Final Thoughts

Through the course of this class I have been challenged to look at all areas of my health and wellness. I have examined my physical, psychological, and spiritual aspects of my health. During the time spent in class I have worked to build a plan to help improve myself in these three areas. This was done in Unit 3 of the class. At this time I would not say that I have increased in these three areas as not enough time has passed to successfully show improvement on a long term scale. I am not paying more attention to my nutrition and this is helping with my physical health. I also am now reading my Bible more yet this is not a daily occurance. The positive effects of these on my psychological health has not yet been fully experienced. I am still in the start up phase and working on consistency in all areas.
This course has helped me to look at myself on a more in-depth level and to see how all the pieces fit together to lead my to optimum integral health. The biggest challenge has been to change my routine to ensure that I am meeting all needs of my health and not just one aspect. I think that this experience will help me to be more open to others and to see different paths to improved health and wellness.

Jonathan.

Personal Application

I.                    Introduction

There are several aspects that make up integral health and they are psychological, spiritual and physical health. True and total health is just more than just the physical and more and more people have an understanding these three areas as a whole and living out this concept. It is important for the health and wellness professional to understand all three areas and how they interact so that they are able to help lead a client to total integral health. All three areas are in need of some help in terms of my own integral health and they all are differing degrees of strength in helping me to achieve total integral health.

II.                  Assessment

Every person needs to take some time to look within and to truly get an understanding of where they are in terms of integral health. This allows for a sort of jumping off point to see which area of the three needs to be given extra attention to or if there should be more of a concerted effort to incorporate all three at the same time. For myself I scored very differently in the three areas. Under spirituality I scored the highest of the three. I really make an effort to pray every day and to take time out to thank God for everything that he has provided to me and to my family. I would give myself a score of 7 out of 10 for this aspect of integral healing. For the physical aspect I would score myself 5 out of 10 as this is an area that I am not currently actively pursuing in terms of a structured exercise plan. For the last aspect which would be the psychological I would give myself 6 out of 10. I think that some of why I am not pursuing more in regard to my exercise and nutrition is because I am putting up mental blocks that sometime stop me from even starting.

III.               Goal Development

It is always good to have goals and they need to be ones that are attainable. For myself I have started to put some goals into place that can help me in moving forward toward integral health. For my spiritual piece one thing that I am going to do is to take some time out each morning and devote this to reading a passage from the Bible. This way I can really grow my knowledge of the Word and be able to hold within my heart and inner being to be able to call upon in times of stress and struggle. I have a plan of working out three times a week to meet my physical needs. I will set aside time on Tuesday and Thursday evening after work and on Saturday morning. This will give me a minimum of three times a week doing vigorous physical exercise. For the last aspect I will start a journal to help me to keep my thoughts in perspective and to help try and identify those areas that I allow to dictate on a more sub-conscious level when I feel overwhelmed. This can help me to have a feeling of accomplishment and to keep pressing on to attain total integral health.

IV.                Practices for Personal Health

Having goals only help a person when they are put into action and there are changes that come out from practicing and working toward achieving personal goals. Setting aside time each morning to help with my reading of the Bible is important and making this time special and sacred. Each morning I will have this be a time when I sit at the kitchen table and have my first cup of coffee and read Scripture. Having a devotional book that leads the way and helps to identify what verses or books to read has helped me in the past. This gives a purpose and goal for the chosen Scripture passages. Another thing that I can do to help foster this growth spiritually is to find a new church family. I currently do not belong to a church and have not for the past year. Being part of a group that supports each other’s grow is very important. For my physical growth I have joined a website that allows me track my calories spent each day and to log my food intake. This will help me to stay on track to be held accountable. I log in my food each day and this keeps track of my calories. I also have what is called an exerspy that is a devise that sits on my left arm and helps to track my calories expended and my sleep. It also tracks how many steps I take each day. This system will allow me to have a good understanding of what I am accomplishing or not every day. There will be a check in every 14 days so that I am held accountable for my actions. The last piece of my goal to improve my integral health is on a psychological aspect. The first thing that I will do with this is to start to keep a journal of not only my activities but also my emotions during times of high stress when I sometimes sabotage myself and overeat. This does wear on me as I do not always have the energy to give my all and to keep going when I become overwhelmed and slip in my diet. I will also start to use the Loving Kindness practice but alter it more toward loving myself a little bit more and not being so hard on myself. This is a practice that I can do two times a week on Monday and Friday in the morning before I head off to work.

V.                  Commitment

It is always good to have goals yet there needs to be commitment to have put them into action. Long term success and overall integral health is the desired outcome by the client and the health care practitioner. There should be ways to track and measure success when on your journey. For the physical aspect of my integral health the website that I use will help with this part of success. I have to track my outcomes every 14 days and the program alters based on the results. This allows me to see if I am on track or need to make changes to get on track. For the other two aspects; spiritual and psychological it may be a bit more difficult to measure. There should be outcomes of improved Loving Kindness and caring not only for myself but also for other people. I should have a better understanding of who I am through writing and be able to identify when I become overwhelmed and make the necessary changes to stay on track. I should develop a greater understanding and love for my Savior through my daily devotion. Going back to church will allow me the fellowship and support that I need to stay strong with my faith and convictions. Having brothers and sisters in Christ also help me by pointing out areas that I may need more care and support will also keep positive and going for the long term commitment. These are all areas that can help me track my progress and to stay focused on developing my total integral health.

Favorite Exercises

During this class there were several exercises that we participated in to help gain a better understanding of integral health and wellness. There were two exercises that I really enjoyed the most and can see using in my everyday life. The first was the exercise about Loving Kindness. This is a great morning exercise to help start the day off right and to be in a positive loving frame of mind before going out into the world. The second were the visualization exercises. For myself I usually think of using visualization to help improve sports or fitness performance yet it can also be used to help improve overall health. This would be a great evening exercise to do before going to bed. Sleep is a great time for the body to repair and recover from the days activites and stress. Taking the time each day can help to bring great improvements to a persons overall health. Focusing on getting a good nights sleep and having good dreams can help focus the mind and help the body to relax and move into a nice restful sleep.

Jonathan.

Meet Asciepius

Good evening class,

I have to say that this was the hardest practice to experience and that I did check out when it was mentioned that Asciepius was a god. This is I know something that is tied to ancient Greece and the East yet it went against what I believe to be true. For myself I struggled to picture the wise person and then to have light connect us together. I do not believe that we are made pure and gain understanding just envisioning an older or wiser individual. I think that we need to always be learning and growing from our experiences so that we can continue to treat others with love and kindness. This is something that Jesus taught his disciples that they should put others first. I have not per say done meditation practices this week yet each day I do take time to pray asking for forgiveness and thanking for my many blessings. I ask for strength and guidance in my day to day dealings with people and ask that all I do help to further God's purpose.

In looking at being able to lead to others to where I myself have not gone is to what it means to lead by example. How can I ask my clients to track their foods and watch calorie intake when I myself do not. I need to understand the patience needed to keep a food journal and to also earn respect from my clients if I am unable to follow my own direction. I have an obligation to myself to ensure that I am walking a strong spiritual path and that I am not being hypocritical when it comes to my testimony. I need to show that my life is different and that I really care for others in my practice. The biggest thing that I can do in my own personal life is to walk the walk. I need to seek out the needs of others and fill those needs so that others can know that there is hope for a better future. 

Jonathan.

Loving Kindness and Integral Assessment

Good afternoon,

I once again went and did the Loving Kindness practice. This time I knew what to expect in terms of where the exercise was going. I did however note that I either thought of other subjects or found myself zoning out. I am discovering that what I thought of as meditation actually involves some active mental training on the part of the practicioneer. For myself I find that I really need to focus on what I am supposed to be accomplishing. For this exercise I thought of the person that brings high levels of love for myself and as I moved through the exercise I kept having to re-think of this person as the feelings that I felt were to be going out to others. I strongly believe that what we put out into the world each day does come back to us and that like minded people are attracted to each other. If making others the focus of  your life is a goal than you will run into people that also have a serving mindset in giving to others.

The second part of this exercise was to look at areas within ourselves that we may need to spend time on healing or giving extra loving attention. For myself the areas that have been a struggle have been in finding time to exercise and to follow a well balanced diet. This weekend I started on this path by doing a cleanse - fast type structure. I limited my protein and did not ingest any processed foods. Friday was mostly focused on fruits and veggies with Saturday more on soups and broths. Today I am including protein. Yet on all three days there has not been any processed carbs. This is to help cut down on my cravings for sweets that we seem to be bombarded with during this time of year. Once this weekend is over then I will continue in limiting my carbs to complex and get back to some type of daily activity. I plan on walking at work during my breaks and doing yoga at home.

Jonathan.

The Subtle Mind Exercise take 2

For this exercise we were supposed to look within and take some time to quiet our minds by first focusing on our breathing. This allows for there to be a slowing down of one's self and to help with blocking out the external distractions. This was to replace the exercise of Loving Kindness that was discussed in earlier posts. I will admit that after the breathing part and when the guide stopped talking and all that was happening was the sounds of the ocean my mind wandered and I really had to focus. I went back to thinking about my breathing and about half way through the exercise I fell asleep.

I do think that there is a definite connection between a persons physical wellbeing and their mental wellbeing. Being able to meditate and take time out to slow down will have huge positive gains for a lot of people. I do however struggle with the spiritual aspect of these exercises. They are based in a lot of Eastern philosophy which speaks to finding your own salvation on the inside or reaching your own perfection. There were many examples given in the reading. As a Christian I struggle with this belief and have had to not let my own beliefs interfere with experiencing the class. My salvation comes from the change in my life that took place when I put my faith in Jesus Christ. I understand that when I feel struggles and do not fully want to love another person this is my opportunity to pray and ask for strength to give what is needed to help further the kingdom of God and to lead by example. Practice is very important in being able to find calm and to show loving kindness yet I do not believe that it completely comes from within. It starts with the change that knowing Jesus Christ can bring.

I strongly believe that the physical aspect of exercise such as running, practicing yoga or playing a sport can increase your awareness about yourself and how you fit into this world. Being able to express yourself through activity helps to calm the mind and get yourself ready for a time of quiet and reflection that these exercises can help you to accomplish. The key component is practice.

Jonathan.

Loving Kindness

I have to say that this exercise was a challenge for me. During the exercise I found that my mind wandered a lot and I struggled to stay focused beyond my breathing. I know that for myself looking inside and just taking time to slow down is a great blessing as for many of us, myself included seem to always be on the go. Stopping and taking the time to reflect on our inner thoughts can be very positive. I know that looking at ones actions and thoughts can help to bring about a better sense of who we are as humans and giving of ourselves to others. I am not sure if the actual practice of breathing in grief and suffering and breathing out joy and wellness were just a way to reflect on how we treat other people? Or if this was some actual belief in taking in real pain and suffering and sending out light and happiness. This is something that for myself I do not believe and so this may be why I stuggled in staying in the moment and focused. I think that any type of meditative practice is a benefit to others and finding quiet can do wonders to reducing stress levels. This practice I would not recommend just on the fact of how I do not believe in sending out positive thoughts and feelings into the universe make a difference. Practicing what you preach in terms of loving kindness helps facilitate change and fosters continued growth and development.
To me the concept of a mental workout is taking the time to stretch your thoughts by quieting the mind and working through difficult situations. This allows you to look and review actons and feelings so that you can learn and grow. Hopefully positive changes happen and this is an exercise that again needs to be practiced so that it is not lost. Benefits of mental workouts allow a person to think clearly and to act proactivly in situations and not to be in a constant reactive frame of mind.