Final Blog

  Looking back at my unit 3 I would say that maybe my assessment wasn't scored as well as it should of been

Physical well being- 5

Spiritual Well-being- 5

Psychological- 6

I feel that my psychological has increased because now I know exercises to increase my mind and how improve how it works. I feel that my physical well being isnt where it should be because of my current energy level. I know that normally I score a lot higher on the physical side. Spiritual has stayed pretty much the same, and I feel it is still pretty good.

I feel that I have made strides in all areas, however I know I can continue to do better. I will continue to work on all aspects and improve on the skills I already have.

I feel this class has really helped me hone into skills that will really enhance my life, families as well as the people I will come in contact with in the future. I think the psychological has been the hardest for me because it is the most in depth and more extreme, I di feel that this will be the most beneficial for me to practice and learn.

 

Unit 3

Mind-Body Connection

Physical Well-being- 6
Spiritual Well-being- 5
Psychological Well-being- 5

Before this class I thought about many of the approaches and principles we have talked about but not to the extend of being conscience of them (if that makes sense), but now that I am aware of the different aspects of each of the steps toward integral health I feel that I can work more on each part and have a greater understanding and connection with each one.

Knowing and being aware of each aspect will help me continuously work on each part to create a greater wellness not only for myself but to teach others as well as help my family.  My goal will be to visit each aspect and have a person-centered approach on how to improve each in my day to day life.

Final Project

Unit 9

Health and Wellness Assessment

Uriia Underhill

Kaplan University

HW420-02

Dr. Watson

August 5, 2013

            It is important for health and wellness professionals to have good understanding of many dimensions in order to properly talk to and diagnose what could be wrong with patients. When some one who works in the health and wellness field can relate to people who need help on many different levels the person in need can benefit from a care that will help them develop as a person while healing. Psychologically the health and wellness professional must be able to know certain triggers that could be causing a person pain. It will benefit the patient if the health care professional can spot these small issues and bring them to the attention of the patient in order to begin a healing process. Sometimes small mental situations can be overlooked and thus hinders the growth of healing powers. Spiritually the healthcare professional must relate to how each patient feels this helps a person connect and also promotes growth. If one is not comfortable with the spiritual feelings of their health care provider then it could stop the person physical growth. Physically the health care provider must have at least some understanding of what it takes to be healthy physically. This ensures that when the provider gives information the patient is comfortable knowing that this is something that has been completed by the person giving the information. It is important for me as a health and wellness person to constantly grow and learning all these areas. Once my growth stops then I feel I put up a barrier between me and who I’m trying to help because at that point I’m un able to connect and relate to them as well as I possibly could. I feel that I can improve in all areas involving spiritually, physically, and psychologically because I will never fully know all of any of these subjects. In these areas I will continue to expand my knowledge to complete my goals.

            This course has helped me in many ways. Even though I had a good understanding of where my weaknesses were I have been able to pinpoint the problems even further and have also been given good tools that can help me further my development. I feel that I have a good grasp on spirituality, however it can always be deeper and benefit more aspects of my life. I can also develop more so that I can use these skills to touch more aspects of my family’s life. Physically I know I can use much improvement. Before the start of this new journey I was very active, however given my current energy level I have not been able to participate in physical activity as much as I would like. I know this has affected my life in more ways than one. Not being active not only makes your body lose gains but also hinders your mind. I have noticed that even though I have participated in meditations and calming techniques my mind is still not as at peace as it is when I am able to work it out. I have been able to begin small physical activities again and I value their importance. Psychologically I think I have made great strides in learning how to focus my energy in positive ways and to learn ways to expand my mind. Meditation has helped me hone in on things that where once big stressors. Once I determined what they were I could work on not letting them have such a hold on me and help lessen my negative reaction to them. Overall I believe I have made great strides in becoming a better, healthier more wholesome person but I feel there is still great work to be done.

            Physically I would like to not over do it but at least get to where I am completing some type of physical activity everyday. I have seen a lot of women complete and continue CrossFit while pregnant but given the issues I had with pre-term labor the first time it was thought that I didn’t need to over work and strain myself too much. I have gladly accepted a little off time however now I’m staring to go a little stir crazy and need some sort of physical activity once again. Now that my sickness and energy level has some what increased I will slowly add more of these elements back in.  Psychological is really where I feel I need the most work, as it is truly the deepest part of oneself. although I don’t feel I am in need of desperate attention I feel there is so much to learn about my inner self and because this inner self always changes I will continue to work on having a very close and meaningful relationship with it. I want to look inward for more instead of searching for the answer on the outside so much. Spiritually I feel I need the least work however so much can always be learned. I plan to have a calmer more peaceful relationship in all these aspects.

            Psychologically I want to continue to work on the loving-kindness and the subtle mind practices. I feel these are two exercises I can really benefit from because being able to let in love and kindness is such a positive experience and I feel it is something the world is seeing less and less of. I also feel that the subtle mind is such a powerful thing because to be able to silence your mind and explore deep inside it is a meaningful experience not many get to witness. I want to be able to do both with ease and to be able to use it at any given opportunity I have. I also want to be able to explain these practices to others to help them explore this deep and meaningful relationship with themselves. Physically being able to have these connection with my mind will also benefit my body and I feel my training. Knowing that I can silence my mind and take it to an out of body place allows me to push further and work harder in my physical body. This is something I find so intriguing about integral health is that by using two practices that are meant on a psychological level are actually beneficial to physically and spiritual health. Using loving-kindness and the subtle mind truly develops all three of my mind-body connections and links them all together. I love feeling that my whole self is one.

            By knowing the things I need to continue to work on I can track my progress. I will look at the time before I start my meditations and mentally exercises. I will keep track of how long I can stay in a peaceful state of mind. This can be done doing my physical activity too. I will use the mental strength I gain in all aspects of my life and work hard to combine them together as I continue to grow in to mind/body/spiritual wholeness. I will write down goals of what I hope to achieve in the time to come and I will work hard to complete it. In the next six months I would really like to be able to stay in a mental calmness for thirty minutes. It may take longer than 6 months but this is something I want to continue to work on until I can achieve it.

             

Reference:

Dacher, E., (2006) Integral Health, The Path to Human Flourishing, Basic Health   Publication, Inc. Laguna Beach, CA

Review of Exercises and Practices

After reviewing both exercises and practices we were to determine which was most beneficial to our life. We were also asked how these could be implementing into our everyday life in order to help improve our mental fitness.

I would have to say that even though some practices and exercises were harder than other I did not find that any were more beneficial than the others. It seems to me that they all are very important in creating internal wellness and they all most be improved on together to increase human flourishing. Loving Kindness is important because I believe in order to truly love oneself you must have constant love in your heart for all of the earth's creatures, although at times this can be the most difficult task of all it is a very important one and frees your mind of negativity. The Subtle mind is also very beneficial in the sense that everyone should be able to silence their ind and focus on the powerful energy that is not only present inside of them but all around. In order to be successful in everyday life as well as major accomplishments I believe that visualization is very important. You must have goals and you have to constantly think about them in order to improve and move closer to accomplishing them. Meditation would probably be the most trying, however once it is accomplish all the exercises and practices can be utilized and benefited from.

I think in order to truly become healthy inside and out all the practices and exercises should be completed and worked on. I plan on devoting time in my day to work towards gaining insight on myself as well as implementing this practicies into my home.

Meeting Aesclepius

At first I found it extremely difficult to even see a man with whom I could feel love, compassion and wisdom from. My mind raced like a waterfall loud searching for the vision of such a person I could focus on. The longer I tried to come up with a person the quieter my mind got until finally I saw the vision. I focused on him and tried my hardest to see him, listen to him, and learn from him.

I believe that mindful meditation has helped me focus in on problems with silencing my mind and focusing on things that really matter. It has helped me search within myself rather than looking outside to find the answer to the problem. I feel that in doing so I am constantly gaining knowledge and strength.

I feel that learning and furthering my knowledge with mindful meditation will really help me teach others to learn and listen to their body to know what is truly going on. I think by practicing and learning these things myself I can better explain and help other discover the incredible relationship they can have with their mind and body. I will continue to work on the meditations I have learned. I will continue to spread the knowledge I have to help others do the same. The mind-body connection is a strong one that will only benefit those who want to explore it.

Integral Assessment

It is funny because most of these exercises are things we think about already but things we don't make a conscience effort to improve. Does that make sense? I mean I read over the practices and techniques and in my mind I'm like, YES! I have done that before but then I come to the point where I realize it hasn't ever  been to the point of "exercising" the power to improve. I think that is what is so unique and special about not only this class but our mind. Our mind gives us the tools and exercises without ever joining college or a class, however most look so much to the outside that we miss these subtle hints all together. Then this class is so amazing because it gives easy techniques to not only challenge yourself but to work on a greater improvement.

The Subtle Mind

I have really worked hard this week on clearing my mind and just not thinking. I never thought that that thinking too much was a problem, that is until you try to shut it off. It is amazing once I reach that point of a clam and clear mind how everything, the whole dynamics of my body changes. At first I didn't recognize the subtle changes, then suddenly through practice I noticed that once my mind was clear, my breathing was more relaxed and it seemed my heart beat was a beautiful steady rhythm.  Maybe these are things that just remain unnoticed by a busy mind, but in that moment I feel so connected with my body. It seems I can feel my systems working together in complete harmony.

Loving Kindness

I was very open minded and excited to learn and begin using this technique. I read through the procedures at least three times that way I wouldn't have to keep going back to remember the next step. I felt that might hinder my connection. At first it was a little hard to reach a clear mind. I felt myself go clear and ready to move on but then I would start thinking about something random. Every time that occurred I tried to stop and start again. I feel in doing this I can really grasp the concept and learn how to become one and truly start with a blank state. I would definitely recommend this to others. I loved how peaceful I felt after I finished. I feel like I had more patience through out the day as well. I also enjoyed thinking about someone who really needed thoughts. I feel that making an afford to think of those who might be suffering at least sends positive vibes their way. On this day I thought about the 19 firefighters that lost their lives and their families left behind. Truly a tragedy, however it is unfortunately a fate that many heroes except.


As a person who is an avid fitness going, I truly believe in the benefits of mental workouts. IF you do not practice something you will not get better at it. As I mentioned above the beginning step of the practice is the one I felt most difficult because I have always been prone to a wandering mind.  I truly believe this exercise could help me because of this issue as well as I have a hard time shutting off my thoughts at night in order to go to sleep. I will continue to practice, I have strong beliefs that this practice is what I need to build a strong mind body connection.