Essential Aspects of Wellness-Centered Healthcare:
Self-care plays a crucial role in wellness-centered healthcare.
Individuals must take ownership of their own health and wellness.
Having an understanding of one's holistic self that includes your physical, emotional, mental, social and spiritual wellness is paramount.
Moira Lawler explains: “Let’s clear up one common misconception from the get-go: Self-care is not synonymous with self-indulgence or being selfish. Self-care means taking care of yourself so that you can be healthy, you can be well, you can do your job, you can help and care for others, and you can do all the things you need to and want to accomplish in a day.”
It is essential to prioritize self-care for maintaining good health because no one else can fulfill the responsibility of looking after ourselves if we neglect it. Remember, it is your own duty to keep yourself healthy, not your doctor, psychologist or therapist. Living in a paternalistic society has led us to mistakenly believe that we can rely on healthcare professionals like physicians or counselors to take care of us. However, the reality is that they lack the resources, availability, and time to fully manage our well-being, resulting in a rise of lifestyle-related physical and mental illnesses.
Self-care is defined by the World Health Organization as: “the ability of individuals, families, and communities to promote health, prevent disease, maintain health, and cope with illness and disability with or without the support of a health worker.”
This holistic approach to maintaining physical health involves a comprehensive focus on various facets that contribute to overall well-being. Firstly, cleanliness plays a crucial role in preventing illnesses and promoting good health. Regular hygiene practices, such as washing hands frequently and keeping living spaces clean, are essential in reducing the risk of infections and diseases.
Secondly, diet is a cornerstone of physical health. Consuming a balanced and nutritious diet rich in vitamins, minerals, and other essential nutrients is vital for supporting bodily functions, boosting immunity, and preventing chronic conditions. A diet that includes a variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats can significantly impact overall health and well-being.
Moreover, accessing medical assistance when necessary is paramount in maintaining physical health. Regular check-ups with healthcare providers, timely screenings, and seeking medical attention when experiencing symptoms or health concerns are vital for early detection and treatment of potential health issues. Additionally, following prescribed treatment plans and medication regimens as advised by healthcare professionals is crucial for managing existing health conditions and preventing complications.
Furthermore, addressing stressors in life is a key component of maintaining physical health. Chronic stress can have detrimental effects on the body, impacting immune function, cardiovascular health, and mental well-being. Engaging in stress-reducing activities such as exercise, mindfulness practices, hobbies, and social connections can help mitigate the negative impact of stress on overall health.
In essence, prioritizing physical health involves a multifaceted approach that encompasses various aspects such as cleanliness, diet, accessing medical assistance, and stress management. By adopting healthy habits and proactive measures, individuals can optimize their physical well-being and enhance their quality of life.
The Wellness Approach
Looking at health through a wellness lens involves considering it as a favorable state that includes mental, social, and physical well-being. As a result, health is defined by a condition in which a person's mind, emotions, and body are in harmony, and ultimately, this awareness has a significant impact on the individual.
It is essential to prioritize and nurture our quality of life and well-being through practices such as self-care, mindfulness, healthy relationships, regular physical activity, and pursuing activities that bring joy and fulfillment. By focusing on enhancing our quality of life, we can cultivate a sense of wholeness and resilience that goes beyond the limited and temporary fixes offered by pharmaceutical interventions.
The Role & Function of the Wellness Counsellor: Finding Balance & Harmony
When it comes to finding that ever elusive and intricate balance of Quality of Life & Well-being that encompasses all the facets of your life, including physical health, mental well-being, social relationships, personal fulfillment, and overall happiness; we may all need some support and guidance on our quest to experience overall satisfaction and contentment in our daily life.
Harmony is lost when we mourn without joy, cry without laughter, choose to be alone without socializing, go with the flow without making choices, and work without play. The balance between opposites is essential for our well-being. Vitality counteracts fatigue, remembrance of achievements and self-confidence is balanced by our meekness and dependence on others.
Wellness is the scale that balances the opposites in our lives, allowing us to achieve harmony.
The Wellness Counsellor/Coach is a skilled healthcare professional who can assist the client in achieving an ideal, comprehensive, and harmonious condition of health and well-being in various aspects of human life. It is not associated with anything 'New Age' or negative; enhancing wellness is a beneficial and constructive approach to improving well-being in emotional, mental, physical, occupational, social, and spiritual dimensions.
Wellness-orientated lifestyle counselling involves guidance to people and training them in life skills to exist more successfully and with greater fulfilment. It may involve:
Self-acceptance, Self-discovery & Embracing your Authentic Neuro-spicy Self
Personality Screening & Profile (Jungian/ MBTI)
Healing & Recovery from Emotional Wounding or unresolved trauma
Life Skills, Coping Skills & Stress Management
Dealing with mild Health Challenges
Interpersonal Relationships & Conflict Resolution
Job satisfaction & Career Guidance
Developing & Implementing Self-Care Strategies & Healthy Habits
Neuro-affirming Accommodations & Self-advocacy
The counsellor facilitates self-care and works out a wellness improvement program for the client that is aligned with their specific needs. They screen, guide, monitor and coach the client in following the prescribed program. Wellness sees the human person as a bio-psycho-social system which is an integration of body, psyche and social reality. All these facets should receive simultaneous attention in wellness support. Both the body and mind possess the ability to self-heal when provided with the appropriate and beneficial conditions, which can be defined as a state of well-being. In self-care, the patient is an active participant who takes self-responsibility for their own health and healing, rather than being a passive recipient.
Being a Wellness Counsellor means that I am a qualified and certified professional in the field of wellness, with the expertise to guide you on your path to achieving optimal mental and physical health through self-care. In addition to this I am also a qualified Social Worker, and Trauma-informed Art Therapies Counsellor. I am also a trained and certified Neurodiversity Life Coach. My focus is bio-psycho-social support and Wellness Counselling for neurodivergent teens and adults and their families that is neuro-affirming.
Wellness Counsellors are members of an ASCHP-registered professional organization for counsellors (ID 984). Furthermore, my designation is acknowledged on the National Qualifications Framework as a recognized profession according to the NQF Act 67 of 2008.
I am here to offer a supportive and caregiving relationship to you, to be a safe person and a safe space for you on your quest of self-care and to find your own Neuro-Spicy Wellness with Harmony, Balance, and Quality of Life.
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