Creating a Wellness Plan
In the first post of this series the question was posed: Why is wellness so important for mothers? After reading about the six dimensions of wellness, what do you think?
If you need a refresher about the six dimensions, click here.
My answer to the question is this: Mothers are amazing caregivers. For everyone else. Often a mother will leave her health last and end up feeling drained and exhausted.
If you take time to care for your needs and find wellness, you can become a more effective caregiver. Happy mothers play with their kids more. Happy mothers care about healthy relationships with partners. Wellness is not a luxury. Self-care is an essential part of being an effective caregiver. YOU MATTER MAMA. If you read through the whole series, you know that wellness does not have to take a ton of time. It engaging in small activities to create balance in your life.
Create your wellness plan
Step 1: Write down the six dimensions of wellness and try to think of one activity that you currently engage in to enhance the dimension.
Example:
Physical: I walk in the evening
Emotional: I am effective at identifying feelings
Intellectual: I read a couple times per week
Spiritual: I pray with my son at night
Occupational: I enjoy working with people at my job
Social: I spend time with family on weekends
Step 2: What is your best dimension? Which could use the most improvement?
Example:
Best: I am doing really well with my emotional wellness
Needs improvement: My physical dimension needs some work (this will be your focus dimension)
Step 3: Create a SMART goal for your focus dimension
Example:
My focus dimension is physical. I walk for physical activity but my nutrition and sleep could use some improvement. I will focus on sleep.
During the first week of August, I will be in bed by 11pm, at least 4 days out of the week.
Step 4: Assess your goal at the end of the time frame you set for yourself.
Example:
I made it to bed 3 days by 11pm. I will work on this goal again next week.
Step 5: Once you feel your goal has become easier/part of your routine, choose a new goal and focus dimension.
The main idea is to be aware of the various areas of wellness and notice when one of them is lacking. When one dimension is deficient, it can affect all areas. We as humans, have the tenancy to hyper focus on certain dimensions, so others are neglected.
For example a common goal among women is to lose weight. A woman may become stuck in a cycle of dieting, exercising, and then losing all motivation. She may find that her motivation for losing the weight stays higher, and therefore have more success, if she creates a balanced wellness plan that does not focus only on the physical dimension.
Wellness for Mothers Series
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