Unit 7 Blog Post

1.                Complete the Meeting Aesclepius mp3 (located in the Doc Sharing area). Describe your meditative practices for the week and discuss the experience. Explain how mindfulness or meditation has fostered an increase in your psychological or spiritual wellness. How can you continue to apply these practices in your life to foster greater health and wellness?

2.                Describe the saying: "One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself" (p.477). How does this apply to the health and wellness professional? Do you have an obligation to your clients to be developing your health psychologically, physically, and spiritually? Why or why not? How can you implement psychological and spiritual growth in your personal life?

QUESTION 1

I realize that I need to do a “dry run listen” on any guided meditation. I get caught up in how long it’s going to be or what’s going to be said which takes away my ability to concentrate and focus on what’s actually being said. Despite my inability to concentrate and focus initially, I enjoyed this practice the most (so far) mostly because it was different from the others. It asked me to imagine someone else besides myself. I found myself more at peace with this practice. It helped me be more aware of my breathing and I found myself breathing deeper than I have in a long time. I give credit to the practice taking my mind off of myself and placing my thoughts, heart and speech with a person whom I love and respect. I also believed that I was in complete and perfect health during this practice. I have to be willing to commit to a daily practice to foster greater health and wellness. With each practice, the outcomes have been favorable in all three aspects of my being: mind, body and spirit. I was more at peace; I could breath deeper; I felt more relaxed and felt compassion for people that I normally wouldn’t have (like my co-workers).

QUESTION 2

"One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself.” This saying means that a person who hasn’t experienced or done something can effectively lead them to experience or do it. For example, if I want people to work on their integral health, I have to walk the talk and do the things to achieve integral health. Otherwise, a person might say to me “what do you know about it?” And an opportunity to be the change I want to see (Mahatma Gandhi) is lost.

Health care professionals need to be transparent to their patients/clients in order to be the most effective. I wouldn’t trust the care of my lung doctor, if she smoked cigarettes, my pulmonary rehabilitation specialist if he did not exercise or my nutritionist if she was overweight.

I believe I have an obligation to my clients to develop my health psychologically, physically, and spiritually for two reasons. A) If I believe we’re all connected, then I’m not doing my part to keep the collective consciousness whole, perfect and complete. B) I want my clients to see me ‘walk the talk’ as stated above so that they can see that I believe and practice what I want them to. If I achieve optimum health, then they can too.

Christine W.