Be Well Together

Emotional health is one component of mental health.  It's your awareness & ability to understand & cope with your emotions, both positive & negative.  Emotionally healthy people are honest, peaceful, grateful, positive, connected, determined, intentional, balanced, strong, & hopeful (Wool, 2021).   

The National Institute of Health (NIH) recommends the following 17 tips for improving your emotional wellness:

1. Brighten your outlook:  Give yourself credit for the good things you do each day.
2. Forgive yourself.  Learn from your mistakes, but don't dwell on them.
3. Practice gratitude.
4. Surround yourself with positive, healthy people.
5. Eat healthy, exercise at least 30 min. daily, & get at least 7 hrs of sleep every night.
6. Go to sleep & wake up at the same time every night.  Avoid electronics, large meals, nicotine, caffeine, & alcohol before bed.  Sleep in a dark, quiet, comfortable space.
7. Prioritize & practice good time management. Say no if it's too much.
8. Schedule regular times for breathing exercises, mindfulness, meditation, or yoga.
9. Seek help if you feel unable to cope, have suicidal thoughts or depression, or use drugs or alcohol to cope with your feelings.
10. Build strong relationships with your children, family, & friends.
11. Get active & share good habits with family & friends.
12. If you're a family caregiver, ask for help from others.
13. Join a group focused on a favorite hobby, sport, activity, reading, or art.
14. Take a class to learn something new.
15. Volunteer in your community.
16. Travel to different places & meet new people.
17. Practice mindfulness, being aware of what's happening around you in the present when walking, eating, working, exercising, breathing.  Take deep breaths, go for a walk, & be aware of your body.

Environmental wellness is your ability to recognize your own responsibility for the quality of the environment that surrounds us (Yale, 2022).  

It's your sense of safety, comfort, & connection with your physical surroundings (Stride, 2023).  Weather, air quality, sun exposure, allergens, chemicals, & other environmental factor can effect your health.  the resources available to you can affect your health. You can’t always control what’s in the environments in which you live, work, or play. You can take small steps to make your environments safer & limit your exposure to potentially harmful substance.  

6 Strategies for improving your environmental health include:

1. Make your home healthier by clearing out potentially harmful substances or chemicals.
2. Reduce your exposure to allergens & toxins.
3. Wear sunscreen, hydrate, & stay covered when outdoors in hot weather or stay inside to keep cool.
4. Dress appropriately in cold weather.
5. Stay indoors when the air quality is poor & change your air filters in your home & vacuum.
6. Swim in only clean waterways, wear a life jacket, & be aware of currents & undertows in rivers & oceans. 

National Institute of Health (NIH) Environmental Wellness Toolkit

Financial wellness is the ability to meet current & future financial obligations, feel secure about your financial future, stick to your budget, have a solid emergency fund in place, feel emotionally balanced about money, have short-term, mid-term, & long-term financial goals, have savings &/or investments, have a clear picture of your current financial status, track your spending, & eliminate debt (Sokunbi, 2022).  

Mint is an excellent money management tool to link all of your accounts & provide you with a clear picture of your assets & debt.  It's free, secure, & easy to use, but it will take some time to log into all your accounts from their website.  I recommend only doing this on a personal computer with a secure, dedicated internet connection. 

Acorns helps you save by rounding up & automatically investing your spare change on every transaction to a linked credit card.  

There are many apps available to help you save money & manage your budget.  American Family Insurance lists their top 8 budget app picks.

Fidelity & Vanguard are well-known retirement investment companies.  If you haven't started investing in your retirement, you can learn more about their services here by clicking on their respective links above.

A 529 College Savings Plan is an investment account that offers tax benefits when used to pay for qualified education expenses for a designated beneficiary.

Intellectual wellness is "being open to new ideas, thinking critically, & finding new ways to be creative," according to University of New Hampshire.  Yale University defines it as "the ability to open our minds to new ideas & experiences that can be applied to personal decisions, group interaction, & community involvement. Brain HQ lists 12 ways to increase your intellectual wellness: 

1. Try something new.
2. Read.
3. Exercise.
4. Be social.
5. Stay curious.
6. Eat well.
7. Get creative.
8. Stay hydrated.
9. Sleep.
10. Practice self-reflection or journal.
11. Meditate.
12. Pick up a Rubik's Cube, puzzle, or Sudoku. 

Occupational wellness is "the ability to achieve balance between work & leisure in a way that promotes health, a sense of personal satisfaction, & is (for most people) financially rewarding, according to University of Nebraska Omaha.  Yale defines it as the "ability to get personal fulfillment from our jobs or chosen career fields, while still maintaining balance in our lives."  

UN Omaha lists the following 7 ways to improve your occupational wellness:

1. Don’t settle, keep motivated, & work towards what you want.
2. Increase your knowledge & skills to accomplish your goals.
3. Find the benefits & positives in your current job.
4. Enjoy what you do, do what you enjoy.
5. Create connections with your co-workers.
6. Write out goals, create a plan to execute them, & then start working on your plan.
7. Look for something new &/or talk to a career counselor if you feel stuck or unhappy.

Physical wellness requires good nutrition, physical fitness, cardiac fitness, adequate hydration, access to quality medical care, proper medical management, rest, adequate quality sleep, stress management, emotional coping skills, mental health, cognitive ability to function normally & react to signs of danger or physical threats, good sense of hearing, vision, taste, & smell, hormonal balance, freedom from pain & affliction, freedom to physically move about their community & work to earn a living, short-term and long-term memory, access to nutritious food, clean water, safe shelter, transportation, & physical security.  

"Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, & social well-being" (CDC, 2022).  Psychological well being is "how well your mind process information & experiences...  your ability to carefully reason through decisions & maintain steady focus" (Pyramid Healthcare, 2019).    Diet, substance use, & lifestyle choices can impact our brain's ability to function properly, & impact our psychological well being. 

Sexual health can be impacted by emotional, psychological, physical, & social wellness.  Common sexual health problems which require medical intervention include sexually transmitted diseases or infections, sexual dysfunction (desire, arousal, orgasm, or pain), sexual deformities or disorders of sexual development.  Common causes of sexual dysfunction include stress, fear or anxiety, alcohol, tobacco, & drug use, hormone levels, mental health, past sexual assault or trauma, relationship issues, medications/treatments, menopause, pregnancy, breastfeeding, or medical problems such as cancer, diabetes, heart problems, physical injuries, multiple sclerosis, bladder problems, or gender dysphoria (Planned Parenthood, 2022).

Social wellness is the ability to relate & connect with others, to build & maintain positive relationships, develop a social network of support, & communicate effectively.  The National Institute of Health (NIH) Social Wellness Toolkit recommends these 10 strategies for building healthy relationships: 

1. "Recognize how other people influence you.
2. Share your feelings honestly.
3. Ask for what you need from others.
4. Listen to others without judgement or blame.  Be caring & empathetic.
5. Disagree with others respectfully.  Conflicts should not turn into personal attacks.
6. Avoid being overly critical, angry outbursts, & violent behavior.
7. Expect others to treat you with honesty and respect in return.
8. Compromise. Try to come to agreements that work for everyone.
9. Protect yourself from violent & abusive people.  Set boundaries with others.  Decide what you are & aren't willing to do.  It's ok to say no.
10. Learn the differences between healthy, unhealthy, & abusive ways of relating to others. Visit www.thehotline.org/healthy-relationships/relationship-spectrum.". 

Spiritual wellness is the ability to establish inner peace & harmony.  This may include participating in a spiritual community, church, or temple, or practicing yoga.  Wellness Everyday recommends you create peaceful space in your life to pray, meditate, or practice yoga, make a gratitude jar, experience nature, & ask yourself the following 6 questions to explore your own spirituality: 

1.  What is the purpose & meaning of life? 

2.  Why are we here? 

3.  Why is there suffering on a beautiful planet & universe? 

4.  What is our connection to nature? 

5.  What does the future hold for us as individuals & as a society? 

6.  What are your most deeply held beliefs?

Berklee College of Music lists these 7 examples of spiritual wellness:

1. Having an overall sense of peace & wellbeing
2. Developing the mind-body connection
3. Understanding your own values & living in a way that is consistent with your values & goals
4. Feeling you are part of a larger community
5. Recognizing spirituality is a personal experience
6. Respecting the values & beliefs of others
7. Seeking meaning & purpose in your life

The health benefits of regular exercise are impressive:

• 83% lower risk of osteoarthritis
• 68% lower risk of hip fracture
• 35% lower risk of coronary heart disease & stroke
• 50% lower risk of type 2 diabetes & colon cancer
• 30% lower risk of early death, falls among older adults, depression, & dementia
• 20% lower risk of breast cancer
• Improved mood, self-confidence, sleep quality, energy levels
• Reduced stress levels

National Health Service of Scotland (NSH), 2023

The U.S. Surgeon General recommends 150 to 300 minutes (2.5 to 5 hours) of moderate-intensity exercise & 2 or more days of muscle strengthening activities per week for adults.

If older adults cannot tolerate 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity a week because of chronic conditions, they should be as physically active as their abilities & conditions allow.

• Moderate-intensity activities: brisk walking, recreational swimming, doubles tennis or pickleball, general yard work & home repair work, ballroom or line dancing, & exercise classes such as water aerobics.
• Relative intensity uses a person’s level of cardiorespiratory fitness to assess level of effort.  For example, some light intensity exercises, such as certain types of yoga or tai chi may be perceived as moderate- or vigorous-intensity for some older adults.

Department of Health & Human Services, 2023

The statistics are staggering:

• 50% of adults will experience mental illness at some point in their lifetime (Kessler et al, 2005, McGrath et al, 2023)
• 50% of U.S. adolescents will experience mental illness at some point in their lifetime.
• 23% of U.S. adults suffered from a diagnosable mental health condition in the past year (27% for women & 18% for men)
• 5.5% of U.S. adults suffered from a serious mental heath disorder in the past year (7% for women & 4% for men)
• 1% of U.S. adults suffer from schizophrenia

National Institute of Mental Health, 2021

Johns Hopkins Medicine, 2023

• 8.9% of high school students attempted suicide in the past 12 months (2019).
• 58% of lesbian, gay, or bisexual high school students experienced suicidal thoughts in the past 12 months (2019).
• 14.1 suicides per every 100,000 people (2021)
• 146.6 emergency department visits for nonfatal intentional self-harm injuries per 100,000 people (2020)

Office of Disease Prevention & Health Promotion, 2023

Strategies to improve mental health:

• Avoid mind & mood altering substances: caffeine, nicotine, drugs & alcohol.
• Get adequate sleep.
• Exercise regularly.
• Seek treatment if you think you may be feeling depressed or anxious.
• Talk to a trusted friend, family member, mentor, teacher, therapist, or counselor.
• Take breaks & communicate healthy boundaries.  Don't over extend yourself.
• Refer to some of the relaxation strategies below.

Most adults need 7 or more hours of good-quality sleep on a regular schedule each night.

• Adults: 7 to 9 hours
• Teens:  8 to 10 hours
• Children: 9 to 12 hours
• Preschoolers: 10 to 13 hours
• Toddlers: 11 to 14 hours
• Babies: 12 to 16 hours
• Newborns: 14 to 17 hours

Tips for Getting a Good Night's Sleep

Daytime Routine:

• Spend some time outside in the daylight (wear sunscreen).
• Exercise earlier in the day.
• Avoid caffeine late in the day.
• If you have trouble sleeping at night, limit daytime naps to 20 minutes or less.
• Avoid alcohol or drink in moderation (less than 1 drink per day for women & 2 drinks per day for men)
• Avoid big meals close to bedtime.
• Avoid nicotine in any form. 

Tips for: 

• Drinking alcohol only in moderation
• Quitting smoking

Create an optimal environment for sleep:

• Keep your bedroom dark & quiet.
• Keep electronic devices like TVs, computers, & smartphones out of your bedroom.

Bedtime Routine:

• Go to bed at the same time every night.
• Try to get the same amount of sleep each night.
• Avoid eating, talking on the phone, or reading in bed.
• Avoid using computers or smartphones, watching TV, or playing video games at bedtime.
• If you find yourself up at night worrying about things, use these tips to help manage stress.

If you’re still awake after staying in bed for more than 20 minutes, get up. Do something relaxing, like reading or meditating, until you feel sleepy.

Office of Disease Prevention & Health Promotion, 2023

Controlled, deep, or mindful breathing can reduce stress/anxiety (Magnon et al, 2021), increase alertness (Critchley et al, 2015), reduce pain (Zeidan & Vago, 2016), lower blood pressure (Mori et al, 2005), & boost your immune system (Waleed et al, 2016).

Individuals with hypertension can significantly reduce their systolic blood pressure by simply taking six long, deep breaths within a 30-second period. 

Follow the steps below to try it yourself:

1. Sit down in a quiet, comfortable, safe place.
2. Close your eyes & try to relax.
3. Set a timer for 30 seconds. 
4. Begin taking long, deep breaths six times within the 30-second time frame.
5. If needed, repeat the exercise

Mori et al, 2005

Breathe regularly when exercising throughout your warmup, exercise routine, & cool down.  Holding your breath can raise blood pressure & cause muscle cramping.  Regular, deep breathing can also help relax you. 

American Heart Association, 2023