HW420 Creating Wellness: Psychological and Spiritual Aspects of Healing

Unit 9 Assignment: Mind-Body-Spirit Moving Forward

Alba Tovar

Kaplan University

How do you define current state of wellness? For some it can mean that they are

physically healthy while for other it means to be spiritually healthy or mentally healthy. But,

why not all three, is it possible to be successful in one while the other one can suffer. To be very

honest, my personal opinion is that to be able to be healthy or at least in a descent shape, one

must at least attain some balance of wellness between all three, spiritually, mentally, and

physically. This way one can specifically define their current state of wellness. In the following I

have created a spiritual and psychological inventory of questions that can help or aid in

determining a current state of wellness. Remember that nothing is ever set in stone and we can

ask ourselves many questions and like Walsh states in his book “Essential Spiritualism,” “instead

of trying figure out the answers, allow the intuitive wisdom within you to bring answers into

awareness” (Walsh, 1999).

The questions are the following:

1. What do you believe is the purpose for your life on this earth?

2. What boundaries do you create for yourself to stay focused on that purpose?

3. Knowing that life brings its ups and downs, what do you do to recharge when the

down times manifest themselves?

4. In what moments do you realize that solitude is the best answer for you? What do you

do to practice solitude?

5. What is the medicine for your soul? How have you practiced forgiveness,

compassion, and gratitude?

6. How have you adapted to a difficult situation spiritually and mentally?

7. What are the sacred rituals you practice on a daily basis to have a healthy spiritual life

a healthy mental state of being?

8. What do you do to enjoy life in good and bad moments?

9. What motivates you to get up every morning and live life?

10. Do you live only for the purpose you were meant for or do enjoy the extra things in

life? How?

I think that these questions are definitely not the only good ones out there to help

someone understand their spectrum of spirituality and psychological self, but they are definitely

a good map to follow for a healthier well being. It is important to know or at least to slowly

figure out the purpose for your life on this earth. Many people live life, wandering why they are

even alive. In life good things will happen and bad things as well. For the good things we don’t

really need purpose, we just enjoy them and are thankful for them. But when the bad things

happen, we often ask ourselves, “why.” Many times, that “why” is part of the purpose as to why

you live on this earth. If you know your purpose, you won’t mind even the bad things that

happen because you know they are part of the process. It is also important to create boundaries

that keep you focused on that purpose which you were created for. Distractions are going to

come your way. But if learn to set boundaries such as what to do or what not to do, it will help

you stay focused in reaching that purpose. Down times in life are going to happen, but f you

recharge and cheer yourself, when the hardships come your way, nothing will stumble you down.

It is also good to experience the moments of solitude where you can stop everything you

are doing and you just refocus and think or just meditate. Finding that medicine for your soul is

important. Everyone is different and what one might think that laughing might be their medicine

for the soul; other might think that praying is medicine for their soul. When one can adapt to

something or to a situation, you accept it. Seaward states that acceptance is the act of

understanding what is going on and then adapting to it appropriately (Seaward, 2013). Creating

sacred rituals on a daily basis to stay healthy is healthy. Whether is praying, meditating, or

reading the bible, it is necessary to stay faithful to those rituals that help you connect to God. Of

course we know that in life good and bad things are going to come your way, whether you ask

for it or not. But what will make the difference is what you do to still enjoy life even when those

moments come. Having a motivation to get up every morning is like knowing that you have to

get up the next day for a very important appointment that you cannot miss. Finding what

motivates you and making that your goal every morning is necessary and healthy. Lastly, it is

important to live for the purpose which you are meant to live for but in life extras are going to

come your way. The best you can do with those extras is enjoying them.

For this assignment I interviewed my husband, I was definitely intrigued in his answers.

My findings were the following: He stated that he believes the purpose for his life on this earth

includes the following; living his life dedicated to love and serve God, to be a great and faithful

husband, to be a good provider for his family and to be an excellent father. Boundaries that he

creates to make sure he stays focused are: maintaining constant communication with God

through prayer, communication with the wife is a must, run away from temptation immediately,

work hard and spend time with the children. The main thing he does to be able to recharge when

hardships happen is pray and asks God for wisdom. My husband also practices solitude

especially when he needs answers that he knows he can only receive from God. His medicine for

the soul is worshiping God, putting on some worship music and just lift God’s name high and cry

out to Him. He states that, in those moments is where he finds the most comfort. The way he

knows to adapt to any situation is to not come to any conclusion right away. It is important to

take a step back and think about what one says or does because that will determine the next

outcome. Some sacred rituals my husband does every day is pray, meditate on the word of God,

read the word of God and worship God. The thing he does to enjoy life in every situation is

spend time with the family, especially his wife (me ) and his daughters. My husband

understands that family is very important and they are a way of God showing us how much He

loves us. What motivates him to get up every morning is the fact that he does not deserve the

good things he has in life. He realizes that he has done so many bad things and has made so

many wrong and selfish decisions and even though he says that life is not perfect, he realizes that

God has been nothing but good and merciful. His other motivation to get up every morning is the

fact that he has a wife and two daughters that although they trust God first, they also trust that I

(John) will work hard to give them a better life. My husband finishes the interview stating that he

does live for his main purpose in life but he also states that God has been so good with him that

even those extra things that life brings, he enjoys. He also states he has no time to be sad, it

happens but he quickly remembers the good things in life and goes on forward making the best

out of this life.

It is important for people to use the information and instruments that are out there for

them to develop a healthy spiritual and psychological well being. But it is also important for

people to be able to find out on their own and create a plan of their own to a better life. Who

knows oneself more, me or someone else? Yes, it is important to get an outsiders opinion and

guidelines, but at the end of the day, we must be able to train ourselves on a daily basis to reach a

spiritual and psychological well being. Based on my results and findings regarding my husband,

I really would not change anything. I really tried to cover every spectrum of life to get a better

perspective. Martin E.P. Seligman states in his book “Learned Optimism” that to be able to

determine success in a challenging job; one must have these three characteristics: aptitude,

motivation, and optimism. Life is a challenging job, we need to find our skill, being motivated

and with the right attitude one can get very far and be very successful in this job we call LIFE!

References:

1. Seward, B. (2013). Health of the human spirit. Health of the Human Spirit: Spiritual

Dimensions for Personal Health. 2nd Ed. Burlington, MA: Jones and Bartlett

Learning LLC.

2. Seligman, Martin E.P. (2006). Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind

And Your Life. New York, NY: Random House, Inc

3. Walsh, Roger. (1999). Essential Spirituality. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.