We like to do what we’re good at: It’s comfortable; it gives us confidence. But it also means we tend to neglect areas we need to improve.
And when we think of wellness, we usually focus on physical health: diet and exercise. But wellness is broader than that. It encompasses how we feel with ourselves and our surroundings--being sound in mind, body, and spirit.
To take stock of where we put our attention to lead well balanced lives–for ourselves and the people around us–the Wellness Wheel helps assess where we direct our energy to help identify areas we neglect and need to improve.
Rochester Regional Health has created a committee focused on well-being dimensions that are a streamlined version of the Wellness Wheel, explains Rochester Regional Health Executive Medical Director Behavioral Health Dr. Mary Marrocco.
“It includes Work, Mental, Financial, Physical, Emotional and Community dimensions. Both the Wellness Wheel and our Well-being Dimensions acknowledge the need to expand beyond the historical focus of physical health and programs, to recognizing that well-being is a cultural imperative, which is multidimensional and focuses on the whole person and how they interact with their environment.”
The Wellness Wheel shows people the various dimensions of well-being in a usable picture, explains Rochester Regional Health Director of Outpatient Adult Mental Health Services Sara Hopkins. “The image highlights the breadth of the aspects of wellness, and the balance among the differing areas," Sara says. "People can evaluate their own needs and successes in each area and make determinations of where they want to put more of their energy. It helps guide and inform us, as well as promote overall health and equanimity.“
"...wellbeing is a cultural imperative which is multidimensional..."
--Rochester Regional Health Executive Medical Director Behavioral Health Dr. Mary Marrocco