Final Assessment

1.         Review your unit 3 personal assessment of your psychological, physical, and spiritual well-being. Reflect on these areas . How did you score yourself on a scale from 1 to 10 in unit 3? How do you score yourself now? Has the score changed? Why or why not?

From unit three I score my physical well-being as a 7. I think that is still relevant, I still have my good days and bad days when it comes to how I feel.  I have been working more which allows me to be more active but I do find myself more tired and sore as of late. Final score of 8.

My spiritual well-being I scored as a 3. I think I am still relatively low in this aspect of my life that is something I am currently working on as this class ends. I’ve been able to grow and learn tools to help me become more of a spiritual person. I would rate myself as maybe a 4 or 5.

Psychological well-being was recorded at 5.  I think I may be closer to a 6.5.  I have been working really hard to build my mentality by seeing an energy worker and a counselor.

2.         Review the goals and activities you set for yourself in each area. Have you made progress toward the goals? Explain.

As I have set my goal to raise all levels and to keep them in balance I feel I am doing a fairly good job of this.  I will continue to work on all three aspects of my life and getting them closer to a 10.

3.         Have you implemented the activities you chose for your well-being in each of the three areas? Explain.

I have made minimal improvements in my life for each aspect.  Becoming more physically active, meditating and seeking counsel have been ways I have tried to improve myself.

4.         Summarize your personal experience throughout this course. Have you developed improved well-being? What has been rewarding? What has been difficult? How will this experience improve your ability to assist others?

I have really enjoyed this course.  I learned much about myself and where I would like to go.  I have picked up tools to help me along the way.  I believe it may be the long journey for integral health but to worth the struggles.

Final Project: Self Assessment

Final Project

Unit nine project gives an opportunity to create a plan that applies all concepts that have been taught regarding integral health and holistic concepts. This plan will foster individual growth toward integral health and will outline steps for growth in the following individual fields: spiritually, physically, and psychologically.

              I.Introduction:
Why is it important for health and wellness professionals to develop psychologically, spiritually and physically? What areas do you need to develop to achieve the goals you have for yourself?

Hello. My name is Cassandra Kraft (I go by Cassy). This is our final project for our course in Creating Wellness: Psychological and Spiritual Aspects of Healing.

As a para-professional health practitioner it is important to develop psychologically, spiritually and physically; this gives personal of goals for the betterment of themselves. It is important for personal growth and wellness as well as developing integral health and gaining life skills and abilities.

Growing these aspects of one’s humanity can only bring them closer to the final goal of integral health; health, happiness and wholeness.

As for me if I know I have a lot of personal growth to do. Mostly I have only taken care of my physical body and became frustrated when I saw little improvement (insomnia, weight fluctuation, depression and anxiety).  Now, I have decided to develop myself as a whole not ignoring other aspects of myself. Of the three I need to focus on my psychological and spiritual health.

            II.Assessment:
How have you assessed your health in each domain? How do you score your wellness spiritually, physically, and psychologically?

During this course I have had several opportunities to assess myself and my overall health in each category of development.  I have done several things in order to assess myself.  Of these I have done the following; meditated, contemplated by myself, I have even talked with others (mentors, counselors or close friends) all to find where I fall within the spectrum of integral health and development.

What I have found is physically I am in fairly good shape.  Recently I have taken steps to care for my psychological health in hopes of stabilizing my mental and emotional health.  Also, it had come to my attention that developing spiritually may help as well. This was before we started class. Now I have more resources and a better idea of how to develop and take care of myself holistically.  Realizing that my goals for my own development were a natural progression and longing towards integral health reassures me that I am the correct path.

           III.Goal development:
List at least one goal you have for yourself in each area, Physical, Psychological (mental health) and Spiritual.

When one is asked to set goals for themselves it can become tedious or overwhelming. Normally I am not a goal setter. I get ideas of what I want to do with my life and never write them down, for this I made an exception. I want to become better and help others without sacrificing myself. Goals I have set for myself include:

Spiritual:

Research religions, find a few to study.

Ultimately decide on what religion best resonates with me.

Psychological:

Find what makes me happy.

Be OK with being alone.

Heal past emotional traumas.

To stay physically fit by exercising regularly and adding mindful meditation to my regular workouts.

Exercise outside more.

Physical:

Continue to stay physically active.

Stabilize diet. Stabilize weight. 

Sleep better by being able to sleep through the night and finding sleep more easily 

          IV.Practices for personal health:
What strategies can you implement to foster growth in each of the following domains; Physical, Psychological, and Spiritual. Provide at least two examples of exercises or practices in each domain. Explain how you will implement each example.

Goals are one thing, a plan to carry them out as a whole other monster.  Though the path for integral health is unique to the individual that does not mean one must walk the path alone.  In order to give the best chances of reaching integral health one must develop a support network of practitioners and like minded friends. 

The plans of action I have developed for myself have consisted of finding professionals within the psychological and spiritual practices (seeing as these are the two aspects I need most help in).  I have already accomplished this.  After finding these individuals, I feel, that have my best intentions and my goals in mind we set to work. With my “health team” we have come up with a series practices help move me forward in life and health.

Spiritual:

As this class comes to a conclusion and I begin my break I will be researching religions.  A friend whom has already taken this religious study in the past has offered the titles of several books she found to the relevant and helpful.  I have much to reading to do before finding individuals that practice these religions in order for me to ask questions and get a better understanding of.

I have been meditating via guiding meditation practices; truly contemplating what is inside and attempting to not focus on exterior problems. I have also been spending more time outside/ not “plugged in” and find and truly enjoy not constantly being surrounded by technology.

 Psychological:

I have recently started seeing it in energy worker. She believes with her help and knowledge she can help me to stabilize my inner energy and start to heal from childhood traumas. We will be trying chakra alignments along with acoustic therapy and energy eating.  To help with my insomnia she has asked me to keep a healing and journal.  I am to write every night of my thoughts and feelings.  I am also to write to my spirit guide asking questions of things I would like to know or seek guidance for.

Physical:

I have begun practicing yoga along with normal exercise. I also had an encounter with another personal trainer who gave me tips and ideas for exercises I have not considered since my accident[1]. Now I employ these techniques within my workout.  I have added a visualization exercise as well. As I concentrate on working my physical self I see in my mind, excess weight, stress, and negativity sloughing off my skin; off and away from my body.

[1] Such as more free weights paired with resistance exercises vs. machine lifts. When exercises are performed on a weight machine to enhance resistance they are typically a poor substitute for completing the exercise with free weights (the machines isolate specific muscles for the movement but take out normal positioning and remove assistance from other muscle groups). 

I do not see my actions and plan of late automatically bringing me to a higher level of integral health. It will take time, support and possibly more practitioners to assist me in my goals. This is only the beginning of my journey and I intend to work on it as a lifetime practice in order to better myself and to give opportunity to those around me.

           V.Commitment:
How will you assess your progress or lack of progress in the next six months? What strategies can you use to assist in maintaining your long-term practices for health and wellness?

I feel it may be fairly easy to assess my progress over the next several weeks with the assistance of my “health team”. I have already come so far within the past few weeks and really year that I’ve been out here. As for reassessing in six months I believe I shall do a similar assessment from my original. This will consist of meditating, self contemplation and verification via friends and wellness practitioners.

Strategies I can use to assist my long-term practices for integral health will consist of:

Spiritual:

Finding and practicing a religion(s) that best suit my current beliefs; leaving room for personal development. This, in hopes, will lead to a support network of like minded individuals when it comes to this walk of life; then sharing my ideas and path with those who ask.

Psychological:

One can relieve emotional and mental stress by becoming more settled in the here now instead of worrying about the past or future. In order to do so I shall continue on with mindful meditation and possibly add animal therapy. 

As of this week I am a foster mother for a friend’s cat. I am not sure how long I will be able to keep her but I am already feeling love and tenderness for this animal and it is lowering my stress levels.

Physical:

I will continue to exercise on a fairly frequent basis (approximately every other day) and engage in outdoor activities either by myself or with a group as frequently as possible. If I become frustrated with lack of results I can consult other personal trainers or physical therapists on ideas for exercises. 

In conclusion this class has been enlightening. I had already naturally been drawn to starting forward into integral health before knowing what it truly was.  I have several weeks now to focus on my own development. I have a better idea of what to work on and what will be most beneficial for myself. I also have the start of my own “health team” that I can draw on for support and knowledge. Using the resources from within our books and class materials I should not find myself stuck/no longer progressing towards health and wellness.

Bibliography

Dacher, E. M. (2006). Integral Health: The Path to Human Flourishing. Laguna Beach: Basic Health Publications, Inc.

Schlitz, A. M. (2005). Consciousness & Healing : Integral Approches to Mind- Body Medicine. St. Louis: Elsevier Churchill Livingstone.

---

Inenie menie minie moe

In this post we are to discuss which of the practices we like best and to choose two. I don't think I can. I enjoyed the subtle mind and loving kindness exercises but I also used them most because they were readily available, already recorded and ready to listen. If all the exercises (visualizations included) were pre-recorded I think it would be a bit more even to judge.
I have been exposed to the idea of meditation for a long time, even my dad tried to get me to meditate when I was 9, but kids don't want to sit still. It has taken me till now to learn the great benefits of this and hopefully I can keep my head out of my katukus long enough to make this a steady habit.

Cassy

The Wise One

Meeting the wise healing inside. I never knew she was there. I pictured an old woman with long white hair but smooth skin and a peaceful- happy face. This is no woman I have met in my life but one I have fabricated. Every time I do this meditation the woman looks a little more like me... with a tan and better vision.
It does get easier to picture and easier to meditate. At least when you don't have a family emergency like your 14 year old niece (not by blood) deciding to take 30 midol all at the same time (she made it but we still don't have many answers why).
 I believe since starting to meditate on a regular basis I am able to be a little less reactive to things as they come. I can exercise a little more control over my self and emotions. Which is good because it stopped me from buying a plain ticket back home and getting in the middle of all this mess when I have not control over any of it.... Baby steps..
As for "one cannot lead another where one has not gone himself" I find it pretty cut and dry. If we do not live and lead the path of great health and better living than who will want to listen to us talk about it? I know my niece probably doesn't want to talk to many people right now but you know what I did go through some of the same experiences she is now. I wanted to die when I was younger but made a pact with my twin to never put the other through that again after our mom killed herself.
If we do not know what is down that path/road than how can we give advice to those taking it?

Cassy

Unit 6

Man Oh Mighty this week has been tough. Every time I try to settle and do homework I started falling asleep. I think it has something to do with me being sick or whatever. Anyway these exercises (sitting and relaxing) were just about the only things I could do. As far as figuring out where I need my personal aspects of growth that one is tough to decipher. Right now I am working on personal boundaries in order to give me a better seance of  self and grounding. That and to give loving kindness to myself more because normally I give it away to everyone else in order to feel like some validation for myself.
It's a slow business taking care of your self emotionally and mentally. I am glad I am in this class to get the tools I need to do so!

Subtle Mind Practices

Ya know I prefer the loving kindness exercise so far hands down. My attempts to calm and quiet the mind seem in a word..hopeless. I have little success and I know that's to be expected but it seems the harder I try to only focus on my breathing the more images come rushing up.... then I notice that everything seems relaxed and my mind is "clear" then it starts moving around again.....uuggghh!!! 
With the loving kindness exercise I at least got the warm fuzzy feelings and felt more relaxed afterward. Maybe I need to do them one right after the other!
Since attempting to do meditation starting with this class (and yoga and counseling) I have found that at times I do not get as stressed as normal. 
The other day I was the only one in the office and opening it for a co-worker. The front desk staff and this other co-worker keep a key somewhere withing the office/desk area for the actual office. Well no one had told me they put the key in a new place. So I'm sitting there scratching my head thinking where this little key could have gone. I got stress/agitated only a little bit and not for very long at all.I kept my cool and hacked into the main office computer to get the phone numbers of the receptionist and asked where they moved the key (because my boss was not answering). I stayed pretty much as cool as a cucumber and felt like the office hero fro the rest of the day.
On the other hand some days just small things will set me off. (Typically it has to deal with my family or close friends). I think I may have a real problem here or possibly some sort of emotional disorder.

Cassy

Loving Kindness and meditation

I found this to be enlightening. It was difficult for me to keep my mind clear during long pauses without taking quit a bit of effort on focusing on what was last said in the recording. Visualizations helped during the actual exercise (breathing in bad breathing out good). I have been rather successful at using that particular thought and visualization more and more.  
As I breath in I sort of chant -with loving kindness- and think of myself and others. I can actually tell a difference in how I feel when I connect and direct this to myself it's kind of crazy. I would say repeating this meditation is a decent mental work out. It forces me to think about my own body and thoughts and prompts to -let it be- or -let it go- the whole letting go thing I need to work on but I bet I will be able to tell a difference with mental clarity (or at least I hope so fingers crossed).

Cassy

Unit 3 Blogging

1. Based on your reflections, and on a scale of 1 to 10 (ten being optimal well-being), where do you rate your A-physical well-being, B-spiritual well-being, C-psychological well-being? Why?

A-    I would rate my physical well-being as a 7. I am not in peak physical condition but I am working up to it.   

B-    I would rate my spiritual well-being as a 3. I am not religious by any means. I am currently working on trying to remedy this.

C-    I would rate my psychological well-being as a 5. Again this is something I am trying to work on and maybe will get better at.

2. Develop a goal for yourself in each area (physical, spiritual, psychological).

My goals are simple, to get all of these well-beings closer to 10, to get them in balance with each other and to keep them higher and in balance.

3. What activities or exercise can you implement in your life to assist in moving toward each goal?

With the physical stuff that is simple, continue to do more physical activity and I will become more physically fit (as long as I can avoid getting hurt any more).

With spiritual I will be conducting a study of different spiritual aspects and religions in order to find what is best suited for me.

With psychological I have already started counseling and relaxation exercises. Some are more helpful than others but with all things it takes time. Time for it to work , for me to believe it will work and to develop it into a habit.

4. Complete the relaxation exercise The Crime of the Century. To hear this exercise, click here. Describe your experience. (What it beneficial? Frustrating? etc.)

I really found this meditation to be inspiring (I’m currently about to embark in a craft project for a friend and I think adding colored jewels for the chakras will be a nice touch! It was a nice meditation to listen to and gave some good visualization in order to help. I liked it.

Unit 2

Ah rest and relaxation. I love guided meditations. I think I need a specific cd or player next to my bed with at least an hour a track of guided meditation and/or gentle music.

CKraft

Unit One

Ta Da! Mission accomplished. I have successfully created a blog.... I think. Now if I can just remember that damn url?!
Let me know if I should include more reactions  down below. I want to make this fun!