Nicole C Booker
Final Project
HW420-Creating Wellness
This
class has been one of the classes that I will take with me forever. I know that I have gained so much knowledge
while going to college and studying life.
It wasn’t until this class that I really got that chance to study who I
am on all levels of my being. I think it
is very important for professionals to develop psychologically, spiritually and
physically because in order to lead people into a better lifestyle, you have to
be walking that same path. It will not
work for the benefit of the patient or the professional. The importance and integrity behind integral
health and natural medicine is that the patient is learning to work towards
wellness and healthy living and part of that learning is by mirroring what
their doctor does and recommends. The areas that I need to develop for my
future goals are a mixture of all the triad of wellness although some need to
be addressed more than others. On a
psychological level, I need to be able to get my anxiety disorder more
stabilized and master the tools to be able to fully help others to the extent
that I know I am capable. Physically, I
am strong in regards to knowing the tools, adopting healthy eating habits and
physical activity most all days of the week but still have some physical issues
that minimize my full potential. This is
a continued work in progress but never giving up. Last but surely never least, my
spirituality. This is among the
strongest part of who I am and my personal connection with my personal Lord and
Savior. The spiritual connection that I
have toward the earth itself and nature brings a sense of wellness and sense of
bigger purpose.
II.
Assessment:
There are many ways
throughout my life where I have taken stock in where I was at the current
time. The other class that I am taking concurrently
this term with this class is about coping with stress and recognizing stress in
your life. This class was also a
blessing for me and went hand in hand.
The class had assignments that we had to do weekly that assessed
different facets of our makeup and I learned so much about who I am. The spirituality was scored high, physically
it has room for improvement and part of that is my own self-image and more
positive thought processes in regards to my physical abilities. Psychologically
speaking, my personality seems to be more dominant with the Type R personality.
III.
Goal development:
Physical goal that I would like to achieve
consists of short term and long term goals.
I have found it more successful if I set up smaller milestones and
celebrate the small successes instead of being deterred by the time it will
take to achieve the long term goal. My
short term goal is to be able to increase my cardio intensity by a quarter
within the next month. Cardio fitness is
consistent in my workout routine but I tend to not push myself to build up
endurance and would rather spend time strength training. That will not help with my second goal of
losing 10% body fat since it is well known that cardio burns fat and strength
training builds muscle. I know this but
still really have issues with cardio endurance.
My idea is to continue with Zumba classes and other classes that creates
a different environment then running on a treadmill but still allows me to
achieve optimum cardiovascular exercise.
Psychological goal that I
am working on would be on my anxiety and over reactive behavior. I would like to get a better handle on
understanding my bipolar disorder and different techniques to make it easier on
myself and my family.
Spiritually my goal is to
get more God focused and not worldly focused.
The rush of life can engulf me and I find myself eliminating my personal
time with God. This is something that I
have struggled with then go a long time able to just bask in the love and
appreciation of God and then a whirlwind called life blindsides time and pretty
soon my meditation time is out the window for 30 minutes more sleep. My goal is
to make sure to set aside time like I always do but make a solid commitment to
do this.
IV.
.Practices for personal health:
Physically
I can foster balance in this area of my life by making a solid commitment to an
hour a day, five days a week to just cardiovascular exercise. I have found that step class, zumba, and the
elliptical can keep my interest but have decided to break up my cardio into
different exercises if I want to.
Changing it up really keeps the body from getting use to the same
routine as well as keep me interested.
My
solid commitment to my psychological wellbeing is to be nicer and easier on
myself. This release of pressure will
allow me the freedom to explore and embrace without regret or confusion. It is important for me to recognize this
especially with the anxiety and doubt that I carry. This foundation needs to be stronger before I
can assist others with their fears. Journaling
and writing seem to be the most positive release of emotion that I have
found. This is another practice I have
begun to use again to help with both my psychological and spiritual wellbeing.
Commitment:
My plan to assess my progress in the next six months will
be to go through my journaling of nutrition, mental thought processes and
fitness log to see the progress I have made.
I have always found journaling your course in life to be the most
beneficial and cleansing thing. I think
my first journal was in fifth grade maybe fourth and from that moment on I have
owned a journal. Some memories and years have been lost in the shuffle of life,
probably being read by some stranger.
Then there are others that I have had for decades and can pull them out
and see where I was and where I am.
Sometimes bittersweet but mostly sweet. The strategies that are helpful
is to already have it in your mind set that there is no giving up, there is
times where it will slow down but never stop moving toward that goal. Keeping my circle of peers and mentors
positive parts of my life and not toxic or unhealthy in behavior or attitude.
