Balancing 8 Dimensions of Health

There are 8 Dimensions of Health? (Not a Short Read)

Yes Indeed! Most of us are aware and have readily, at the beginning of each year, make the call to care for our Physical Health. This requires a closer look at our physical activity and eating habits. In fact, the most popular New Years Resolutions of 2018 were:

Side Note:  (Follow the link above to check out the number of people that don't necessarily emphasize new resolutions, at least this past year 😀)

1. Eat Healthier 
2. Exercise More
3. Save More Money 
4. Focus on Self-care 
5. Read More 
6. Make New Friends
7. Learn a new skill
8. Get a new or better job 
9. Take up a new hobby 

The first two as I mentioned are calls to improve one specific dimension of health - PHYSICAL HEALTH (eat better, exercise more).

Unknowingly though, a lot of people also want to improve other areas of health, which include FINANCIAL HEALTH (save more money), OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH (better or new job), EMOTIONAL HEALTH (Self-care), SOCIAL HEALTH (make new friends), MENTAL HEALTH (read more/self-care), SPIRITUAL HEALTH (read more/self-care), ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH (better job/new hobbies). 

Therein lies the discovery of the 8 dimensions of health that need our attention in finding balance, optimal health, and wellness. 

Fear not, you may not have to tackle all dimensions of health at once, you may already be a master in some of these areas actually, so instead focus on the ones that are truly causing discomfort in our life.

HERE'S HOW TO FIND BALANCE YOUR HEALTH 

Preface - 

• Our health is not one-dimensional, so why then do we only have a one-dimensional approach to optimal health?
• Not one dimension is more important than the other, although one could argue against that), the point here is that you need to recognize what particular part of your health needs your attention more...they all, at some point, overlap. 

PHYSICAL HEALTH 

• Affected by your physical activity/exercise, nutrition, and adequate sleep. Maintaining your physical health has many benefits:
• Reduces the risk of heart attack, heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and some cancers
• Weight Management 
• Improved blood pressure and cholesterol 
• Stronger bones, joints, lower risk of osteoporosis
• Improves mood and sleep quality while lowering risk of depression.
• Improves MENTAL HEALTH

HOW TO IMPROVE PHYSICAL HEALTH 

• Aim for at least 30 minutes of physical activity every day - includes walking, running, swimming, yoga, riding a bike, chores, gardening, resistance training (gym or at home).
• Minimize time spent sitting down and break those prolonged periods of sitting as often as you can - move more, sit less. 
• See everyday activities as an opportunity to be active - rearrange furniture, clean out closet/storage place, house chores, it all adds up!
• Eat a healthy diet - more fruits and vegetables, at least 64oz of water/day, eat out less, have a plan preferably related to your goals - Get a health coach or personal trainer if you need tips on how to get started or to help you reach all your health goals from beginning and beyond. 
• TRACK YOUR PROGRESS! - You need to have tools in place to check yourself and what progress you are making - You can use an app such as MyFitnessPal, NOTES on your phone, or write it down in a small journal you can take with you anywhere. 

EMOTIONAL HEALTH

• The ability to understand ourselves and cope with challenges in life. Our ability to acknowledge and share feelings of anger, fear, sadness, stress, hope, love, joy and happiness productively. Here are the benefits of caring for your emotional health. 
• Greater ability to maintain a balance of work, family, friends, and yourself.
• Ability to reduce/cope with stress and anxiety.
• Make conscious decisions with minimal stress and worry. 
• Increased productivity and ability to prioritize 
• Increased self-awareness - thoughts and feelings, surroundings. 
• Take on challenges and risks, while recognizing conflict as potentially healthy. 

HOW TO IMPROVE EMOTIONAL HEALTH 

• Practice Self-awareness - take notice of what is going on in your life. Ask, Why? Why am I sad? Why am I angry? Why am I frustrated? You need to address what is making you feel that way so you can get to the HOW? How can I fix that or how can I change that to feel better? This is not a quick fix, it takes time to get good at self-awareness because it requires honesty. 
• Appropriately express your feelings - Let people know when something is bothering you. Bottling up your feelings only adds to stress and causes severe problems in your relationships, work, school, etc. 
• Evaluate and think before you act - we have an incredible capacity to feel things so give yourself time, take control of yourself, so you may be calm in making a decision that made you emotional. Our quickness to react after an emotionally inducive situation may get us into more trouble. Upset about something? Evaluate, sleep on it, then address it more calmly and collectively - the results will be much better. 
• Manage stress - Learn how to relax and cope with stress through deep breathing, meditation, aromatherapy, or exercise. 
• Positivity Works - Forgive yourself for making mistakes, we all make them, do not dwell on them so much. Forgive others, holding on to anger towards someone only hurts yourself, move on. Positive affirmations come in handy, it is the way you perceive life that you will be presented with what happens - How you think will dramatically affect your life.
• Connect with others - spend time with healthy, positive people. We are social beings by nature and need positive connections. It can even be a small group, you don't need 500+ Facebook friends, it could be a group of 2-5 people that you are close with. Make a lunch date, a morning coffee chat, or join a class at your local gym. Embed yourself in relationships that positively impact your health. 
• Tend to your Physical Health - As mentioned before, all dimensions of health will overlap. Your physical health will affect your emotional health - Your self-esteem, confidence, essentially how you feel is most often due to how you feel physically. I am not talking about vanity (how you look), I am talking about aches, pains, and discomfort that comes in the physical form. Tired all the time? Get enough sleep. Don't feel good in those jeans? Eat healthy and exercise!
• Find Purpose and Meaning - We actually get the question about purposefulness and meaning of life at an early age but constructed in a question about what profession you want to pursue. You know it as "What do you want to be when you grow up? Why not go beyond that and say, what do you want to do with your life? What do you want to accomplish when you get older? How can you make the world a better place for others? A call to your Spiritual Health may come into question here: what for YOU, moves the sun and the stars? 

MENTAL HEALTH 

• Mental health is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a state of well-being in which every individual realizes his or her own potential, their ability to cope with stresses of life and ability to work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to her or his community. 
• Other definitions: a person’s condition of their psychological and emotional well-being. A common expression may be "All this pressure seems to affect his mental health..."
• Intellectual health is also discussed similarly with mental health, and it takes into account your unique talents to be creative and our ability to use and acquire knowledge and skills. 
• Here is why you should care for your mental/intellectual health:
• An increase of stress coping skills reduces stress and greater ability to deal with anxiety.
• Better concentration, focus, improved memory and critical thinking skills. 
• Realize your full potential - increase self-confidence and self-esteem.
• Make meaningful contributions to yourself and others. 
• Increase productivity - Less stress means higher efficiency and time management.
• Better physical health, financial stability, and happier life!

HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR MENTAL HEALTH 

• Value Yourself - Treat yourself with kindness and above all respect. Others will treat you as you treat yourself. Focus on what you are good at, do not downplay your hard work and accomplishments. Be humble but recognize your strengths. Do more of what you are good at if you don't know what you are good at then dedicate time to trying new things to figure it out. Daily crossword puzzles, plant a garden, take dance lessons, build something, learn to play a musical instrument or learn a new language. 
• Take Care of Your Body - eat nutritious meals, avoid smoking, drink plenty of water, exercise and get enough sleep (again, your health will overlap between different areas of health, physical-mental, emotional-mental, etc.)
• Surround Yourself with Good People - build positive social connections, work on your support network of friends and family, or seek out new activities where you can meet new people. This can be at a health club, a class, fun-run/5k run, gym class, etc. 
• Help Others - Volunteer your time and energy in helping someone. You'll feel good, and it's also a great way to meet new people. 
• Deal with Stress - Tai-chi, yoga, hiking, breathing exercises, music, writing in a journal, play with your pet, get a pet, meditation, talk a loved one and share memories. These are all great ways to deal with stress, especially when there is only so much you can do in certain situations. Going to the pantry for cookies won't solve the problems in your life, punching a wall won't help either ( a boxing bag is better), don't cause yourself more physical or emotional pain, find what works best for you, healthily deal with stress. 
• Set Realistic Goals - It is okay to aim high or have high expectations but make sure you don't overwhelm yourself. Setting relevant and realistic goals gives you long-term vision an short-term motivation. By setting goals you make definite plans, focuses your acquisition of knowledge, and it helps you to organize your time and resources. 

SOCIAL HEALTH

• Your ability to form satisfying relationships with others and your ability to adapt comfortably to different social situations. 
• Stress can be one of the most significant threats to a healthy relationship. Learning how your relationships affect your health is critical to your overall well-being. 
• This does not mean that every person you encounter is going to be your best friend, but it does mean you should take a closer look at who is in your life and to what degree do they impact your health in a positive or negative way. This further helps you appreciate those closest to you instead of dwindling in meaningless relationships or harmful ones for that matter. It is best to consider the benefits of balancing your social health:
• Connecting with others helps reduce depression from isolation.
• Stronger social ties improve our memory and overall brain health. 
• Live a longer more fulfilling life. - Friends and family can not only help you deal with stress, but they can act as a buffer and encourage you to take care of yourself. 
• Builds trust, empathy, respect, and acceptance. 

HOW TO IMPROVE SOCIAL HEALTH (you may see them on how to care for different areas of your health by now...)

• Practice self-care - Improves your ability you deal with challenges as you are better prepared to meet and overcome obstacles. Embrace your basic needs such as getting enough sleep, personal hygiene, eating healthy, exercise regularly and rely less on a substance such as smoking or drinking to cope with adverse situations.  
• Coping skills to manage stress - find creative hobbies, crafts, art, music, recreational sports, hiking, dancing, and other social activities with friends and family. Self-care is about choosing to engage in activities that nurture your emotional, mental and spiritual health such as meditation, yoga, massage therapy, spiritual retreats or attending religious services -  more on this later...
• Get to Know Yourself - Identify what you need, your preferences and values. Have confidence in communicating them to those around you. This will establish a firm identity in who you want to be and not what others should expect of you. Create boundaries so you know how you would like to engage with others positively. By doing so, you are better able to surround yourself with like-minded people who value similar interests and can relate to you while continuing to encourage your personal growth. 
• Take Responsibility for Your Actions - Do not play the blame game with others. There are always two or more people involved in a social environment, and thus any contribution or situation is created by the workings of those people, whether positive or negative. Own up to your actions in disagreements or conflicts and don't push the blame onto the other person. 
• Appreciate More, Criticize Less - Invest in more positive energy and less negativity, this helps us be happier, healthier, and more hopeful. Acknowledge your strengths and pay genuine compliments to others you care about and admire. What goes around comes around!
• Keep Your Commitments - Be mindful of yourself and others when you make a commitment. Know your limits and don't spread yourself too thin as they say. Be sure that you can realistically meet an expectation set BEFORE you say YES, or agree to do something. Respect what time you have, and others will do the same. 

The bottom line for creating social wellness: 

• Go to the gym, the park, or a yoga, fitness or dance class
• Take up a hobby and find others who share your interest
• Join groups on www.meetup.com or other social networking sites
• Think of a cause that you are passionate about and volunteer
• Plan a regular lunch date with your best friend, mother, father, etc.
• Set a regular date night with your significant other or dinner with your family
• Call an old friend and catch up

SPIRITUAL HEALTH

• Involves your values, beliefs, principles, morals, compassion, capacity for love, forgiveness, altruism, joy, and fulfillment. This may be the most abstract dimension of health but critical for your overall health and well-being. 
• The core of who you are can be found in attention to your spiritual health, and in doing so yields plenty of benefits
• Find fulfillment and meaning in life.
• Better physical health 
• Better mental health 
• Better emotional health
• Ability to deal with stress and reset your mind.
• Create a dominant mindset that helps you overcome challenges
• Empathy 
• Prevents Isolation and risk of depression 
• Increased sense of hope and resiliency
• A deeper understanding of self-awareness and identity

HOW TO IMPROVE SPIRITUAL HEALTH

• Explore your Inner-self - Simply start by asking yourself about who you are and what life means for you. Ask yourself questions that lead you to notice what matters to you most and therefore discover a more in-depth version of yourself. What is my purpose? What do I value most? 
• Look for deeper meaning - Observe and analyze occurring patterns in your life and see what you have control over. You would be surprised with how less stressful life can be when you recognize what you CAN control, leaving you with a higher capacity to let go of what you CAN'T control. 
• Express Yourself - Express what's on your mind to maintain focus. Keeping everything bottled up in your mind may leave you confused and frustrated. Write down your thoughts, talk to yourself out loud, or talk with a close friend/family member, so your thoughts become more evident and in some way tangible enough to work with. This may help you move past your thoughts into collective action. 
• Travel - Taking time for yourself and going to a comfortable place can do wonders for your mind. Helps you reflect, meet new people, and rest. You can do this alone or with someone close to you. 
• Yoga - There are several forms of exercise you can try that will impact your spiritual health. For some people it’s lifting weights - the point is to improve your spiritual health by reducing emotional strains on your body and mind to help you feel better. 
• Meditate - Devote time to connecting with yourself and thoughts. This can be done in the morning, afternoon or at night. Take a few minutes each day to foster a stronger mindset that helps you conquer yourself. 

FINANCIAL HEALTH

• Your relationship with money, ability to manage resources to live within your means - This includes making informed financial decisions and investments while being able to set realistic goals and learning to prepare short-term and long-term needs. 
• Also includes an awareness of financial values, needs and circumstances unique to oneself. 
• This is an area we all know too well but continue to ignore it, here is what can happen when you care about your financial health:
• Minimize worry and stress 
• SAVE MONEY AND/OR HAVE MORE OF IT - Seriously, do you need more reasons for why you should improve your financial health? 

HOW TO IMPROVE FINANCIAL HEALTH

• Create a budget - start by saving within your means each paycheck. For example, save by using the 50-30-20 rule
• Cut back and limit expenses - Specifically limit unnecessary costs by avoiding the use of credit cards to reduce debt. 
• Donate to a meaningful charity 
• Shop at discounted rates as necessary or thrift stores. 
• Use public libraries for free books and DVDs - They even have free financial resources for you to read up on what to do with your money. 
• Cook your own meals at home and dine out less. 
• Track your monthly spending to where your money is going and set goals based on what you discover. 

OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH

• The sense of satisfaction with your choice of work - Involves your ability to balance work and leisure time, building relationships with coworkers, and managing workplace stress. 
• This also includes choosing a job that is financially and purposefully rewarding
• We are all trying to work in a place that is financially rewarding of course but what we care about more is the work we are doing. - If you hate your job, do something about it!
• Things to consider: Culture of workplace and support - Evaluate your workplace culture and determine how supported you feel. If you discover lack of support seek it out from others close to you and be sure to engage in recreational activities to balance work stress. 

HOW TO IMPROVE OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH

• Don't settle - Stay motivated to work towards what you want
• Increase your skills & knowledge - Find the skillset needed for the job you want and invest in building those skills 
• Evaluate PROS AND CONS - the benefits and positives in your current job 
• Connect - Connections with your co-workers is important, You don't need to be best friends but learning to work with others comfortably reduces stress at work
• Find balance - Avoid overworking yourself, find a work/life balance
• Define your Occupational Goals - Write out your goals and create a plan to reach them - Don't set vague goals - If you want to be a photographer that gets paid well, get a camera, learn about contrast, depth of field, landscape etc. 

ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH 

• Your Surroundings; this dimension of health connects your overall well-being to the health of your personal environment. 
• Impacts your social and natural surroundings, which impacts the way you feel. 
• Examples of natural and social surroundings: Neighborhood, clutter, disorganization, pollution, violence, friends, family, living conditions (inside and outside the home). 
• Environmental health is related to the surroundings you occupy. 

HOW TO IMPROVE ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH

• Create a Comfortable Environment at Home - Reduce clutter, recycle, reduce garbage/trash, clean your place at least once a week. 
• Get more natural light - Open a window, hang out in your backyard/front yard - Let the sunlight in and keep your hangout space well lit if there is no chance for natural light. 
• Improves mood, enhance morale and have even been shown to lower fatigue and reduces eyestrain. 
• Let nature be your Friend - Plants, flowers, trees etc. - Even short contact with nature can significantly reduce stress, anger, and fear along with increased pleasant feelings. 
• Even having a view of trees or other plants is beneficial. Add indoor plants, aquariums, nature-themed art or place a comfortable chair by the window to take in views of natural settings, if possible. 
• Make a Garden - Copious amounts of research point to the benefits of having a garden close to home, make frequent trips to admire or put work into as it helps reduce stress and is great for exercise. 
• Baby Steps - The point is not to overwhelm yourself - start with one room, or corner of your place and make it your "Happy Place." 
• If you already have a happy place at home you can use, great, you're already ahead! Does it have good natural light and a view of outdoors? Even Better!
• Consider what you like and how you will adapt this space for your benefit 
• Do you like to read? Create a corner for comfortable, noise-free reading
• Meditation? Yoga? Exercise? - Maybe add a fountain, cardio equipment, weights or yoga mat.
• Like to build stuff? Get a workbench and get to building and fixing.
• The point is to control your environment to serve your health needs. 

Find Your Balance...

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