When hearing the word "Wellness" most people think of their physical bodies or eating right and exercising. True wellness however is much more than that. A good way to define wellness is: An active process of becoming aware of and making choices that leads a person to a higher living or more successful existence in all areas of their life. OR The intentional and active process of nurturing and developing all area of our humanness.  I think these two slightly different definitions could be easily summed up as wholeness.

Wholeness encompasses the well being of the entire person. Wholeness means not only our physical wellness, but also mental,  spiritual, financial and social. Negligence in any one of these areas will eventually manifest itself as a problem, weakness or even crisis in another area of our life. Lets briefly define each area of wellness.

Physical Wellness - This is frequently described as the absence of disease or pain, this is however only a portion of the meaning. Physical wellness includes the positive aspects of :strength, flexibility, mobility, independence, healthy body weight, the ability to control ones body and its functions and the participation in physical activities with relative ease and no pain.  

Mental/Emotional Wellness -  When most people speak of mental or emotional illness they are usually speaking of the same thing.  These terms are frequently interchanged. They however are not the same. Mental - Referring  to the mind and thoughts.  Sometimes they are good and rational, sometimes they are irrational and delusional. Emotions - Refers to the emotions that our thoughts evoke.
Thoughts frequently lead to emotions but, emotions always result from thoughts. Mental wellness can be described as: A state of emotional well-being in which an individual is able to use his or her emotional and cognitive capabilities to function in society, meet the demands of everyday life and cope with and adjust to the stresses of life in an acceptable and healthy way.

Social Wellness - Involves contributing to one's human and physical environment. It emphasizes interdependence with others.  It includes the pursuit of harmony in one's family, work place or social group. Social wellness is being aware of one's impact on their community and taking an active part in improving our world. Think of Jesus, he epitomized social wellness.

Financial Wellness - Money can help many things in our world, but it can also cause a multitude of problems.  What does financial wellness look like?  It is:  Having an understanding of your financial situation and taking care of it so that you are prepared for emergencies or financial change. Managing income and expenses (living within one's means), Focus on saving money instead of spending it. Learn to manage money, don't let money manage you. Use facts, self-discipline and self-restraint when making purchases.

Spiritual Wellness - This is a simple definition, but it is not always easy to achieve. Basically it means being right with God, on God's terms. There are some high sounding and very verbose definitions out there but I think this pretty much sums it up.  There is only one God, the maker and creator of the universe and all living creatures. He is THE higher power, all else will eventually prove to be inadequate. God wants a personal relationship with his creation, but he will not force it as humans some times do.  His love is unconditional and never fails. His word addresses every component of wellness addressed above. He wants us to have wholeness, peace, security, prosperity, safety , love and hope. The decision is ours to make.

Twenty - two years in the field of social services and psychology, combined with seventeen years of experience in the field of health and fitness have shown me time and time again that everyone has at least one area of weakness or lack in their life.  Human beings in general have a very difficult time with balance or moderation.  I'm sure we have all heard someone say, or we have said it our selves, I'm an all or nothing type of person.  It is very easy for any of us to get hung up on one area of our life to the exclusion of the other four areas. 

I have trained individuals who are highly successful in their finances, but they are in very poor physical health and Spiritual health. I have spent time with individuals who are very religious and think they have arrived spiritually, but they are obese, filing bankruptcy and going through their third divorce. I have also had the opportunity to know that person with the perfect body, the person everyone is envious of. They don't know that she is struggling with an addiction to diet pills or amphetamines and an eating disorder.

Every person alive can work towards the development of wholeness/wellness.  It is however a process, and it is developed through a lifestyle based on the choices we make everyday. If you think that you have arrived at wholeness and there is nothing missing, lacking or broken in your life,then you need to realize that to maintain your wholeness you must continue doing what got you to this point. You  must also realize that when this occurs in your life social and spiritual wellness are manifested by your efforts to help others develop wholeness in their lives.

Which area of your life do you need work in? Answer that question honestly ....for yourself. Then take the steps necessary to begin the process of developing wholeness in your life.

If you or your group would like to schedule a workshop or conference for assistance in developing a personalized wellness plan, you can e-mail tracilawrence@rocketmail.com for more information