Running head: Creating Wellness

Creating Wellness
Danielle Petit
Kaplan University

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Final Project
This paper is a plan that applies concepts learned in Kaplans course HW420: Creating
Wellness- Psychological and Spiritual Aspects of Healing. These concepts include holistic and
integral aspects of health. The plan is created to foster growth and health spiritually, physically,
and psychologically in my personal life. It will discuss why its important to develop mentally,
spiritually, and physically, a self-assessment of my life in those areas, set some personal goals
and offer some exercises to achieve them, and some strategies to help me stay on track to
achieving my goals. This paper will also discuss how I will evaluate my progress over the next
six months.
Its crucial for the success of health and wellness professionals to develop
psychologically, spiritually and physically because they need to be well themselves in order to
coach others to be also. If a wellness professional exhibits traits of a happy, relaxed, well
balanced individual, then clients will be more inclined to follow their instructions. A health and
wellness professional who can give personal testimony of how mind-body-spirit connections are
more likely to succeed. Personal testimony is a great way to set an example of how life can be
with a little attention and dedication to the practice of wellness exercises and behaviors.
Psychological development can aid in attaining goals through increasing focus and
ambition. A person who is psychologically developed is also able to connect to life in a different
way, with increased psychological development comes an increase in awareness.

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With an increase in awareness psychospiritual exploration can be more adventitious.
Dacher explains how humans appear to have the special ability to develop an inner life which
separates us from the rest of living beings, (2005). Humans need to develop their inner life
because they may have effects from underdeveloped areas that cause stress/anxiety and they
wont know where its coming from.
Spiritual development aids in coping with underdeveloped areas. Elliot Dacher describes
a spiritual life as being an effortless state of clarity, peace, alertness, wisdom, oneness, ad
grace, (Dacher, 2006, p41). Development of spirituality will contribute to the end of needless
suffering and negative energy which will deter you from your goals in life. When we are able to
feel safe and secure in any circumstance we are placed in, we are able to think more realistically
and reduce our stress reaction. We experience empathy when we are able to use our wisdom and
make educated decisions about our speech and actions because we become able to feel how
others feel.
Physical development includes nutrition and fitness. The levels of nutrition progress
from unconscious survival-like grasping at food to the mindful and intentional choice of a
healthy diet to food choices that reflect a concern for environmental sustainability, worldly
poverty, and animal suffering. The levels of fitness progress from exercise and movement
associated with daily life to a deliberate program of fitness training that addresses specific needs
such as strength, flexibility, endurance, agility, and dealing with physical disorders to a highly
developed and subtle sense of body awareness, (Dacher, 2006, p108).

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Stress is not just what you do, its how you react to what you do, (Schlitz, Amorok,
Micozzi, 2005, p307). Chronic illnesses are often psychosomatic and through development
psychologically, spiritually and physically, we can achieve wellness. When we are well, other
people take notice, this sparks an interest in people who may need guidance and this is beneficial
to professional success.
Even though I think that spirituality is a lifelong journey, my spiritual assessment lead me
realize that I need to work on this aspect of my life. I have found that so many people that I look
up to lack spirituality. They have no faith in anything bigger than themselves nor any belief in
anything nontangible. Their lack in spirituality has both exhausted my efforts to persuade them
otherwise and taught me to respect their beliefor lack thereof. This has probably contributed
to the lack of further progression in this area of my integral development. My recent realization
of the decline in spiritual progression has rekindled my desire for furthering my development.
Deepak Chopra writes According to the ancient Indian philosophy of Ayurveda, one of
the reasons people grow old, age and die is that they see other people growing old, aging, and
dying. What we see we become because we have that superstition that seeing is believing. Id
like to persuade you that see is not believing, that it is just a superstition, a superstition of
materialism. (Schlitz, Amorok, Micozzi, 2005, p202). I will remember reading this when I feel
that other people are inhibiting my spiritual development.
In January 2014, I rated myself physically, spiritually, and psychologically. I used a scale
from 1-10, with 10 being developed and 1 being deficient. Physically I rated myself as a 3

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because I felt that I wasnt as physically active as I should be. Spiritually I rated my
development at a 7, I felt that I was in touch with my spirituality and sure of what I believed in,
somewhat. My psychological development was rated at a 9, because I felt happy and content.
After completing the next few weeks of this course, I did more research on what it means
to be physically, spiritually and psychologically developed. I feel as though my psychological
rating was accurate but my spiritual and physical ratings were inaccurate.
In order to assess ones level of spirituality, one must first understand what spirituality is.
Psychology Today describes spirituality as being different to everyone. For some, it's about
participating in organized religion: going to church, synagogue, a mosque, etc. For others, it's
more personal: Some people get in touch with their spiritual side through private prayer, yoga,
meditation, quiet reflection, or even long walks, (Psychology Today, n.d.). Webster Dictionary
defines spirituality as the force within a person that is believed to give the body life, energy, and
power or as the inner quality or nature of a person.
After researching spirituality this term, I have learned that I am not as well developed as I
had originally thought. I feel as though I need to work on this aspect of human flourishing. I
would rate my spiritual development at this point as a 5. I believe I need to work on developing
a sound idea of what I truly believe in. If I can be more mindful of what I truly believe, I can
express my beliefs to others without feeling intimidated. Expression of spirituality is an area I
also need to work on.

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This course has helped me realize that physical development is more than just activity.
Physical fitness includes nutrition and physical activity. With this being taken into
consideration, I would score my physical development closer to a 6 out of 10. I would say I am
out of shape and in desperate need to increase physical activity in my life but my nutrition is
close to where it should be. I enjoy being physically active but work, school, and life has
become so time consuming that by the time I have time to dedicate to fitness, Im too exhausted
exercise or feel guilty that Im using time on exercise when I should be doing schoolwork. I love
fitness and realize its very important to my personal and professional success in order to set an
example of how to live well physically.
I have physical, psychological, and spiritual goals for myself. I have come to learn that
each of these areas has its own importance in human flourishing and by setting goals we can
work toward development of each aspect in human flourishing. Mindfulness is crucial to
attaining goals, we must be aware of progress and speed bumps. By being mindful of lack of
progress, we can determine what is preventing further physical, psychological, and spiritual
development.
My physical goal is to increase my level of physical activity to something at least three
times a week. This means, a walk, yoga, swimming, sit ups, weight lifting, something that will
benefit to my physical self. My physical goal is to practice Yoga on a more regular basis and
redevelop my personal relationship with nature. Maybe by being outside gardening and being
more physically active will enhance my passion for fitness.

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My psychological health has been pretty good lately. I can say I am mostly happy and
somewhat content with the path I am on. I would, however, like to reduce work stress by finding
a job that I actually enjoy doing and am passionate about. I would like to eventually decide if
there is any need to use hypnosis to confront dark secrets I have from myself. Sometimes I
wonder if this is the cause of fear that comes on out of nowhere. I have been feeling much more
safe and confident over the past year.
I am now engaged to the love of my life. Our engagement has lead us to discuss
spirituality. He has no currently has no belief or understanding of human spirituality and I feel in
my heart that there is something greater than ourselves that connects us all to one another. My
short term spiritual goal is to find a way to involve it in my marriage in a way that will make me
feel content and will intrigue my fianc.
I have a goal to open a business someday. My business will have a general concept that
will allow me to utilize my knowledge and experience to better the lives of others. This may
mean life coaching single parent mothers or offering diet and nutrition counseling to someone
who desires to eat healthier. If I continue to set goals that will allow me to continue to develop
psychologically, physically and spiritually, I will be a good example for my clients. This will
create generativitythe effort we make to teach others what we have learned, (Dacher, 2005,
p110).
Different strategies will be needed to implement physical, psychological and spiritual
growth. I plan to involve friends and family in fitness goals. This will allow me to create a

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social factor in my physical fitness plan. I will be able to compare notes, get ideas, and share
enthusiasm about goals attained. For psychological growth I plan to continue to surround myself
with positive people and continue to empathize with those who are not. I will also continue to
share my positive energy with those who need recharging and are interested in sharing
knowledge about mindfulness. To foster spiritual growth I plan to interact with Facebook friends
who share beliefs similar to my own. I will do research on different cultures in terms of marriage
and spirituality, this will create opportunities to discuss spirituality with my fianc and maybe we
can come to an agreement on something.
Psychological development can be achieved by keeping our minds active. We should
read often, evaluate our thoughts, set goals, and recognize when we are doing something we
shouldnt or when we are doing something we should. Mindfulness exercises are a great way to
reflect on our thoughts and emotions. By meditating, we are able to quiet our minds and
eventually be able to slow the mental chatter to separate what is important from what was not.
After all, psychological growth is a catalyst for spiritual development, (2006, pg. 61).
Spiritual development can be achieved by exercises such as meditation and prayer.
Spending time outside can cause one to reconnect with nature and give a sense of being part of
something bigger than themselves. In 1988, Physician Randolph Byrd demonstrated how
Intercessory Prayer can help sick people. Byrds contribution is monumentalbecause it
helped break a taboo against prayer as a subject of medical research, (Schlitz, Amorok, Micozzi,
2005, p. 319). Which has given proof that prayer is an effective way connect the mind and the

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spirit both within oneself and with others. When we use our minds and spirits to help others, it
gives us a sense of purpose and regenerates positive energy.
Physical exercises that connect the inner life with the outer life are ideal. When exercises
like Yoga and hiking are practiced, the mind and spirit are involved while the body is active.
Nutrition is integral to the efficiency of our biological functions. When we eat foods that are
high in nutrients and fiber we expend less energy with digestion and can devote it to sharpening
our minds and strengthening our bodies.
I plan to use these exercises to better demonstrate a lifestyle that people will desire for
themselves. I want to dedicate more of my time and energy to outdoor activities this spring and
summer so I can reconnect with nature. I will do yoga outside and meditate on my surf board. I
will continue to use the knowledge I am gaining about diet and nutrition to achieve my bodys
optimal level of functioning. I will be increasing my dietary fiber and nutrients through fresh,
local, organic produce because we joined a Community Supported Organic Farm. I will be
decreasing the intake of additives through meat consumption because I recently purchased of a
grass fed, free range cow and have 4 free range, locally raised chickens on the way. Just thinking
about it makes me feel better.
In six months I will reassess my development. I plan to read this paper and see how
much of my plan I actually follow. I will also re-evaluate and set small goals along the way to
increase the likelihood that these small changes will become lifestyle changes for me. I will use

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this plan and the results as testimony to how changing your lifestyle to be healthy
psychologically, spiritually, and physically can make you a happier person.

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References
Dacher, Elliot S. (2006). Integral Health the Path to Human Flourishing.
Laguana Beach, CA: Basic Health Publications, Inc.
Schlitz, M., Amorok, T., and Micozzi, M. (2005). Consciousness and Healing: Integral
Approaches to Mind-Body Medicine. St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier, Inc.
Psychology Today. (n.d.).Psych Basics Spirituality. Retrieved From:
http://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/spirituality
Spirituality. Merriam-Webster.com. 2014. http://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/spirituality. (March 15, 2014).