MyJourney is an upcoming section in this magazine devoted to educating and guiding you towards a well-balanced life
Understanding health and wellness will let you make a plan that helps give shape to your life and journey to health and wellness.
Wellness is a common term but one that’s often misunderstood. Although many people use health and wellness interchangeably because they are related and one cannot exist without the other, they are two different concepts with distinctly different meanings. A great starting point will be to define and contrast these two terms.
The National Wellness Institute defines wellness as “an active process through which people become aware of, and make choices toward, a more successful existence”[1]. Individuals living with a wellness-centric lifestyle are continually working on all aspects of their lifestyle – including their spiritual and mental well-being in addition to other areas, such as environmental. A wellness mentality can be beneficial in leading a long and healthy life through this multifaceted and holistic approach.[1]
In contrast, the World Health Organization states that health is characterized as a state of complete mental, social, and physical well-being, not only the absence of illness or disease.[2] As we’ll discuss, health is more singular in its focus.
Let’s dig deeper for a better understanding of these terms, how they differ from the other, and how they apply to you!
Health vs Wellness
A difference between these terms is that health is often phrased as the end point of a narrow goal while wellness is an active process towards achieving a more diverse, all-encompassing goal. In health, we hope to be free from illness but, importantly, accomplish a state of health. Wellness is focused on all aspects of your life and in seeking balance, including your emotional, physical, occupational, environmental, intellectual, social, and spiritual well-being.[3]
You participate in the active process of wellness when you work to balance your life and maximize yourself in these areas. This may include participating in a neighborhood social event to enhance social wellness, enjoying intellectually stimulating games to enhance intellectual wellness, or attending religious services to enhance spiritual wellness. In addition to maximizing your wellness, all of these will have a direct impact and improve on your health – that being free of (or minimizing) illness and disease.[4] There is a synergistic quality to wellness that is quite powerful.
The state of your health may not always be in your hands. However, you can consciously choose wellness by taking the right steps for your well-being. Knowing that wellness is a diverse term, let’s begin to understand its many parts.
What Does Wellness Encompass?
The concept of wellness is broad and encompasses more than similar terms do, such as physical fitness. Wellness is a multidimensional approach that is subdivided into eight different areas, or “domains”.[5] Conceptually, this comprehensive view helps to prevent tunnel vision or taking a singular viewpoint, such as a focus on poor diet. To start a wellness journey, it’s important to learn the basics. Keep reading our next articles to learn about the eight areas of wellness!
