I.
Introduction:
When I think of a professional, I think of someone who has taken the time to
master a skill that can be used to provide a service to others. I have come to
learn that in order to be successful in achieving a goal you should find
someone who has what you want and do what they do; there is no need to reinvent
the wheel, a professional is clearly just that. The importance of a health and
wellness professional to develop psychologically, spiritually, and physically
is for the benefit of self as well as paying it forward and giving the best of themselves
to excel in helping others live their best life. Development should be a never
ending process that continues to uncover deeper levels of an individual’s mind,
body, and soul. I am someone seeking complete fullness and balance
psychologically, spiritually, and physically; I feel at this present time I am
not equipped with the proper tools to achieve this goal without the guidance
and support of a wise person. Integral health is wellness of the whole being
and aims to eliminate needless suffering. We cannot master one area and allow
turmoil to exist in other areas. A professional is someone who can step in and
offer a perspective to move a client further along on their health and wellness
journey. The most effective way for a professional to assist a client is to
become relatable and offer advice based off of personal experience. Choosing to
continuously development ourselves is the only true way to give back to the
universe. Operating from a place of service gives us complete freedom to know
we are cultivating a society that will ultimately flourish to the highest level
but we can only do that if we ourselves are reaching for complete wholeness. I
need further development in all areas of my life. At this moment I feel my
psychological aspect is the weakest because I am my worst critic. I have the
gift of speaking blessings and loving-kindness to others while I allow inner
dialogue to do just the opposite. I have to admit I am better than I used to be
but the transformation is still at work. My goal is to have balance in all
areas without neglecting my loved ones especially my husband and my son.
II.
Assessment:
How have you assessed your health in each domain? How do you score your
wellness spiritually, physically, and psychologically? Assessment of self can
be a challenging yet enlightening task to complete. Often times we can be
extremely critical of ourselves which can cause discouragement and completely
deter us from moving forward in our journey; however, understanding that an
assessment is clearly an opportunity to open the door for growth can only make
us better and move us closer to our goals. In order to assess my health in each
domain I closed my eyes and moved my mind to a place of calm-abiding; a place
where my Teflon mind reflected any thoughts that were not serving me. In that moment
I reflected on my interconnectedness of mind, body, and spirit. I felt the
deepest connection with my God. I felt His presence within my soul, gently
rocking me and filling me with His love. I felt confident in that moment to
know that this aspect of my life is the strongest. I would score this area a 7
on a scale of one to ten. Moving along to my physical domain, I reflected on
what my body used to be from my face to my upper body, to my lower body and
then my complete appearance. I then visualized where I see my physical
abilities progressing over the next six months; there was a moment of
discomfort but I quickly allowed that moment to pass. I moved into the present
where I know and I can see the muscles that have developed and made me
stronger, I see the abdominal muscles that are softly appearing and although I
need more work I know I am in the best physical shape of my life. On a scale of
one to ten, I give myself a rating of 6. Moving on to the most challenging domain,
psychological, anxiety reared its ugly head and I quickly ignored it until the
feeling passed. I feel like I am destined for greatness but the confidence of
this truth falters from day to day. I have hope that the belief I have in
others will, without a shadow of a doubt, be engraved in the depths of my soul.
On a scale of one to ten I rate my psychological health as a 5. A
self-assessment does wonders for the soul. It is impossible to move forward on
a journey of integral health without knowing where you currently stand. It sets
the basis of creating an effective plan that will assist any student with goal
development.
III.
Goal Development:
List at least one goal you have for yourself in each area, Physical,
Psychological (mental health) and Spiritual. Goal setting provides purpose in
our lives. One of my physical goals is to reduce my body fat by 5% within the
next 3 months and improve my cardiovascular fitness. I would like to complete a
5k run in under 25 minutes. My psychological goal is to consistently perform
the contemplative practices introduced to me in this term. In particular, my
goal is to use the Subtle Mind and Visualization practices to progress my
mental confidence to a place where I am no longer full of self-doubt and I am
able to accept myself as I am with all of my gifts and my faults. I can
effortlessly give loving-kindness to everyone I meet but this gift is not
easily accepted when attempted to give to myself. My spiritual goal is to
invite Christ in to everything that I do; from daily meditation, work, school,
daily chores etc. I desire to operate from an attitude of gratitude in all
things.
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. It can be easy to set goals but the challenge becomes visible when
creating a strategy to support forward progress to reach those goals. A
strategy I can implement to foster growth in my physical health is setting a
date with myself to perform physical activity. For me, exercise is easily put
on the back burner but I know if I plan to execute my workout first thing in
the morning I will have more energy to be productive for the remainder of the
day. I also plan to lead a challenge group of ladies who have a common goal of
losing weight and creating a new lifestyle habit. This challenge group will
foster accountability for myself and allow me to encourage others to live a
fulfilling life through health and fitness. To promote growth in my
psychological domain I will plan time daily to participate in my contemplative
exercises. I will use the Subtle Mind practice to set the tone for my devotion
time with God first thing in the morning. Allowing 30 minutes at the start of
my day will foster growth within my mind and allow synergy for my mind, body,
and spirit. One other activity I can adopt is positive affirmations placed in
visible common areas in my home, car, and on my phone to provide a source of
mental redirection when the moments of doubt appear. Spiritual growth can be
cultivated by creating a gratitude book where I can adopt the habit of writing
all the things I am grateful for in a tablet. Before going to bed each night I
can journal about these things and allow my subconscious to marinate throughout
the night. Another strategy I will use to foster spiritual growth is to pray
without ceasing. I will use God as my sounding board in all things that I do;
in moments of anger, fear, doubt, happiness, gratitude, peace, and stillness I
will honor him and be thankful for the opportunity to just exist. Faith without
work is dead; creating strategies without implementation is useless. I am committed
to living a healthy and fulfilling life and I will do this by taking it one day
at a time and having faith in myself that I can change and reach my goals.
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? There is no doubt that I am a work in progress, I am
committed to myself and I am committed to change. In the next six months I will
assess my progress or lack of progress by using the lines of development to
gauge the four aspects of human experience. I will evaluate my psychospiritual,
biological, worldly, and interpersonal aspects and gauge where I stand on my
journey to human flourishing. I will assess my growth by individually examining
the full spectrum (used in our text) with the hopes of discovering the areas I
am weak and have neglected and celebrate the areas where I have excelled. In order
to assist me in maintaining my long-term practices for health and wellness I
will surround myself with like-minded, positive people who are eager to learn
more about themselves and show a willingness to pay it forward to others. I
will also continuously work on self development by reading and listening to
audio and books that encourage growth in everyday life. Ultimately, I would
love to find a practitioner/teacher who can offer wisdom and insight to my
journey of integral health.
~Kanisha Washington
