Explore barriers to wellbeing, holistically. Simple, achievable, sustainable steps to improve your health and happiness.
Adapted to support your individual needs and desired therapeutic outcome, we’ll explore your psychological wellbeing, nutritional health, exercise regime, sleep, relationships and professional satisfaction. Let’s work through the barriers to your health and happiness, together.
With a focus on enhancing your health and wellbeing, our integrative approach is underpinned by evidence based practices. Working through manageable, achievable and sustainable steps will see you taking footsteps on the path to thriving instead of just surviving.
The six elements of wellbeing and happiness
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Professional
Work/profession/career satisfaction and fulfillment
High levels of work satisfaction and fulfillment can contribute to your health. Satisfaction can be achieved through having confidence in your work, role clarity, work life balance, training as well as feeling appreciated, respected and supported by your manager and peers. Working for an organisation that aligns with your personal values, skills and strengths also enhances your feels of engagement and fulfilment. This helps you cope with the demands of your job and protects you against stress and burnout.
Psychological
How you feel and why you feel the way you do
There are a few aspects to consider. Your temperament - levels of optimism, gratitude and resilience. Your childhood living environment - how nurturing, stable and loving it is or was. Relationships with your parents/caregivers, siblings and peers. Various chapters in your life are important as well - education, career/employment, intimate relationships, peers and social connections.
Nutritional
This isn’t just about food, but the products you use too
Consider what you’re eating and what products you’re using in your home and on your skin. Let’s start with food. You are what you eat. Whole food eating is a great start. What’s whole food? Foods that have no or very little interaction with, humans and technology. Sounds purist, but the smaller number of people that have handled the food you buy (processing, preserving, packaging, storing) the better the quality. Bonus, it’s better for the environment too. Spend more of your time in the fruit and vegetable section and less time in the aisles. Brands invest significantly in marketing agencies to emotionally manipulate you into buying their generally unhealthy, processed foods. Now to products you’re using. Good gut health is essential for wellbeing. Emotional stress, anxiety or depression can activate your sympathetic nervous system (the primitive adrenal survival response of flight, fright or freeze). This reduces digestive function and compromises gut health even if you consume the healthiest foods. So, to ensure that digestive function isn’t hindered further, consider what you’re using. Chemicals can be ingested when breathing and absorbed through our skin, our largest organ and our first line of defence. It gets bombarded with cleaning products, skin creams, make-up and various other chemicals. Try switching to natural skin care, mineral make-up and chemical free cleaning products.
Physical
This includes your structural health and how much you move your body
Posture, ergonomics and how much you move your body each day can play an important role in your physical health. For example, sitting at a desk all day or living a sedentary lifestyle can pose significant health risks. Exercise is more than attending a fitness class. It needs to include movement that is supportive and adaptive to your unique and evolving needs. Research is starting to support the idea that being active throughout each day is essential, not just a few blocks per week. The health benefits of exercising are immense. Exercise releases endorphins, relieving depression, stress, anxiety and muscle tension.
If we think holistically, then the best exercises are ones that support links between physical movement and emotional/psychological wellbeing. Such as yoga, tai chi and martial arts.
Spiritual
For some this isn’t an integral part of their wellbeing, for others it’s fundamental
Having a spiritual or religious belief can create a great sense of comfort and assurance. You may feel comforted by a regular practice. It can also have strong connective power that brings people together on a regular basis. Offering a sense of commonality. Something to share, discuss, guide and feel part of. Many people turn to this support when they are feeling sad or alone. Spirituality is an individual choice and with respect, we believe each person is entitled to make their own decisions around their religious or spiritual beliefs. For some people it isn’t an integral part of their wellbeing, for others its fundamental.
Social Engagement
Social Engagement, connectedness and feelings of belongingness is important for wellbeing.
Whether you are an introverted or an extroverted person, having strong social connections or feeling part of something outside of your own company has great benefits for your health. Contributing something to your community, work place or people in need can help you feel more socially connected and accepted. It can increase your levels of self-worth, self-esteem and strengthen your identity and make you feel like you belong, are supported and less alone.