Wellness and Well-being

 

Definition of Wellness

 

Wellness is being actively aware of and making decisions towards living a healthy and fulfilling life. According to The World Health Organization, wellness is “…. a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” The National Wellness Institute defines it as “a conscious, self-directed and evolving process of achieving full potential.” Wellness, like well-being, is a dynamic process of change and growth, and food has a major contribution to make to this process. This confirms the popular sayings “you are what you eat.

Wellness is a broad topic and a vital part of personal growth because it is not only focused on preventing disease but also improving the quality of life.

Wellness was traditionally regarded as the opposite of illness; the absence of disease and disability. Now it has a wider meaning.

Different Perspectives of Wellness

There are different perspectives as to what wellness is but many important organisations agree that wellness is not limited to health as follows:

• The National Wellness Institute defines wellness as:“Wellness is an active process through which people become aware of, and make choices toward, a more successful existence”
• According to the Global Awareness Day: “Wellness is the conscious development of the whole self. Embarking on a wellness journey is a process of searching for the appropriate “tools” to make you a healthier and happier human being, plus discovering your own effective methods to use these “tools” for continued growth and development”.
• It is defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as ” Wellness is the optimal state of health of individuals or groups. There are two focal concerns: the realisation of the fullest potential of an individual physically, psychologically, socially, spiritually and economically, and the fulfilment of one’s role expectations in the family, community and place of worship, workplace and other settings“.

The above definitions show that recognising and getting the tools for maintaining optimal state of health is part of lifestyle in order to have a successful existence. This is so because the way you feel about yourself, for example that you look good has a psychological effect on you, especially your self esteem and confidence.

Dimensions of Wellness

Source: DaisyFig Wikimedia Commons – Eight Dimensions of Wellness v2.png

As it can be seen from the above definitions, wellness is made up of a number of factors, popularly known as “dimensions of wellness” Consequently, in our food and health plans these dimensions have to be included as part of our lifestyles.

Wellness plan has to be part of the overall life management programme. There are 8 dimensions of wellness commonly used by universities, and health care organisations as discussed below, which need to be included:

Physical Wellness

This involves things in life that we have to do to keep ourselves in good physical condition. They include carrying out regular physical activities, maintaining a healthy eating lifestyle, developing  strength and vitality. It also includes taking responsibility for your health care by having medical checks and seeking medical attention when needs arise. Looking after your body well helps you to master your body and recognize the early warning signs when things are not going well in order to do something about it or get medical attention.

In order to maintain maintain a good quality of life as far as physical wellness a concerned, the physical wellness plan should include things such as:

• Having knowledge of measures of physical wellness such blood pressure, weight,blood sugar levels, cholesterol etc.
• Knowing when to get medical checkups.
• Being aware of certain products that should be avoided because of their effects on the body. Wellness, like well-being, is a dynamic process of change and growth, and food has a major contribution to make to this process. This confirms the popular sayings “you are what you eat.”
• Sleep patterns that ensure sufficient sleep
• Regular exercise plan.

Environmental Wellness

The environment affects us all; our surroundings, our community and the universe as a whole affect us in many ways. This means having respect for the environment and all the species living in it because they all have a contribution to make to the universe as a whole.

Even part of we have physical wellness includes being aware of the environmental factors that enhance wellness and being able to recognize and take responsibility for the quality of the air, the water and the land that surrounds us.

Social Wellness Plan

Social wellness is the ability to relate with others and build a meaningful relationships. It starts with respecting and valuing yourself and others, and that being aware that life is about living in harmony with others, your family, neighbours, community and the environment, instead of living in conflict with them. In order to be effective in doing this, you need to to develop good communication skills and actively seek to engage with those around you. Mainlining good relationship can build a support system that may provide the needed support in times of difficulties.

It also includes maintaining a good love or romantic relationship that is not out of balance with other needs.

Social wellness is really important because when you have a social support network, the interactions with others help to build up self-confidence and self-esteem, especially where the network is made up of people that have a positive attitude.

Spiritual Wellness Plan

Though many people may not accept or recognize it, the spiritual part of our beings is more important to living a fulfilling life. What drives our spiritual lives will depend on religious faith, beliefs, values, ethics, principles and morals.

The impact of spirituality on our lives is unavoidable because it is what gives us purpose in life, inner strength and peace especially in times of trouble which is unavoidable in life.

Occupational Wellness

Occupational wellness occurs when a person has satisfaction and enrichment from work, and achieve a balance between work and leisure. In order to attain occupational wellness, we need to follow a career that we have passion for so that we will find meaning and satisfaction in our work and continue to get motivated, even when we face challenges.

Financial wellness

There is no common definition of financial wellness that is unanimously accepted, in spite of its importance to life, as money is critical to living a fulfilling and sustainable life. Lack of money can cause considerable stress that affects every aspect of life. According to Sun Trust survey, money is the main cause of relationship stress. Among those with relationship stress, 35% admitted that finances are the main cause of stress.

However, financial wellness is not about wealth, it is about being in a healthy financial state.

According to a recent report by Liz Davidson, CEO & Founder, Financial Finesse, financial wellness is defined as “A state of financial well-being where a person maintains:

• A manageable level of financial stress
• A lifestyle at or below their financial means
• A strong financial foundation, including adequate emergency savings, no high interest debt, and a sufficient insurance and estate plan to protect assets, income and loved ones.
• An ongoing plan to achieve future financial goals”

As it can be seen from the above, financial wellness is not about making a lot of money or accumulating wealth, it is about making good financial management decisions that gives you financial freedom.

Financial wellness has become a hot topic in the workplace. In 2014, a survey by Aon Hewitt, shows that many employers are concerned about the financial well-being of their employees. According to the survey of over 400 companies, 76% of them were somewhat or very likely to expand their focus on the financial wellness of employees.

Another survey of over 2,800 workers and their dependents by Aon Hewitt shows that financial problems are the most common examples given as the cause of stress, and 51% of admit that stress was cause of their being less productive at work.

Intellectual

Intellectual wellness is the use of available resources to improve our skills and expand our knowledge, which in turn will expand our potentials for sharing with others. An intellectually well person is curios to learn and explore new ideas, respond to challenges, explore growth opportunities in order to live a successful life. Learning is very important to personal growth as it helps you to evolve as things change. In fact everything in us needs exercising and the brain is no exception.

So, developing your intellectual capacity is very important. You have to be open to new ideas and be able to test it yourself to find out whether its true. Even in the business world, it can be observed that many well-known companies have closed down because they refused to move with the changes in technology.

References

Aon Hewitt, (2014). Aon Hewitt Survey Finds Employers to Focus on Improving Financial Well-Being of Workers in 2014 [online] Available at: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/aon-hewitt-survey-finds-employers-to-focus-on-improving-financial-well-being-of-workers-in-2014-239423061.html [Accessed 27 Nov. 2017].

Davidson, L. (2017). Workplace Financial Wellness Programs: Best Practices. [pdf] California: Financial Finesse, page 4. Available at: https://ffinesse.app.box.com/v/FinWellnessGuide [Accessed 26 Nov. 2017]

Holland, K (2015). Fighting with your spouse? It’s probably about this [online]. Available at: https://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/04/money-is-the-leading-cause-of-stress-in-relationships.html [Accessed on 27 Nov. 2017]

Sun Trust, (2015) Love and Money: People Say They Save, Partner Spends, According to SunTrust Survey [online]  Available at: http://investors.suntrust.com/news/news-details/2015/Love-and-Money-People-Say-They-Save-Partner-Spends-According-to-SunTrust-Survey/default.aspx [Accessed 28 Nov. 2017]