JENNIFER LEWIS SUMMER COURSE 2012

PROFESSOR: JOSE GONZALEZ

PE 2850 Wellness Choices Final Presentation

Although it may seem like a simple concept many people are not aware of their own wellness. Wellness can be defined as the quality or state of being healthy in body and mind especially as the result of deliberate effort. In my eyes the perception of wellness is not only a state or condition, it is a duty to take care of your body so it can live to it’s maximum potential. That is why I think it is so important to raise awareness about health to other people.

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“Wellness is first and foremost a choice to assume responsibility for the quality of your life.”-Dr. Don Ardell

Created by Dr. Bill Hettler (Cofounder/president of the National Wellness Institute) the six dimensions of wellness provide people with insight on their overall health. The dimensions are categorized as physical, intellectual, emotional, social, spiritual, and occupational. By analyzing and recognizing these categories people are able to find/ maximize their individual potential of wellness.

All 6 categories are interactive and go hand in hand.

The Six Dimensions of Wellness

Intellectual Wellness: The ability to engage in creative and mental activities and schools of thought.

The picture in the background Lamson Library is where I spend a multitude of hours a week studying. Being a Biology major and chemistry minor, I find myself in this building and Boyd half of my time or more while I am at Plymouth. I have always felt as though science has been a hard subject for me, however at the same time it fascinates me. I chose to be a biology major not just because I want to get into the medical field but also because I wanted to challenge myself intellectually. So, I guess you can say I challenge myself everyday in that aspect, and will continue to do so throughout my career as a student.

^ Me presenting a semester long research project on horseshoe crabs at PSU symposium event.^

Physical wellness: Can be defined as the wellness of the physical body; influenced by factors such as body weight, physical fitness, and ability to perform day- to- day functions.

Personally my whole life I feltas though I never had an issue with my own physical wellness. I have always been active in some way shape or form. I have been able to exceed in many areas such as dance, cheerleading (me doing a scorpion/cheer move to the right), and cardio. However, being in college I have reached a slump in my daily fitness. Starting July 10th I am joining a ballet techniques class for 6 weeks, being flexible has always been a natural talent to me and I think I would be able to enhance that skill even more in ballet.

The ability to get through the rigors of life, aspects include self-acceptance, self- confidence, self-control, and trust.

As far as emotional wellness goes, I definitely have my strengths and weaknesses. A strength I have is that I tend to make friends very easily and a lot of the foundation of who I am as a person comes from the unconditional love of my family and friends. I also won the award “most gullible” in high school( it’s okay to laugh) but I see it as most trustworthy, which sometimes is a good aspect but other times can be a downfall as well. On another note however, I also won “Best Laugh” I am constantly happy, and laughing about one thing or another, that tends to make other people happy as well. I guess if I had to work on something with my emotional wellness it would have to be confidence in myself as I go into work force after college and also confidence in my heart’s decisions. Also I will be working on managing my study time more efficiently so I can make more time for friends and exercise at school next semester

Spiritual Wellness: Meaning and purpose in life; aspects include the ability to forgive, to show compassion, and to love.

For as long as I can remember I have always believed in God. It is not so much the religious aspect that I follow, but the faith I have in a higher power( to me it’s God) that sometimes gets me through the day. I usually pray every night for circumstances with family and friends and that calms me. I also think I have the ability to sense/feel other peoples emotions very well, even if I am not physically with the person. Nature wise I like to spend my time by the ocean, the ocean being very vast I feel like it connects the world as the sound of the waves is something that can be heard on every continent. For spiritual practices I will be working on breathing exercises, and also attending my church more regularly.

“What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compared to what lives within us”- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Social Wellness:

Social Wellness emphasizes becoming

contributing member of society.

Socially I feel as though I contribute time with society, such as volunteer work for the church. I also feel as though I spend so much time with my friends, that calling me social is an understatement. However, I will be working on being able to successfully join a club or two and manage my study time more efficiently at Plymouth next semester.

Occupational Wellness

Personal satisfaction from your career. As one strives for occupational wellness, you can contribute your skills and talents to work that is meaningful and rewarding.

Being at the same job for 5 years as a cashier I have learned a lot about working with the public. I feel as though this has helped me to become a more well- rounded person, also when I have patients in the medical field one day I will be able to understand their perspective better. As far as occupational wellness goes, I need to start really looking into what branch in the medical field I want to go in starting next semester, as well as looking into grad. schools. My main goal in whatever I do though is to go home everyday and know I made a positive impact on someone's life. That to me is the most rewarding experience I could obtain.

Thank you for your time everyone! I hope you all took a lot from this course!

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“The most important thing in all illness is to never lose heart”-Nikolai Lenin