Heather Brand is my NEW Live Well Blog contributor this autumn. I am thrilled to have her on board as a Health and Wellbeing professional in the field of Life Coaching. Her latest role was at Reading Citizens Advice Bureau.
Using successful life coaching techniques, Heather has helped clients through many different troubles in their lives. She has 10 years life coaching experience and has also tutored trainee life coaches. If you feel that life coaching can be of benefit to you, Heather offers face-to-face zoom sessions and can be contacted at brandnewstepsforward@gmail.com for further information.
The concept of Well-being (wellness, or good health) covers many aspects of life but is generally regarded as being the optimal balance of an individual’s physical health and mental health, these being interactive and co-dependent. Irrespective of age, physical health involves keeping the body in good condition through appropriate regular exercise, healthy nutrition, and personal body care. Attention to all these aspects of physical health are considered to keep a person free from illness and medical intervention. However, physical health can be undermined by factors associated with poor mental health, just as poor physical health can have a negative impact on a person’s mental health.
The physical aspects of well-being are being explored in detail elsewhere in the Three Pillars of Health blog, so in this contribution only the mental health aspects of well-being will be discussed in detail.
Drawing by Charlie Mackesy from https://www.facebook.com/Charliemackesyart
Current understanding about good mental health is that it requires a positive involvement in several areas of life. These can be categorised as: Emotional, Environmental, Intellectual, Occupational, Physical, Social, and Spiritual. Here follows just a few examples of what actions can help foster good mental health within each of these categories.
EMOTIONAL: Maintain a positive outlook; talk to others; allow yourself to laugh or cry; effectively manage stress.
ENVIRONMENTAL: Surround yourself in your home with whatever brings you joy; look after a pet; grow plants.
INTELLECTUAL: Be creative; learn a new skill or hobby; read a book; plan and set goals.
OCCUPATIONAL: Set boundaries; learn to say No; take a break during the working day.
PHYSICAL: Care for your physical health; maintain a regular quality sleeping pattern.
SOCIAL: Make time for friends and family; stay connected; join a support group; volunteer.
SPIRITUAL: Practise mindfulness; appreciate nature and the outdoors; sing; listen to music; learn to forgive yourself and others.
There is so much more that can be said and explored within each of these areas. Think about what other actions you could include in the above categories. No matter how good your mental and physical health may be, this is still a fragile state as external circumstances have the power to overturn this well-being. The primary cause for this usually involves some kind of loss in a person’s life which generally leads to increased stress.
The next few posts will explore Loss, Stress, and Resilience.
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