We like to do what we’re good at: It’s comfortable. But it also means we tend to neglect areas we need to improve.
To take stock of where we put our attention to lead well balanced lives–for ourselves and the people around us–the Wellness Wheel allows us to assess where we direct our energy to help identify areas we neglect and need to improve.
Rochester Regional Health 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 allows people to see 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. People can evaluate their own needs and successes in each area and make determinations of where they want to put more of their energy.“
Crystal Foster, owner and clinical director at Groundwork Counseling in Rochester says it can be difficult to conceptualize balance.
As a therapist, wife and mother, she balances the demands of work and home life by thinking about harmony instead. “Different parts of your life are going to demand different things from you at different times,” she says, giving the example of her son. “There are times when my son is going to need me to be really present and focusing on his needs, such as during his baseball season. I make sure that I don’t take on extra work projects such as starting a new program, until the season is over when I have more time to dedicate.”
Younger women tend to question how much to focus on their career and how much to plan for a family. For women with families in their late 30s and 40s, she says, they often struggle to keep from losing themselves. With those patients, she says, “We work on remembering to prioritize things that are meaningful, on relationships, and making the time for activities that they enjoy.”
Women need to tune into themselves to feel when they have pushed themselves too far. Just because women are resilient, does not mean they should constantly push themselves to their limits. Setting boundaries starts with knowing when women feel like they are pushed beyond what is comfortable. “This is important because if you don't know where you stand, then how do you know where to draw that line?
For herself, Foster says being more intentional and mindful with eating habits has been a game changer, physically and mentally.
She tells women to remember the moment they’re in instead of getting ahead of themselves and feel gratitude for all they have accomplished instead of constantly looking ahead.
It comes down to understanding the same compassion that you applied to other people also needs to extend to yourself.