Final Blog

Hello All,
In unit 3, I rated myself physically at a 6, spiritually at a 7, and psychologically at a 6.5ish.  I would say that my scores might have slightly changed, but probably not too much.  I'm at a 7 now physically. I have started to exercise more, which was a goal of mine.  Spiritually I'm about the same.  I am not a big spiritual person, but I see spirituality through nature and other things.  Psychologically I would say probably a 7 as well.

I wanted to become more physically active.  That was a goal that I set for myself.  I have tried hard to implement that in my life even if it is hard for me to find time.  I have done this by taking my son for runs and walks.  Spiritually I wanted to discover new things more.  I wanted to possibly check out some churches to see what they were about.  I still have yet to do that, but I do experience god through other things such as nature and my family.  Psychologically I just wanted to be more confident in myself.  I am getting there slowly.  I have always been very shy.  I don't want to be that way anymore and I'm starting to bust out of my shell little by little.

My personal experience through this class has taught me things that I think I will be able to put toward my life in the future.  I was having some major personal things going on through this class so it was kind of hard for me to focus on the exercises.  I really would like to put the things that I have learned toward my life when I am in a better place.  I think my new knowledge will be rewarding to me, but I just need to be ready to use it.  The exercises that we did in this class and Dacher's book will be really helpful tools.  I also think that when I am in a better personal place that I will be able to help others as well.  Going through experiences and then coming out on top are good ways to help to motivate others to make good changes.  Although this class was bad timing and difficult for me, I have learned a lot to implement when I'm ready.  I hope all of you have learned some really great things as well!

-Megan

Final Project Blog: My Plan

Here's my plan:

I. Introduction:

            I think it’s important for a health and wellness professional to develop their own self psychologically, spiritually, and physically.  It all roots back to the old saying, “practice what you preach”.  I find that when I get told what to do or what is best for me by a professional, it means more to me if they follow their own advice.  When a professional is well rounded in health, it also makes them well rounded in knowledge and in life in general.  Having integral health as a professional allows for great things.  It allows you to gain confidence in higher possibilities, makes you want to end suffering and create a better world, and it also allows for you to evolve and expand your life (Dacher, 2005).  When you have all these things in your life, it makes health and healing come alive for you, like medicine has a soul (Dacher, 2005).

II. Assessment:

            I think my overall health is decent.  Spiritually I would have to say I’m probably at like a 7.  I don’t belong to a church, or necessarily believe in the bible, but I see god and spirituality through things in my daily life and through nature.  Too me, that is enough. 

Physically I would have to say a 7 too.  I am in decent shape.  One reason I say a 7 is because I have a chronic disease, type 1 diabetes.  That kind of takes a toll on you no matter how on top of it you are.  I also say a 7 because I could be more active, which would lead to better health.

Psychologically, I rate myself at an 8.  I recently have been going through some things, but I am coming out a better and stronger person.  I have changed myself for the better, however there is always way more room for further improvements. 

III. Goal Development:

            Spiritually, I would like to set the goal of being more aware of other’s views on spiritual things.  I want to know how other people see spirituality.

            Physically, setting a goal for being more active would be wonderful.  I am usually so busy doing schoolwork and chasing my young son around all day that I don’t think about exercising.  Although we do go for walks, I would really like to start running more.

            Psychologically, my goal is to be more confident in myself.  I was always so shy and timid as a kid and in high school.  I don’t like the way that made me feel.  I have broken out of that a little, but I want to further that growth. 

IV. Practices for personal health:

            I would like to implement practices to make myself better and grow.  Spiritually, one practice I would like to do is just take walks in nature.  I think you can see some of the most beautiful, mysterious things in the outdoors.  Being outside also clears my head and allows me to become more focused.  The other practice I would like to take up spiritually is actually maybe checking out a few different churches.  Just because I may not believe in all the things that the denomination may, doesn’t mean that there are not good messages to be heard during the sermon.  I will implement this practice by just going to random churches on Sundays.

            Physically, my first practice would be to start running more.  I actually really like running when I get into the swing of it.  It’s just hard the first couple of times.  I’m going to implement this by actually setting aside time in the day for this, whether it’s outside, or on the treadmill.  Another practice I would like to start is just really hunkering down on managing my illness.  I’m pretty good at it, but I can always be better about documenting things.  I’ve wanted to get better about that for a while.  This practice will also be good for doctor’s visits.

            Psychologically I think practicing some of the exercises that we did in class might help me to be focused and just help to clear my mind.  I usually have a lot going on in my thoughts, so giving my mind a break during the day would be well received.  I would like to incorporate the loving kindness exercise and the visionary exercise.  I think they both have good lessons in them that one should be reminded of frequently.

V. Commitment:

            I’m thinking that if I write in a journal either daily or weekly about the things that I have done, regarding my practices, that will be a good way to measure my progress or lack there of.  I also think by re-reading this plan, I will also be able to assess the changes that have taken place.  Being dedicated to reaching my goals and beginning new practices I’m sure will help as well.  When you are committed to something, you generally want to see things through.  Also, setting goals for myself just makes me want to achieve them and see the results. 

Reference

Dacher, E. S. (2005). Integral health, The path to human flourishing. Laguna Beach, CA: Basic Health Publications, Inc. 

Unit 8 blog

Well, this week we are to chose our two most favorite exercises so far.  Although all of them were kind of hard for me to focus on entirely, I would have to say that the loving-kindness and the exercise were we envisioned a knowledgeable person were my favorites.  I say the loving-kindness exercise not because I loved doing it, but because I like what it stands for.  Being loving and kind are two of the most important traits a person can have I think.  I have a hard time being kind to people when they have been rude to me.  In this course, I have learned that being kind to those who don't deserve it is the best thing to do.  Doing that has given me better mental fitness. 
I chose the visualization exercise because I think it would just be great to be able to have and feel the knowledge of another human being that you treasure and admire.  I had chosen my grandfather for that exercise who passed a couple months ago.  It made me feel close to him even if it was just for a little while.  If I could continue to feel close to him through meditation, it's worth doing.  Having knowledge from others who were or are wiser is a great gift, and therefore would also progress my mental fitness. 
I want to implement these practices in my life by being nice to strangers, offering advice and wisdom to others in need, try to reverse feelings of negativity to optimism, and by just being more loving and forgiving in general.  Everyone makes mistakes and has their bad days.  By me being more loving, excepting, kind, and open to others, hopefully my bad days won't be as often.
Thanks for reading for yet another week!

Unit 7 Blog

Hey all,
So for this week's meditation exercise, we had to envision a person whom we think is knowledgeable and wise.  The first person that came to mind was my grandfather who passed away a couple months ago.  I alway admired him.  As the exercise we went and I had to imagine him with light coming from his head and throat I actually began to chuckle.  He was a jokester most of the time, so I could just imagine him thinking that me seeing beams of light coming from him would be silly.  So although this exercise might not have accomplished what it should, I still felt like I was close to him for the 20 minutes that it went on.  That I can be thankful for.  I will continue to try and envision wise people when I need to feel close to them, or need some knowledge.  I think this meditation exercise was one of my more favorite ones that we've done so far.

The say "one cannot lead another where one has not gone himself" means to me that I cannot understand things that I have not experienced myself.  A friend of mine's mom is actually going through some serious health problems.  She needs a lung transplant if has been give only a 1 more to live if she doesn't get one.  I try to help my friend out with this, but I really have no idea what it's like to go through it myself.  I try and tell him to be positive, but that's hard to do and hard to hear.  This situation is perfect for this saying.  This saying also applies to the profession that I would like to be in.  I want to be a diabetes educator.  I personally have had diabetes practically all my life.  I would be leading people through things that I too have experienced.  This is why I want to do something pertaining to diabetes because I can relate.  I think it is important too to continue down the road of improving myself spiritually, psychologically, and physically because really the only place you should have goals for are up.  I want to better myself professional and personally, and help other better themselves as well.  

Thanks for reading!

Unit 6 Blog

Hey Guys,
I found the loving-kindness exercise to be nice.  I do wish that everyone was happy, well, whole, and not suffering, however that's not going to happen.  Sometimes I feel like when I wish for something that will not ever happen, it's kind of a waste of time.  That may sound awful, but it's like wishing for world peace.  That would be a wonderful thing, but logistically it probably is just a wishful thought.  With the way the world is today, the word peace is just something in the dictionary.  
As far as the assessment goes, I discovered that I would like to work on my relationship with my husband and myself.  When I don't feel happy about myself, then it reflects on my marriage.  I would like to work on being more confident and more independent.  I feel as though if I can make myself feel better about myself, then my marriage will also be better.  I'm kind of a negative person, so being more positive is also something that I would like to work on.  That aspect of myself also effects my marriage. Relationships are tough.  They constantly need work so they can be better then when they started :)

Unit 5 Post

Hey Guys,
This week we had to practice the subtle mind and do exercises to try and accomplish it.  Like the loving-kindness exercise, I had a hard time dropping my thoughts and just listening to what the speaker was saying.  I did the exercise twice.  I could get to a certain point and then it just seemed like I had been sitting there listening to the ocean waves for too long.  When I did the exercise for the first time, I had to keep saying the word breathe to make sure I was focusing on it.  When it came time to not focus on our breathes so much, I was actually able to really relax and feel a calmness overcome me.  However, someone coughed in my house and then all my focus was over.
I think there is a connection between spiritual, mental, and physical wellness.  At least with me, when one of those areas is having difficulty, the rest of the areas feel the affects.  When my physical body is tired, my mental and spiritual wellness feels groggy as well.  When something is causing me stress mentally, I feel tension in my shoulders and neck.  All three parts are connected and can affect the others in some way or another.
Well that's it for this week.  Until next time....,
Megan

Unit 4 Blog

Hey Guys,
So I just listened to the love and kindness exercise.  It actually took me awhile to be able to relax.  I have so much going on in my head lately that it was hard to let it all go for a few minutes and just focus on what the speaker was saying.  Towards the end, it actually kind of made me sad that I really couldn't take away all the pain from a loved one and replace it with love, wellness, and kindness.  I mentally did it, but physically I wish I could.
This week I tried to be kinder to people.  Normally when someone is rude to my, I answer back to them sarcastically.  The last few days, I surprisingly to myself and to others, I answered people with something nice.  I think it actually dumbfounded a couple of people.  Maybe by me showing kindness to a stranger, they then in return showed it to another strange.  Kind of like the ripple effect.  That what I would like to think happened at least :)
A "mental workout" is what it sounds like, a work out for the mind.  It physically good for the body to work out just as it is mentally good for the mind to work out.  We can do this by doing exercises that better ourselves, such as the loving kindness exercise we had to do this week.  When we work out mentally, we can rid our minds of anger, resentment, fear, and all those negative feelings that we like to hang on to.  It can only make us better, stronger, and more healthy all around.
Thanks for reading! Until next week....
-Megan