Unit 4: The Mind-Body-Spirit ParadigmDescribe your experience.

1.  Did you find it beneficial? Difficult? Why or why not? Would you recommend this to others? Why or why not?   I did not find this exercise to be difficult and not sure if it was beneficial. Part of the exercise says to breathe in the suffering of strangers.  When I think of this instruction  I think of John Coffey.  He would say " I took it away Boss" meaning, he took away whatever sickness was inflicting the people he wanted to help.  Once to sucked out a terminal cancer, which in turn left him sick because he did not breath it all out.  So because of this image in my head I could not enjoy this assignment.  I must admit that the calming sounds of the ocean took me back to the days when i'd lay out on the beach and just relax. While I did not enjoy the second part of the assignment, I liked what was said in the beginning " We Get Back What We Give".  This may not be true in all instances but for the most part when you love a person they love you back at some point.  When I was allowing the loving feelings to enter my body I was thinking of my 2 sons and I could not help but to smile.  I was calm and at piece and I realized that being a mom is the best feeling in the world. That is an unconditional love that I treasure. 
2. What is the concept of "mental workout"? What does the research indicate are the proven benefits of a mental workout? How can you implement mental workouts to foster your psychological health?  The concept of mental workout is to work out ones brain.  The brain is said to need exercise just like the human body.  These workouts have been proven to have lasting affects on memory, clarity, and problem solving.  Right now I am in the process of studying different supplements to help support brain function as I am very forgetful at times.  So by implementing a daily regimen I can hopefully foster good psychological health.  

Unit 3  HW420  The Mind Body Connection 

1. At this point in my life,  I have alot going on so I am not balanced and I know this.  I can feel my unbalanced nature in everything I do.  My reflections on this leads me to give myself a 6 in physical well-being. My Spiritual well-being is less than average so I give myself a 3 and my psychological well-being I give myself a 6 which is a little better than average.  I give myself these numbers because I am about to go through a life style change that could affect my life as I have known it for the last 10 years. 

2. A goal for my physical well-being is to lose 40 pounds.  I am not happy when I am over weight so this goal is a must for me.  I have to lead by example so I refuse to be an overweight Nutritionist/ Dietician.  A goal for my spiritual well-being is to start going back to church and letting all the joys of religion into my life.  Also meditating and taking time for myself and just relaxing is my goal.  Stressing makes you look old and I am not trying to look like a prune b4 I am 40. =)   A psychological goal is to understand that everything happens for a reason and everything has a purpose.  While I might not know what they are at the time i must believe in this in order to not drive myself crazy with the "what if's". 

3. Activities or exercises I can implement in my life to assist me in moving forward with each goal I listed above are as follows:

*  Running which will help my physical well-being as well as my psychological well-being be relieving stress. 

* Exercising

* Meditation/Yoga

* Changing my Eating Habits

* Attending Church

The relaxation exercise was very calming to me.  Maybe it was the man's voice because it's the same voice as in the last exercise. This time I did not fall asleep because I was not laying in my bed. Visualizing different colors and then object with these colors helps me to relax and lessen the thoughts in my head.  Sometimes at the end of the day my mind is still racing thinking about all the things I must accomplish the day after. 

The Journey on Relaxation exercise was great.  At first I was like WTH is this and then it reminded me of Pilates class.  So, I went to my room, closed the door and got comfortable.  The recording was 15 minutes long and to be honest I have no idea when I fell asleep. Maybe after 7 minutes.  I was so relaxed that I fell into a deep sleep. I think I woks up when I heard my son yelling.   I have told myself time and time again that I need to meditate and do some other relaxation techniques.  I really enjoyed how relaxed I was because it was like I had no cares in the world.  I will be looking for good relaxation cd's and play these at night before bed.  I don't sleep well b/c my mind is not clear and i'm always thinking.  Great exercise. Thank You.

Hello Everyone and welcome to my page.  I am not a "Blogger" so this is all new to me.  I really cannot say that I am as enthusiastic as some of you about this blog.  As if we don't have enough work to do they add in a"Blog". Really?  I mean the exercises are 4 to 5 questions and they have about 3 questions per question (if that makes sense).  Sometimes I think whoever makes up these assignments forgets that we have other classes and other assignments to do each week. Well, I guess I better buckle down and get to work and stop complaining. =)  Well, good luck too you all and I wish you all the best with blogging.  TTY soon.

"Your body is the baggage you must carry through life.  The more excess the baggage, the shorter the trip. ~ Arnold H. Glasgow

Creating Wellness begins from the inside out. We must take care of ourselves mentally, physically, and emotionally.