (Dacher E.S., 2006):

 

1. “What aspect of my life-psychospiritual, biological, interpersonal, or worldly- is the source of difficulty and suffering?” (HEALING)

 

2. “What line of development is most essential for me at this time?” (HEALING)

 

3. “What is my current level of development and what can I aim for.” (HEALING)

 

4. “What area of my life is ready for growth and development?” (PROMOTING)

 

5. “What would the next level of development look like?” (PROMOTING)

 

My physical wellness is 6-8, spiritual wellness is 9-10 and psychological wellness is also 9-10 on a 1-10 scale. My physical well-being is improving day to day, but I am far from the level of physical fitness that I desire. I am not perfect in my spiritual, and psychological well-being, but I am very comfortable in my development in those 2 areas.

 

 III - Goal Development:

 

 List at least one goal you have for yourself in each area, Physical, Psychological (mental health) and Spiritual.

 

My goals are to lower my overall body fat, and rehab my injured knee back to pain free mobility. To accomplish these goals I will need to adjust my nutritional intake in order to reduce the amount of unwanted calories, and fats that continue to be stored in my body. To improve upon my physical limitations I will need to continue my strength, and conditioning regimen as well as listen to my body. I will need to remain patient, and focused on the goal at hand.  

 

 

IV - Practices for Personal Health:

 

 What strategies can you implement to foster growth in each of the following domains; Physical, Psychological, and Spiritual. Provide at least two examples of exercises or practices in each domain. Explain how you will implement each example.

 

I can continue positive psychological growth by acknowledging my short comings, and working towards developing them within my personal, and professional life. My psychological state at this point in my life is very balanced, and I am able to function in all situations. Psychological health is a very sensitive portion of life so it is very important to find ways to manage stress, and stressors. Some way are practicing meditations and yoga exercises to help bring your minds to a state of peace.

 

My spirituality well-being has always been my strongest trait. I really can’t see anyways I could improve, but some ways I have sustained a healthy spiritual well-being has been constantly engage in prayer, meditation, and counseling. To flourish as a human being we must have great balances with our spiritual selves.

I can also improve my physical wellness by remaining consistent. My day to day eating habits, and healthy food selection sway from time to time. I also need to learn how to listen to my body more. I get so determined to accomplish my goals that I sometimes push myself to hard, and cause physical setbacks that prolong my progression.

 

V - Commitment:

How will you assess your progress or lack of progress in the next six months? What strategies can you use to assist in maintaining your long-term practices for health and wellness?

 

My success it tied into my focus on achieve my goals by understanding that being patient is the only way I will reach optimal health and experience human flourishing. I will need to monitor and evaluate my progress on a regularly, but remain positive when I don’t get the results I expect. I have developer a progress check list to monitor my levels of improvement, or have a chart of any setbacks that may occur.

 

After monitoring my progress over a 3 month period I can determine what areas I need to make adjustments to, or sustain. I’m confident that minor adjustment to my diet, and physical fitness regimen will help me bring balance between my psychological, spiritual and physical health.

 

Reference

                                                                                                                                           

Dacher, E. (2006). Integral health: The path to human flourishing. Laguna Beach, CA. Basic Health Publications, Inc

Friday, April 3, 2015

Unit 8 Blog

Review the exercises and practice sessions you have completed in this course. (Loving Kindness, Subtle mind, Visualization, meditation etc.) Choose two practices that you have determined to be most beneficial. How can you implement these practices in your personal life to foster “mental fitness”? Provide specific examples.

My personal favorites were the Loving Kindness practice, and the meditation. The loving kindness practice is very important to me because it is very important that we acknowledge everyone's existence, and value in the world. We are all connected in one way or another, so it is important that we are not so self centered that we forget that basic principle. The other practice is meditation, and for me this practice my be the most important of them all. It gives me the freedom to find myself which is so easily lost through out a stressful week. It helps me to bring balance back to life, and a state of peace to my spirit.

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Unit 7 Blog

  1. Complete the Meeting Aesclepius mp3 (located in the Doc Sharing area). Describe your meditative practices for the week and discuss the experience. Explain how mindfulness or meditation has fostered an increase in your psychological or spiritual wellness. How can you continue to apply these practices in your life to foster greater health and wellness?
This was a very amazing practice for me. I selected my mother as my focal point, and I couldn't have chosen a better person. As I went through this practice it was hard for me to imagine my mother completely, only her warming smile came to mind, but it was really pleasing to my spirit to go through this type of practice with her on my mind. I literally had tears of joy streaming down my face as it progressed. My mother fit all of the categories perfectly, and I could actually feel her with me as it went on. I think I could use this practice when ever I am down to bring my spirits up. It was so nourishing to my spirit.
  1. Describe the saying: "One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself" (p.477). How does this apply to the health and wellness professional? Do you have an obligation to your clients to be developing your health psychologically, physically, and spiritually? Why or why not? How can you implement psychological and spiritual growth in your personal life?
The best way for me to explain this is by my own personal experience. I am a fitness nut, but right now my body fat is way higher than it has ever been due to PTSD, and a major injury to my knee. Even though I have a wealth of knowledge in the realm of fitness because I don't look the part it would be hard for me to get anyone to listen to what I have to say. How can you help me if you can't help yourself par say.  I feel very obligated to my clients to develop myself as best as I can, so that I will be well suited to meet their needs. I believe that every day that we live we should be trying to improve on some part of ourselves. we should be forever evolving, and progressing in order to effect positive change in our world.

Reference

Schlitz, M., Amorok, T., & Micozzi, M. (2005). Transformation of the healer: The application of Ken          
    Wilber's integral model to family practice medicine. Consciousness & healing: Integral approaches

    to mind-body medicine. St. Louis, MO: Elsevier, Inc.

Saturday, March 21, 2015

Unit 6 Blog

Practice the universal Loving Kindness (meditation) exercise on p. 93.
After a few minutes past I would then start to repeat phrases "for the betterment of all individuals, and for me to help others". For me this was just a eye opener to my own personal beliefs. I truly believe I this phase as a life style, I just never actually spoke the words. It was very calming. 

Complete the Integral Assessment discussed in chapter 11 (p.115).
 
The Integral Assessment exercise required the same type preparation , but had a more direct intent then the loving kindness exercise.  I was then instructed to take an internal inventory over those aspects of my life in regards my of my psycho-spiritual, biological, interpersonal, and worldly suffering.  I was then instructed to focus on  an area of my life that I felt could use the most improvement, and to document it.
 
Describe the exercise and assessment process. What did you discover about yourself? What area have you chosen to be a focus of growth and development? Why? What are some specific exercises or activities that you can implement to foster greater wellness in this area?
 
There was no new development for me. My area of focus is one that I have been trying to work on for some months now. I am pretty much balanced in most areas of my life, but I have been really lacking in my own personal nutrition. After a severe state of depression due to tearing my patella tendon I put on a lot of excess weight, and now my focus is on fixing my nutrition, so I can lower my overall body fat to under 20%. I am extremely active, and after evaluating my overall health it was determined that my primary deficiency was in the food I had been consuming. I am focusing on balancing out my diet, eating 6 times a day, and keeping my caloric intake under 2500 calories a day. I also have to substitute more water consumption into my diet, and less sugary beverages like juices or soda.

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Unit 5 Blog

  1. Compare and contrast the Loving Kindness exercise and the Subtle mind exercise. Explain your experience including the benefits, frustrations etc.
There was one major difference between the 2 exercises, and that was in the Subtle mind exercise
I was able to just focus on relaxation or breathing. This is a very command practice for me, so it is very easy for me to zone out while deep breathing. I actually get to that point very quickly with no really outside interference. Last weeks practice was good for learning how to let go of stress, and stressful situation. This week I think is better suited for rebooting your psyche, and starting over fresh after a long week.
 
2. Discuss the connection of the spiritual wellness to mental and physical wellness. Explain how the connection is manifested in your personal life.
 
For me it is simple for me to be complete my mind, body and spirit have to work together. If one is lacking the entire system has an imbalance, and will eventually lead to some type of ailment. If a person is suffering from a mental ailment it is possible for them to seek council from someone like a priest, or a pastor for spiritual guidance, and in many cases this has been the starting point for their individual healing. For me personally when I had my knee injury, and the doctors told me I might never walk right, or even run I prayed daily, and believed strongly in the power of my own body's healing abilities, not only did I heal, but I healed 3 months ahead of schedule.

Unit 4 Blog

  1. Describe your experience. Did you find it beneficial? Difficult? Why or why not? Would you recommend this to others? Why or why not?
My experience with this weeks Loving Kindness MP3 was a mixed one. At first it was really calming, and peacefully, but then it asked us to start taking in the negative event, or thought that were happening to ourselves and others. At first this was really upsetting. After being so calm just focusing on these things made me very sad almost instantly. It took a little time for them to just start melting away, but in all I think it was a good practice. I could see myself using it if I had a bad day.
  1. What is the concept of "mental workout"? What does the research indicate are the proven benefits of a mental workout? How can you implement mental workouts to foster your psychological health?
The concept is if you don't use it you'll lose it. Like the muscles of the body the brain needs to be in constant use to remain strong, and functioning properly. If this is not don't we will begin to regress, and forget much of what we have learned. There is research that shows that people that engage in a steady verity of mental workouts through out life have improved the memory, concentration and problem-solving skills of healthy adults 65 and older(MW, 2015). A way to implement mental workouts is to continue to learn new things about ourselves. Read material on psychological advancements, and how that may effect use personally,  continue to seek council, and guidance.
 
Mental Workout, 2015, Neurological Foundation of New Zealand, http://www.neurological.org.nz/brain-health/mental-workout