Final Project

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?

            It is important for health and wellness professionals to develop these areas to help them to be able to listen with a clear mind and heart in order to fully connect with an individual. For me I am always seeking to further develop myself spiritually. There are so many negative stereotypes about being African American and Muslim it is a struggle sometimes to stay positive and to not get sucked into all the negativity.

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

            I have assessed my health in each domain by the shear fact that I haven’t lost it on some of the dumb, inconsiderate people I come across. Laugh all you want but that’s a HUGE milestone! I think that my development in these areas have helped me to become a more patient and empathetic person as well as being less judgmental and more open minded. However, since I feel like I am still a work in progress on a scale of 1-10 (1 being nonexistent and 10-being a Zen master/saint with a six pack) I would score my Spirituality as an even 5, physical a seven (I do have an awesome 4-pack) and psychologically I would say I am a 4 because I still suffer from migraines due to anxiety induced insomnia.

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

            Physical- continue to train to make the 2020 Olympic Roller Derby team (Oh Yes! My friends-it’s a real thing)

            Psychological (mental health) - to get my anxiety and therefore my insomnia under control without the use of SSRIs

            Spiritual- to continue to be a positive spiritual role model for my family and friends (maybe all this awesomeness will eventually rub off on people in a pay it forward kind of way)

What strategies can you implement to foster growth in each of the following domains?

Physical, Psychological, and Spiritual: Training and playing derby honestly helps me in all three areas. It allows me to be physical in a world where it is often frowned upon when it comes to women. It’s become my place of Zen where I can let out all my aggressions and frustrations in a controlled environment. Also as much as I hate to admit it meditation has also helped me too psychologically and spiritually as well. At first I thought that taking the time to practice certain exercises like loving kindness or the subtle mind would be a huge pain but they’ve actually helped me to stay centered and clear minded.

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?

            Physically I am constantly assessing myself but I think the real test will be if I can get my migraines under control and I am really committed to using some of the lessons learned in this class to continue to keep myself centered. I also plan to continue to educate myself whether it’s in or out of class to continue to develop myself spiritually and psychologically. The mind is a muscle and it must be regularly exercised to keep it sharp!