Wellness can be defined as the pursuit of a healthy and balanced lifestyle. It involves finding a healthy balance of the mind, body and spirit which results in an overall feeling of well-being.

Video offers discussion of the seven dimensions of wellness

By promoting wellness, one can decrease risks for developing diseases or disability, prevent rapid aging and premature death. By being well, one can also increase life satisfaction and happiness.

True wellness is more than the absence of diseases and symptoms. It is a way of appreciating and fully experiencing life. It involves the process of living, growing and achieving the life that expresses one’s maximum potential as a human being. Wellness is about living life to the fullest.

Wellness is made up of multiple dimensions:

• Physical wellness involves physical activity to build endurance, flexibility, strength and fitness. It can be achieved through regular exercise, proper diet and nutrition, sleep and rest as well as avoidance of tobacco use, drug abuse and excessive alcohol consumption.
• Mental wellness involves putting one’s intelligence to its best possible use. It involves learning, problem-solving and creative pursuits as well as reading, writing and other mentally-stimulating and challenging activities. Mental wellness can be used interchangeably with intellectual wellness.
• Emotional wellness involves how one feels, thinks and copes with life. It can affect one’s ability to cope with normal life stressors, relationships with others, job satisfaction and success as well as quality of life and happiness. For people dealing with emotional and mental disorders, emotional wellness can involve satisfactory management and treatment of depression, phobia, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, neurosis or some other disorder.
• Spiritual wellness is about finding meaning and purpose in life. It involves mindfulness as well as appreciation and acceptance of life. Spiritual wellness can be experienced and achieved through meditation, religion, music, art, literature, nature and through connections with loved ones and other people in the community.
• Occupational wellness is about having work that can offer personal meaning, purpose and satisfaction. An important aspect of occupational wellness is finding a healthy balance between work and leisure. For moms and dads, occupational wellness involves finding a good balance between work and family as well as leisure time.
• Social wellness is about having satisfactory inter-personal relationships and positive interactions with others. It involves learning social skills to develop a good support system and deep, meaningful relationships. Having good communication and listening skills, practicing empathy and compassion as well as caring for others can lead to more satisfying and meaningful relationships. In turn, this can promote better health and wellness.
• Environmental wellness involves limited exposure or satisfactory management of aspects of the environment that can affect health and well-being, including, toxic chemicals, radiation, biological agents, electromagnetic radiation, noise, air and water pollution, tobacco smoke, climate change, food safety, waste disposal, hazardous materials and vector control.

The multiple dimensions of wellness overlap and work together in terms of decreasing health risks as well as promoting overall well-being and life satisfaction. Effective strategies for staying healthy include adequate rest and sleep, proper diet and nutrition, engaging in physical exercise as well as finding balance in work, family and relationships.

Achieving wellness is an ongoing process of making choices towards a healthy and fulfilling life. The choices one makes contribute to overall wellness or illness.
 

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