There are several areas or dimensions in your life which incorporate your health and wellness. You can probably name a few right off the bat: physical and emotional.  When you look at all you do and how how each area is addressed, many of us are lacking in one or more areas. Having a balance is key. Just like everything else, we need to maintain balance.

The dimensions as identified by World Health Organization

1. Physical:  the process of making choices to create flexible, cardiovasculary fit, energetic, strong bodies
2. Intellectual:  the process of using our minds to create a greater understanding and appreciation of the universe and ourselves
3. Emotional:  the process accepting our worth, creating, recognizing and expressing our feelings and talking to ourselves in healthy way.
4. Spiritual: the process of discovering meaning and purpose in life and demonstrating values through behaviors.
5. Social:  the process of creating and maintaining healthy relationships through the choices we make.
6. Occupational: the process of making and maintaining choices related to work which include choosing a job for which we are well-suited, well-trained, and from which we gain satisfaction.
7. Environmental: the process of making choices which will contribute to the sustaining or improving the quality of life in the universe.

Each of these areas should be addressed daily. The physical can be easy, sleeping at least 7 hours a night, eating healthy, and exercising. Notice how each dimensions includes healthy choices. We can easily address each area with unhealthy choices or ignore it completely. That would make you out of balance. Which could lead you to feeling like you are missing something. Everyone feels differently when they are out of balance. Some people become depressed or ill and then all areas suffer. Often when people are suffering in one dimension, it seeps into the others.

Now, what happens when you are out of balance? How do the others areas suffer when you are sick, stressed, tired, hungry, feeling worthless or overwhelmed?

TRY THIS:

Look at each dimension. Write down what you do to address each area in a healthy way.

Example:   Physical: sleep 7 hours, eat vegetables daily, walk for 30 minutes 2 times week

Spiritual: attend church, volunteer, treat people kindly

Emotional: talk with friend and sister at least 3 times a week. Talk to husband about concerns

Then, write down ways you might be unhealthy in each area.

Example:   Physical: eat fast food everyday

Emotional: lock myself in room when angry or sad, refuse to interact

How might you change some of those unhealthy patterns to healthy ones?Are any of your dimensions out of whack? Do you spend more time in one area than any other? Are you suffering? How can you balance out your dimensions so that each area is addressed daily?