Wellness Defined

Wellness is not merely the absence of illness or distress–it is a lifelong process of making decisions that support a more balanced life and enable you to maximize your potential.

Seven Dimensions of Personal Wellness

1. Intellectual Wellness

What it is: The ability to open your mind to new ideas and experiences that can be applied to personal decisions, group interaction and community betterment.

What you can do: Aim to learn new concepts, improve skills and seek challenges in pursuit of lifelong learning

2. Emotional Wellness

What it is: The ability to understand yourself and cope with the challenges life can bring.

What you can do: Acknowledge and share feelings of anger, fear, sadness or stress; hope, love, joy and happiness in a productive manner.

3. Environmental Wellness

What it is: The ability to recognize your own responsibility for the quality of the air, the water and the land that surrounds us.

What you can do: Find ways to make a positive impact on the quality of your environment, be it your home, your community, or the planet.

4. Social Wellness

What it is: The ability to relate to and connect with other people in your world and being comfortable with and liking yourself as a person.

What you can do: Establish and maintain positive relationships with family, friends and co-workers.

5. Occupational Wellness

What it is: The ability to get personal fulfillment from your job or our chosen career field while still maintaining balance in your life.

What you can do: Contribute in your career, make a positive impact in your organization and in society.

6. Optimal Physical Wellness

What it is: Developed through the combination of beneficial exercise and healthy eating habits, physical wellness empowers you to be able to monitor your own vital signs and understand your body’s warning signs. The physical benefits of looking good and feeling terrific most often lead to the psychological benefits of enhanced self-esteem, self-control, determination and a sense of direction.

What you can do: Combine physical activity and exercise with healthy eating habits.

7. Spiritual Wellness

What it is: A personal matter involving values and beliefs that provide a purpose in your life. Generally considered to be the search for meaning and purpose in human existence, leading you to strive for a state of harmony with yourself and others while working to balance inner needs with the rest of the world.

What you can do: Be open to different cultures, religions, and spiritual philosophies.