There is no species that is more organized than the human race. Yet we have managed to condition ourselves to high levels of stress throughout our lives. We grow up with education based stress, financial stress, social stress and emotional stress. But we rarely pause and ask ourselves: Am I Well?
What Wellbeing is
Wellbeing is often loosely described as a state of physical and emotional harmony. It is important to define a person's state of wellbeing as positive and negative, as it helps them evaluate the quality of their lives. But this general definition has many layers.
Negative wellbeing is with reference to a person who has been influenced by external problems and is physically unwell, emotionally distressed and socially unresponsive. This could either result in an agitated, anxious state of mind, or a dull, unmotivated individual. Positive wellbeing, on the other hand, refers to a physically and mentally fit individual. They may be enthusiastic, involved members of society or calm, relaxed and equally efficient.
What one must note is that a person with a positive wellbeing state faces the same problems as the person with a negative wellbeing state. What is the difference then?
The key to positive wellbeing is to understand that physical and mental fitness are interrelated. You cannot be fit in one case without being fit in the other.
But how does one prevent oneself from succumbing to the stress levels of their surroundings? We rarely make time in our lives to keep fit. We helplessly crouch under the pressure of working for a living, keeping our family safe and emotionally satisfied, and fulfilling our social duties. We cannot get rid of the problems themselves. But what we can do is rearrange our physical and mental conditioning to stress and create a state where we can easily avert the stress!
The Path to Positive Wellbeing
What methods can we adopt to improve our overall wellbeing? Technology can help to some extent, if used correctly. It will help you connect to a large array of counsellors- the Network of Empathy. But Technology and other such artificial tools can only help you acknowledge your problems.
Doctors and Company professionals are also a major help, but they often choose to only treat either your physical ailments or your emotional ailments- you will rarely find an expert who will help you attain overall wellbeing.
There is one school of thought that strives to help you balance both physical and emotional wellbeing- Holistic Healing.
The Holistic Take on Wellbeing
Holistic healing is deeply involved with positive wellbeing. It believes that physical, mental and social harmony is necessary for a healthy life. It also believes that there are many ways to achieve this, and a person is free to choose the method that suits his interests best.
Yoga, for example, is an exceptional branch of holistic thought. It is popularly associated with mere postures and positions- but the very psychology behind yoga is obtained only through years of training and expertise.
Yoga believes that for an individual to be truly well, he must engage in physical and mental exercises to attain balance, stability and perfect clarity of thought. A practitioner of yoga will often display the "calm" type of positive wellbeing. This is naturally the most sustainable form of wellbeing.
Rome Was not Built in a Day
There are many branches of the holistic path for one to explore. In order to pursue positive wellbeing, it is important to persevere in a chosen path with patience, faith, and will. Human spirit is the best healer but it is also vulnerable to negativity.
We all possess the will to acknowledge our internal and external stress and deal with it. Wellbeing first starts with a ray of hope.
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