What is health and wellness? Seems like an obvious question, but why does it delude us so much.
Let's define it.
In the dictionary in my mind, both "health" and "wellness" mean the same thing. Without looking in the published dictionary, I'd say being and feeling healthy and having wellness is our normal state of being and anything that disposes it we call a disease.
Our normal state of being is feeling good, feeling robust, feeling strong, feeling happy, loving and feeling loved. In our normal state of good health, we are enjoying life, enjoying the environment we are in – both indoor and outdoor.
We can speak of
– a healthy body,
– a healthy environment,
– a healthy relationship,
– a healthy income,
And so on, And when all of these things are sustained over time, they are "wellness"
– personal wellness,
– physical wellness,
– financial wellness,
– environmental wellness.
And more. So the answer to what is health and wellness, can be found in analyzing what it is not. It's tempting to just define it that way, but it is more than just the absence of disease, It is being fully alive to the best of what our bodies, our minds, our spirits, and our environment has to offer us.
The technology that we live with in this Century allows us to live better than any king or queen has ever lived – ever. And yet we still have disease, obesity, virus caused illnesses, bacteria caused illnesses, and lots and lots of unexplained diseases. What is it about health and wellness that it is so elusive?
The real problem is lack of interest. Life is competitive. We live in ever denser cities. We work through most of the best part of each day. During that time our minds are focused on the tasks at hand, when we are not at work, we want to enjoy life, relax, unwind, rest our brains from thinking about our work responsibilities. In this light it is easy to see why we are easy prey for the processed food industry.
Too often, however, the nutrients in the food that nourish us and give us health and wellness are processed out of the food.
In addition, industry produces toxic chemicals which can compromise our health and our overall wellness.
Stress too is a major factor in the state of our health and wellness.
Personal physical wellness, financial wellness, environmental wellness must be considered in today's world because they are all facets of the same thing. We must focus on our own health and strive for a healthy world in all it's faces.
