A healthy lifestyle doesn’t happen overnight. You need to be continually intentional about taking care of yourself.

In today’s world of technology and hectic schedules it is easy for people to become disconnected from themselves. However, your personal wellness should be considered one of the most important things in life.

According to a survey of 2000 Americans, 71% of the participants reported being dissatisfied with their overall health (SWNS, 2019).

Unfortunately, the amount of persons who are actually willing to take active steps to improve their personal wellness is much, much lower.

So, if you are reading this, then congratulations, you have taken the first step to improving your personal wellness. Read on and learn more about the importance of personal wellness and how to get started!

"Realize deeply that the present moment is all you ever have. Make the now the primary focus of your life." - Eckhart Tolle

What is personal wellness?

Personal wellness is a holistic approach to living that focuses on an optimal level of health in six dimensions: physical, emotional, social/family, intellectual, spiritual and occupational.

Here’s a self-care planner to improve your wellness, health and happiness. This resource will boost your productivity, gratitude and fitness. 

Why is personal wellness important?

The wellness of an individual is crucial to their ability to function on a daily basis.

In order to fully understand why personal wellness is important, you must consider all the aspects that are interrelated in a person’s life, such as their mental health, physical fitness, self-worth, relationships with friends and family members etc. 

Personal wellness is important because it integrates all of these things, ultimately leading to a longer, healthier life.

Research shows that people who practice wellness report lower stress levels, better sleep, increased overall health and well-being, as well as heightened energy and self-esteem.

In addition, practicing wellness can have significant cost benefits. You’ll likely eventually save thousands of dollars on health related expenses.

Persons who practice personal wellness also tend to live longer and have a much reduced likelihood of developing many diseases.

“Wellness is the complete integration of body, mind, and spirit – the realization that everything we do, think, feel, and believe has an effect on our state of well-being.” ~Greg Anderson

Essentially, personal wellness will help:

• Create balance in your life.
•  Relieve stress and anxiety.
• Improve physical health and increase energy levels.
• Boost your confidence and enable you to be the best version of yourself.
•  Decrease diseases and increase your life expectancy.

“So many people spend their health gaining wealth, and then have to spend their wealth to regain their health.” ~A.J. Reb Materi

What are the dimensions of personal wellness

The six dimensions of personal wellness are physical, emotional, social, intellectual/creative pursuits, spiritual and occupational. Each dimension has its own set of goals and unique benefits that contribute to your overall health.

The different dimensions of personal wellness may seem interlinked because they actually are. In fact, neglecting one aspect of personal wellness may affect a different dimension as well.

Additionally, although the activities mentioned are listed as important for improving a particular dimension, the other categories of personal wellness will also directly or indirectly benefit as well.

For instance, cardiovascular exercise (e.g., running, biking, swimming) not only boosts your physical health but also helps improve your intellectual health by improving the delivery of oxygen to the brain.

Thus, if you prioritize one dimension of wellness, be sure to not neglect the others for an extended period. They are all important and should be nurtured.

"The greatest of follies is to sacrifice health for any other kind of happiness." -Arthur Schopenhauer

Let’s discover characteristics and the importance of each of the 6 dimensions of personal wellness.

Read also: Considering Health & Wellness Coaching? Read this!

The importance of physical wellness

Physical wellness is not only about having a healthy weight and being physically active. However, it includes all aspects of our physical being, including what we put into it, such as food and drink, what goes on in it and how we take care of our bodies.

In fact, physical wellness plays such an important role in ensuring that we are able to perform our daily activities that some may even consider it to be the foundation for all other dimensions of personal wellness.

“Good health is…a precious gift. Without it, all other gifts taste insipid.” – Dada J.P.  Vaswani

The benefits of physical wellness

• Increased alertness, mood and energy levels.
• An active lifestyle helps us to maintain a healthy weight and improve our body composition.
• Increase life expectancy.
• Boosts the immune system.
• Decrease the risk of chronic diseases.

List of physical wellness tips and ideas

• Engage in regular exercise.
• Prioritize having a good nutrition.
• Make sure you get adequate sleep.
• Remember to stay hydrated.
• Have regular check-ups with your healthcare professional.
• Avoiding drugs and toxic substances.
• Limit your screen time.

Discover more details on the physical self-care tips that you should practice daily. 

The importance of emotional wellness

We all have emotions but how we handle them can either help or hinder our overall health. A happy, relaxed person is more likely to experience a healthy state of mind and body than someone who is constantly stressed.

Emotional wellness is all about managing stress levels and keeping happiness and positivity a part of your life.

However, it’s not just about your own feelings, but also the feelings of others as well (Smith et al., 2011). We are all affected by other people’s emotions, whether they are positive or negative.

As such, learning how to respond to others in an appropriate manner helps improve overall emotional wellness.

"Health is a relationship between you and your body." ~Terri Guillemets

Benefits of emotional wellness

• Helps to efficiently deal with the stresses and strains of modern-day life.
• Helps develop effective coping techniques.
• Aids in managing significant life changes, failures and setbacks. Click here to discover tips on how to thrive as a new parent. 
• Learn to control your thoughts and behaviors.

List of psychological/emotional wellness tips and ideas

• Stay in touch with friends and family (especially if they live far away or it’s difficult to see them).
• Engage in activities you enjoy, e.g., reading a book, watching a movie, playing an instrument.
• Regularly practice meditation and breathing exercises.
• Keep a diary or journal.
•  Practice gratitude.
• Prioritize relaxation.
• Have some alone time.

Read more on the psychological ideas for self-care that can transform your life.

The importance of intellectual wellness

It’s important for us to partake in activities that engage and challenge the brain. This helps maintain a healthier, more alert mind. Intellectual wellness includes activities that encourage the mind to think creatively and flexibly.

Intellectual wellness is not only about being smart. It includes learning new things and trying new activities. It involves keeping our minds active by engaging in challenging mental tasks.

Intellectual wellness allows for developing new skills and being open to new ideas.

Use this link to discover why knowledge and action are vital for wellness. 

"The only impossible journey is the one you never begin." - Unknown

Benefits of intellectual wellness

• Helps improve your memory, creativity and reasoning.
• Boosts your mental alertness and problem solving-skills
• Protects against memory loss and dementia.

List of intellectual wellness tips and ideas

• Learning to speak another language.
• Participating in active debates and discussion. 
• Engaging in puzzles, cards and other games.
• Reading a book of poetry or writing your own stories.

Learn more on the tips and strategies to boost your intellectual wellness. 

The importance of spiritual wellness

A person’s sense of spirituality can be tied to religion, beliefs about the meaning of life or a deep connection with nature. Spiritual wellness is about asking the big questions in life.

I’m sure you would admit that it’s important for us to feel as though our lives have a purpose and meaning.

For instance, being a part of your community can improve your health, as well as make you feel good about who are and where you work or live. Your spiritually will also influence your personal pursuits and decisions on health care.

"The key to wellness is to accept personal responsibility for your health and wellbeing."-Unknown

Benefits of spiritual wellness

• Reduces stress levels and promotes more peace and relaxation.
• Maintains a positive attitude about family, work, school or life in general.
• Promotes forgiveness of self and others.
• Helps you to help others in need, give back to your community and being part of something bigger than yourself.
• Helps manage toxic habits and cope with stress and grief.

 List of spiritual wellness tips and ideas

• Practice praying or meditating regularly.
• Spend time with friends or loved ones.
• Get involved with volunteer work.
• Go into nature, for example, hiking, gardening or cycling.
• Help those in need.
• Attend religious services (church, temple).
• Try meditation or journaling

Check out the spiritual wellness category and choose the specific topic on spirituality that you’d like to explore. 

Importance of occupational wellness

Occupational wellness helps us enjoy what we do for work and keeps us motivated to get out of bed in the morning. 

We spend up to one third of our lives at work, so it’s important that our job is doesn’t cause stress – or at least not too much. It’s also important for our work to fit into a healthy lifestyle, helping us keep an active mind and body.

Occupational wellness involves taking care of yourself at work so that you can continue to be productive and satisfied in your job. This can require setting in place realistic goals and priorities and learning to say no.

“Sufficient sleep, exercise, healthy food, friendship, and peace of mind are necessities, not luxuries.” ~Mark Halperin

Benefits of Occupational Wellness

• Promotes work life balance and reduces stress levels.
• Increases productivity.
• Helps you enjoy your work more.
• Promotes better relationships with co-workers and bosses.

Occupational wellness tips and ideas

• Find a job that you enjoy.
• Work to find a balance between all aspects of life.
•  Get involved with your company if they have a wellness program.
• Learn to say no.
• Set realistic goals, priorities and expectations for yourself.

• Participate in physical activity programs at work, such as walking or running group activities, yoga classes or team building events.
• Work on improving your personal productivity.

Learn more on occupational wellness.

Importance of social wellness

We need to maintain positive relationships with the people in our lives. This includes showing affection and having some fun. Social wellness also involves communication with others.

Social wellness helps us interact and build these important connections with people. It also includes the support of friends, family and significant others.

Further, it involves having a social structure or network with people to lean on in times of stress.

 "He who has health has hope, and he who has hope has everything." ~Arabian proverb

Benefits of social wellness

• Helps reduce stress and loneliness.
• Helps us develop essential characteristics.
• Builds strong social bonds with others.
• Develops communication and interpersonal skills.
• Helps establish personal boundaries.

Social wellness tips and ideas

• Be intentional with nurturing your friendships.
• Go out to the store or museum
• Find time to socialize with your family.
• Spend time in a group setting.
• Spend time alone, relaxing and doing something that is just for you.
• Communicate regularly with others.

Discover more topics on the social dimension of personal wellness. 

Final words on the importance of personal wellness

There are many dimensions to personal wellness and it is important that each dimension be addressed in order for an individual to live their best life.

This blog post has provided some important information on each dimension to help you learn more about how personal wellness impacts your life and the lives of those around you. However, the choice is yours.

Will you choose to commit to your personal wellness today? You can’t afford not to.

"If you think wellness is expensive, try illness." - Unknown

Comment or share with us how you’ve improved your own well-being so you can help others do the same!

Related posts

How to create a personal wellness plan?

A personal wellness plan is an essential tool for improving your life. A good plan involves four key components:

(1) Understand your current situation and personal values.

(2) Define your goals.

(3) Identify the tasks required to achieve these goals.

(4) Calendarize those tasks into time frames that suit you.

(5) Track progress and adjust if needed.

Just like any other plan, a personal wellness plan serves a purpose. It is a guide that you can use to stay on course. It is the tool to achieving your goals and living your life in a way that fulfills you.

Notedly, your wellness plan should be as detailed and specific as possible. An ideal plan is one that you can use to guide your decisions every day.

However, make sure that it is flexible enough so that you can update or change it over time and so that compliance is possible. Read more

Frequently asked health questions and answers

Everyone should have questions about their health. In fact, curiosity is one of the first steps to achieving personal wellness. Knowing about your health is essential in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Here’s a list of frequently asked health questions and answers. 

Use this link to test your health knowledge.  

References:

SWNS (2019) Why the majority of Americans don’t have time to take care of themselves. Available here.