Beyond Wellness: Embrace Wellbeing
I have reservations around the Wellness Sector, not because I don't appreciate its value, but due to its tendency to adopt a cult-like, uncompromising approach.
Wellness often involves pursuing holistic health mainly through routines and regimes: morning and evening rituals, skincare regimes, nutrition and exercise plans, to name a few. This in addition to all other life responsibilities. The Wellness industry can set unrealistic expectations which can result in self shaming when they are not met. What the sector forgets is that we, humans, are multifaceted and can be a contradiction in terms; searching for health and wellbeing whilst at the same time being pleasure seeking missiles.
And in all honesty, do many of these routines and regimes truly touch the surface of our fundamental issues in life? Do they address big changes we actually seek to see? Despite appearances, wellness practices often yield diminishing returns. This is due to, over time, the novelty wearing off and it becomes just another task on our todo list.
And let's say they do produce adequate results, often their sustainability can be further hindered by their restrictive nature and monotony. As Alan Watts aptly noted, “You’ll be doing things you don’t like doing in order to go on living… that is to go on doing things you don’t like doing”
In contrast, I advocate for Wellbeing which takes a holistic and balanced approach to your life. When you break it down there are five key components:
MIND - BODY - RELATIONSHIPS - CAREER/PURPOSE - MONEY
These elements collectively constitute an individual's ecosystem. Similar to plants they interact and profoundly affect each other. If you choose to water only two out of five plants, your entire ecosystem suffers. Each component plays a crucial role for it to thrive.
The challenge lies in that we often overlook and underestimate their interdependence and the fundamental role each one plays in sustaining a healthy and thriving environment.
The wellbeing ecosystem is also not dissimilar to the categories that make up Blue Zones (areas in the world where people live the longest) Right Outlook (Mind, Career/Purpose) Move & Eat Wisely (Body/Mind) and Connect (Relationships/Mind). These blue zones don’t include strict routines and regimes and although there are common denominators that link the 5 Blue Zones in the world, each place differs in their approach.
By closely examining your wellbeing ecosystem, you can gain a more focused, introspective, and analytical view of your life and the areas that need attention and focus. While it may initially seem daunting, it's actually a straightforward process. It is not rocket science and does not require a 5 step daily regime to get there. It requires you to understand which areas you are neglecting and start to focus your efforts there.
An added advantage of this approach means through consistent efforts, be that small adjustments or at times more significant changes, you develop an intuitive understanding of yourself and your life. This can include recognising the type of working environments you thrive in, intuitively understanding which foods align with your body or, through strategic lifestyle cutbacks, accumulate a substantial savings pot without too much sacrifice.
So move beyond Wellness and embrace Wellbeing.
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