As a faith-based Health and Wellness Coach (VIBRANT Health and Wellness Coaching), Linda Howard understands the importance of being attentive to the entire “Being”– spirit, soul and body. When partnering with and providing support to her health and wellness coaching clients she relies on her spiritual foundation.
While Linda Howard was studying for her health and wellness coaching certification, she became acquainted with the Wellness Wheel [pictured above]; while there are many others, this is the one to which she refers more often. She highly recommends that we all utilize this Wellness Wheel to assist ourselves in remembering to assess our own health and wellness capacity as it pertains to each area of the wheel.”
According to Linda Howard, there are certain things you can implement daily to practice wellness. Below are her tips for everyday health and wellness.
Spiritual Health and Wellness – Be intentional and consistent about “Commanding your day”: The days are longer now, and here is a way to maximize some of that early sunlight. First, go to bed earlier and then rise earlier to engage in spirit building and soul reviving, Morning Prayer & meditation. Taking the time to focus on good things – like what GOD says about you instead of what external situations and circumstances are attempting to dictate to you, is a marvelous way to set the trajectory for your day. There are testimonies from individuals who ascribe to this.
They say that when they dedicate time within the first hour of their day to do this, they maximize the propensity of what they desire manifesting in their lives. Truly, those things with which you spend the most time – spiritually and in your mind, is what you will have in your life.
Emotional Health and Wellness – Increase your JQ (Joy Quotient) – Life is too precious to drown in sorrows: Monitor your emotions; particularly Joy. Are you living life out of a Joy shortage or a Joy surplus? In order to answer this question.
Mental (Intellectual) Health and Wellness – Engage in Mental Aerobics – It’s hot enough outside, turn off the fuel to the “Hot-Head Syndrome” inside you: Just as we have to choose to be present in physical fitness in order to achieve strength and endurance, choosing to be present for optimal and sustainable mental health and wellness is equally important.
Make the decision to stay conscious of your strong, intense negative reactions to what people say and/or do towards you. “While I AM by no means condoning you being mistreated, I do now understand that we cannot control how people treat us or how and when negative circumstances show up in our lives; we can however, control how we respond to them. Therefore, monitoring our “emotional reactions” versus “spiritual responses” is critical. If and when you find that you have a higher propensity for negative [emotional] reactions to the negative “Triggers”, shift and see it as an opportunity to address something that lies deeper in YOU (your subconscious), that needs to be addressed. Be intentional and consistent about asking yourself “What is my strong; intense reaction to this occurrence (trigger), attempting to telling me about myself? Take courage and ask “Are there unresolved negative thoughts, meanings, emotions, feelings, attitudes and behaviors residing deep in my subconscious mind; that I applied to myself as the result of some PRIOR negative thing that happened and needs to be addressed?”
Ask yourself and make a list of how you “feel” when this [the present situation] happens and how you felt when the former infraction happened. Be patient with yourself and visualize; see yourself letting go of all of the toxic thoughts, meaning, emotions, feelings, attitudes and behaviors. Don’t forget to replace it with positive affirmations; preferably from the Word of GOD. And know, going forward, that you are who GOD says and who you believe that you are. External situations and circumstances no longer have the power to trigger you and cause you to “blow a fuse.” You are as cool as a cucumber.
Physical Health and Wellness – Out with the Old, In with the New (De-clutter, Cleanse and Detox): Being able to spend more time outdoors without the heavy winter layers just make more things seem possible. It’s summer, the sun is shining, and we are soaking in all of that nourishing, fortifying, Vitamin D. We are more active and/or productive and adrenaline and other “feel-good” hormones levels tend to be higher. Take advantage of it and de-clutter your life – inside out.
You will experience results like: mental clarity, more restful sleep, increased energy levels and so much more. While the days are longer, clear out the clutter on the inside; and see how much more you will accomplish. Don’t forget to make clear and concise plans to continue; repeat, on a regular basis – even in the winter months. Preparation is paramount. Your body will love you for it.
Social Health and Wellness – Get Unplugged: 1,000 friends… really? If the majority of those social media “Friends’” posts have not been beneficial to you; added value to your life, encouraged, inspired, motivated or empowered you… you may need to unplug, stop wasting your valuable time and move forward and higher in your life. Dedicate a couple of minutes of that social media surfing time to search for and discover people and pages that are synergistic to and that will empower you to take the next step in taking ownership and possession of your own greatest dreams and inspirations. In this season of your life, your “Tribe, Squad, Village” should look more like where you want to go, not where you’ve been. Surround yourself with people (virtual and otherwise), that push you to do better.
Environmental Health and Wellness – Get involved: Volunteer to serve a cause greater than YOU. Tap into Charities, your city or local municipality – Civic Organizations, to lend a helping hand; for example volunteering in an organization that is committed to outdoor beautification projects of some sort might just encourage you to change your own surroundings; like adding a fresh new, coat and inspiring color of paint to the wall of the room in which you spend the most time in your home. You may also be inspired to give your “Green-thumb” another try. Ultimately, you will feel so better 1) because you supported a good cause, AND 2) physically you simultaneously got some sweat equity. at the same time. Perhaps helping others will motivate you to purge or organize your own home or apartment.
Financial Health and Wellness – Identify the Money Traps: So what is it? Starbucks? Target? QVC? Amazon? Fast food restaurants? Etc. What are your Winter Coping Mechanisms; those little foxes that keep ruining your “Vine” or prevents you from achieving success in sustainable prosperity? Sometimes we don’t identify the “triggers” that result in us doing things that get us into a rut or financial ruin. After we’ve done them for a while, it becomes a habit; ultimately, we stop paying attention and don’t’ recognize the addictions; those things that we do all the time; that may seem small, but when we calculate the annual spending… we could have taken a nice vacation or enrolled in a class that would anchor us in a new career or hobby that we enjoy doing. Make a declaration that this is the last summer that you have to resort to a Stay-cation.
Take a look at your spending habits and especially those things that trigger that spending. Think about another way that you can respond to what you have identified as the spending “trigger”. Identify the ones that can be severed and/or replaced or drastically reduced. Locate a Spending or Budgeting App like “Digit” or better yet, investigate to find out if your bank has an online Budgeting or Project Savings Option. Activate it, and then, envision yourself engaging in the activity that you desire in your near future; like see yourself reclined on your beach chair on that white sand beach, wearing sunglasses (and sunscreen – of course) and sipping on that tropical drink. Stay focused, you’re almost there.
