Welcoming Wellness Wednesdays!

What is wellbeing?

Funny story… I was talking with a colleague and sharing ideas on the Journey into Wellbeing show.  I had been going on and on, talking about the website, what pages should be on itand blah, blah, blah.  Keep in mind, she’d been patiently listening to me blab about this for almost two years.

At one point in the conversation, she looked at me and asked…”Have you taken the time to define Wellbeing as it means to you?”

I looked at her with one of those ‘Deer in the headlight’ stares and said, “Uh, I haven’t really done that yet.”

She smiled and said, “Well if your show has that word in the title, it might be a good place to start”.

It was one of those “Ah ha“ and “Duh” moments.  Not the first, and definitely not the last, I’ll ever have.

Check out a sneak peek from Debra K.

You would think that someone who had been planning an endeavor with that title for a couple years would have a good grasp on what wellbeing means.  Honestly, I had a vague concept of what it meant to me, but hadn’t really thought it through.  Not being one to waste time, I eagerly started the defining process and, boy, did it get complicated! In short, there were lots of charts, diagrams and boxes as I heroically attempted to cram every  aspect of health and wellness into a nice and tidy diagram.  The result: a big fat mess consisting of too many lists and options.  Oh, and now there was guilt because I wasn’t doing a lot of the things listed. Feeling guilty is not a great way to start.

Thinking it would help to reach out to others, I started asking friends and family if they could help me find an answer.  They started suggesting things I hadn’t even thought about.  How in the world was I going to add more to my already big fat mess?  In frustration, I carved out some quiet time.  As I stared at my poster boards full of things to do, it sunk in that to get a complete list I would have to interview all 7 billion people on the planet.  In glancing at my calendar, I realized it would take the rest of my life and that most likely I wouldn’t experience a sense of wellbeing during the process.  It was then I realized that what was appearing on my poster board were only attributes of wellbeing, not what it is.  Another “Ah-ha” and “Duh” moment.

After all that work the answer crystalized for me; in reality it was quite simple.  

Wellbeing isn’t a specific recipe with only so much of certain ingredients, it’s a feeling. It is a combination of experiencing self-love and acceptance.  It is about experiencing a sense of peace with your own unique place in the world. It is reaching the highest potential you can within your special circumstance.

Wellbeing doesn’t mean life is easy, but it does bring with it a belief in self that you are where you are supposed to be.  You hold a sense of comfortableness even as this crazy life takes you up to the stars or crashing to the Earth.  It is trusting all is unfolding as it should.

I realize we are all different and what brings us peace and joy will look different for every person.  It is accepting who we are, living as authentically as we can and approaching life with a sense of ownership and self-care.  I firmly believe, and am learning, that the more I love and honor myself, the more I can offer the world.  To get to this place we will find ourselves in many situations and we make choices that either bring us closer or move us away.  I believe we will be given as many chances as we require to find a place of wellbeing within ourselves.

Here are some basics to consider as you begin mapping the path to your own wellbeing.

• Well Body – What are we doing to honor and keep our body healthy?  Movement, nutrition, health care, wellness checks, self-care, sexuality
• Well Mind – Are we doing things that keep our brain stimulated?  Reading, art, conversation, meditation, education
• Well Heart – What makes our heart fill with joy?  A lover, children, pets, community, giving, family
• Well Soul – Do we have faith in something?  Higher purpose, a higher power, a belief system that brings joy, service to others

Leave a note in the comments and let us know what topics you would love to see covered here on Wellness Wednesdays.

By Debra K.
As the host of The Journey into Wellbeing, a television series currently airing on PBS, Debra K. visits new places to uncover the secrets to living a high-energy, vibrant life. For more from Debra, visit her at www.journeyintowellbeing.com or follow her on Twitter @DebrasJourney and on Facebook at The Journey into Wellbeing with Debra K.