A healthy lifestyle encompasses regular physical activity, eating nutritiously and maintaining weight control; as well as forgoing harmful habits like smoking. Although each small step may seem inconsequential at first, their cumulative effect can have major health benefits for your wellbeing.
Focusing on all aspects of wellness is vital, but some need more consideration than others. Here are some resources and tips to get you started:
Physical Health
Physical wellness is one of the components that define wellness. This encompasses everything to do with our bodies’ performance – nutrition, fitness and disease prevention are all part of this broad definition, along with exercise that releases feel-good neurotransmitters to reduce stress and make us happier as well as stave off diseases like cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
Maintaining high physical health takes considerable commitment in terms of time, effort and money – but positive changes can be made slowly over time.
Ways to improve physical wellbeing may include eating a well-balanced diet, being physically active every day, practicing safer sex habits, prioritizing restful sleep and managing stress effectively. Finding an individual solution will be key.
Many workplaces have implemented wellness programs to combat major threats to physical health, such as lack of exercise, poor eating habits and smoking. Such programs typically include health screening assessments; in-house or subsidized gym memberships and exercise classes; nutritious food options in cafeterias and vending machines; wearable fitness trackers; stress reduction workshops/counseling services/health fairs facilitated by in-house human resources professionals or third-party wellness service providers.
Mental Health
Mental health conditions are an integral part of daily life and should never interfere with daily functions or relationships. With professional guidance and medication treatment available, many conditions can be managed.
Psychotherapists (sometimes referred to as psychiatrists or psychologists) offer talk therapy or counseling (known as psychotherapy) to assist people in understanding what has caused their mental health condition, and developing effective coping mechanisms. Medication may also help treat mental illnesses by increasing brain absorption of feel-good chemicals or blocking degradation and destruction.
Lifestyle factors–including regular exercise, eating nutritiously, sleeping enough hours and cultivating mindfulness and gratitude practices–can significantly contribute to mental wellbeing. According to studies, such habits may augment and complement medications and psychotherapy for many with mental health conditions.
Everyone can play their part in supporting mental wellness. One effective approach to do this is making mental health a priority at work and in life; mental health benefits are an integral component of any comprehensive health and wellness package, with studies showing employees receiving treatment for depression being more productive at work and experiencing higher job satisfaction as a result of treatment.
Social Connections
Social interactions enhance mental wellness by building feelings of support, trust, and empathy between individuals. Social ties may also reduce stress levels, depression, and anxiety levels. Social connections that promote mental wellbeing vary according to each individual, such as friendships, family ties, romantic partnerships or community networks. Friendships provide companionship and shared interests, while family relationships offer sense of belonging, history and support. Romantic relationships offer intimate emotional support and attachment while community networks foster purposeful interaction – evidence from various scientific fields links social connection with improved physical and mental health as well as increased lifespan.
Social connections continue to be underappreciated by society as a whole, according to a 2018 survey which revealed that when asked to rank factors that contribute to long lives, people ranked social connections below smoking cessation and exercise but above healthy eating and moderate alcohol consumption.
To improve your social well-being, try building connections with people who share similar interests and priorities. Look for opportunities to build and strengthen your network such as volunteering at community events or attending volunteering programs. If time constraints or social anxiety is hindering the creation of supportive relationships in your life, seek guidance from a mental health counselor; their insight and coping strategies could help overcome obstacles to creating and nurturing meaningful relationships.
Spirituality
Spirituality is a way of connecting to something bigger than yourself, without necessarily needing religious affiliation. Spirituality may take the form of feeling connected with nature or a higher power – often experienced during stressful or trying times and giving a sense of meaning and purpose to people’s lives.
McKinsey & Company conducted a 2018 global survey that revealed, across generations, a vast majority of people globally view spiritual health as “somewhat important” or “extremely important.” While this varies depending on country and region – such as religious observance – this figure stands at between 60%-75% for Nigeria while only under half reported their spiritual wellbeing as being either very or extremely important in France, Ireland, Netherlands and Sweden respectively.
Not to be forgotten is that spiritual wellness often corresponds with time spent outdoors – so, if you want to increase it, try spending more time outdoors!
No matter your religious or nonreligious views, adopting a spiritual lifestyle can have major benefits for your physical and mental wellbeing. Doing so may enable you to cope more easily with life’s daily stressors. To start exploring spirituality we recommend beginning with mindfulness practices; they help bring awareness into each moment without being judgmental of either yourself or others.
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