What Is Wellness? And Is A Face Mask Self-Care? (Part I)

“Self-Care” and “Wellness” are buzz words that get a lot of attention in today's media and influencer lifestyle. But what does it all really mean? What is wellness.. And is a face mask self-care?

Wellness has several definitions in research but they all roughly come to the same conclusion. Wellness is an active process of taking actions to improve your lifestyle in several different areas. Engaging in wellness can improve both your connection with yourself (helping you feel congruent in your identity) and your behaviors that impact your daily functioning (i.e. your lifestyle).

So, is a face mask self-care? It can be! Self-care includes any act that supports our growth, personhood, or daily appreciation of ourselves. Self-care can range from taking a bubble bath to doing our taxes, however, taking care of ourselves through acts of wellness typically requires more consistent and well-rounded behavior. So… yes, please enjoy your face mask! Just remember that it takes a little bit more work to practice wellness. 

Practicing wellness has the potential to reduce or prevent stress, mental health symptoms, and burnout. Wellness can teach us better ways to deal with our stress and connect more with our authentic selves.

There are 9 areas of wellness that we can all engage in to help us have a more well-rounded lifestyles and more “whole” versions of ourselves. The 9 areas of wellness we will explore are social, physical, occupational, financial, emotional, cultural, creative, intellectual, and spiritual. You may associate wellness with the fancy, luxurious, and expensive spa in your area, but daily and accessible practices may be more likely to benefit you and your goals of self-improvement.  

Social, Emotional, Cultural, Creative, and Spiritual  (9 areas of wellness, Part 1) 

There are a multitude of ways to help improve ourselves, our lives, and our dynamic with the world around us. The 9 areas of wellness (social, physical, occupational, financial, emotional, cultural, creative, intellectual, and spiritual) provide us with a road map to determine where we may be investing too much or too little of our time and energy.

Below, I will review 5 of the 9 areas of wellness by providing a potentially new definition of each with examples of different activities or actions that support building wellness in each of the areas.

1. Social- Social wellness includes having meaningful and balanced relationships with people in your life. Social wellness doesn’t necessarily mean having large groups of people that you know or “go out” with, although, having a solid and congruent community in your life can certainly influence a strong social wellness. You may have 2 friends that you feel like you can be your true self around. This might include being honest about your experiences or being able to be truly playful with. Or, you may have many friends that you enjoy sharing interests or activities with! One of the most exciting factors related to social wellness is that you can typically engage in social wellness by also engaging in all of the other areas of wellness. Exploring the other areas of wellness may even help you find some new activities to do with friends. Some examples of social wellness may include going to dinner or the movies, going on walks with friends, looking for sharks’ teeth at the beach, cooking together, making friendly relationships at work, and so much more.
   
   
   

2. Emotional- Emotional wellness is another area of wellness that easily blends into others. Emotional wellness includes consistently and genuinely expressing, sharing, and feeling your emotions as they rise and change daily. Sharing your emotions genuinely with friends, family, or even in professional relationships can help to build more authenticity with yourself and in your relationships. Practicing emotional wellness may also help you realize when you should set more boundaries and feel more connected with your aspirations. Journaling, therapy, and strong communication or conflict resolution skills are all very supportive actions that can improve your emotional wellness. You may also be able to build their emotional wellness through cultural, creative, spiritual, intellectual and physical activities. 

3. Cultural- Cultural wellness is a unique and special area of the 9 areas of wellness. Cultural wellness includes connecting to your heritage, community, traditions, and family. The unique power of cultural wellness is that it can bring a certain zest and vitality to your life! You can grow your cultural wellness by exploring your family/ heritage and its traditions, food, and history. Cultural wellness may also include learning about the history of where you live and getting involved in the community. This may include learning about the systemic factors that affect you and the people in your neighborhood or city. Getting involved with your community, whether it’s fun community events or making a difference through local or larger politics, are both ways you can grow your cultural wellness. Cultural Wellness can help foster a deeper understanding of your identity and connect with those around you. Engaging in cultural wellness can easily influence your social, emotional, and intellectual wellness.

4. Creative- Creative wellness includes engaging in activities and practices that include innovation, building, art, intention, and self expression. When we think about creativity, we might think that we have to be blessed with artistic talent. But creative endeavors are not limited  by drawing, painting, sculpting, and graphic design. We can get creative through cooking, baking, woodworking, makeup, building with blocks or legos, dancing, or through electronic platforms like minecraft (creating your whole world). If you are a lover of the arts, I hope you can practice your creations with compassion to yourself and expression of your ideas. For those of us who are not naturally gifted, putting pencil or a brush to the paper while freeing ourselves of expectations for how it turns out can be liberating, therapeutic, and definitely in support of our creative wellness.

5. Spiritual- Spiritual wellness is one of the 9 areas of wellness likely to elicit strong connotations. However, spiritual wellness can be practiced through endless ways. Spiritual wellness includes self reflection of, and connection to, our values and beliefs. It also includes the practice of mindfulness and acceptance. One can practice spiritual wellness by being in nature, meditating, going to or being a part of a church or religious group, having quiet time to engage in a mindful activity. You can grow your spiritual wellness by engaging mindfully through gardening, journaling, creating, or walking outside. You can practice spiritual wellness in any way that feels sacred to you.

Continue to Part 2 to learn more about Wellness with Dr. Etta Gantt

If you live in South Carolina and are interested in mental health counseling, you can schedule a 20min free consultation by following the link below!