MAKING WELLNESS A LIFESTYLE Chapter 1

Wellness & Quality of Life Wellness is the state of being in good health Often associated with quality of life Quality of life refers to a person’s satisfaction with his or her looks, lifestyle, and responses to daily events Activity: Rating your Quality of Life Most people want to continually improve their quality of life as they grow and mature Trying to achieve a high level of wellness is one way to improve quality of life

Aspects of Wellness There are three major components of wellness: Physical Mental Social Each contributes to your total sense of wellness Together they affect how you look, feel, and act

Physical Refers to the fitness of your body What factors/actions can harm your physical health? What factors/actions can improve your physical health?

Mental Health Mental health has to do with the way you feel about yourself, your life, and the people around you What are some qualities of someone with good mental health? What may be some signs of someone with mental health problems? How can we improve our mental health?

Social Health Social health describes the way you get along with other people What types of social skills may improve social health?

Holistic Wellness Holistic medicine is an approach to health care that focuses on all aspects of patient care—physical, mental, and social It evolved because many doctors saw links among physical, mental, and social health What connections can you make between the three types of health?

Factors that Affect Wellness 1. Unhealthful lifestyle choices Smoking/ doing drugs/alcohol abuse Poor diet Lack of exercise Poor stress management skills 2. Poor environmental quality Relates to the safety of the water you drink, the air you breathe, and food you eat Making choices that could expose you to dangerous conditions that could put your health and safety at risk 3. Inadequate health care Not getting regular check-ups Not seeking medical care soon enough Lack of medical insurance Not following physician’s advice 4. Heredity 25% of factors that contribute to leading causes of death are hereditary Knowing your family history can put you on the right track More frequent doctor visits, specific tests to determine early onset of certain diseases Keep yourself in better health physically, mentally, and socially Which do you have control over?

Health Promoting Choices 1. Choose a healthy lifestyle Consume a balanced diet Exercise Avoid drugs, alcohol, and smoking 2. Resist negative peer pressure Build your self confidence Be able to say NO 3. Improve your environment Go green Handle food safely 4. Choose quality health care See your doctor for regular check-ups Early detection is key for some diseases Don’t hide info from your doctor about your lifestyle

Making a Change Won’t happen overnight Best to start small Assess where you may need to make changes (Lifestyle Assessment) Set a goal or goals for improvement Create a plan to track your steps in reaching your goal(s)

Accountability for Goal Setting Directions: Step 1: On a sheet of paper you are going to write a wellness goal for yourself that you will track over the course of the semester (short term). You may create more than one goal but don’t overload yourself (remember to start small). If you have more than one goal please label them #1, #2, and so on. Think about the lifestyle assessment and daily choices you make. Where can you improve? Step 2: You must be accountable for your goals. Outline your plan of action for each goal you have set. What steps are you going to take to reach your goal(s)? Step 3: Find an app on your phone that helps hold you accountable. Research several different apps, read reviews, possibly download them and see how user friendly they are (depending on co$t). Make a list of possible apps for each goal. Step 4: Answer this question for each goal you set: How can achieving this short term goal help you long term? Hand-in before you leave