Week 8 Discussion PDF

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Week 8 Discussion In this final discussion, look back on your experiences in the course and provide an overview of what you have learned from the course with regard to health and wellness. You can start by reviewing your final projects and your answers to the Module One discussion. In your initial post, address the following questions: 

How have your definitions of wellness changed?

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How do the four lenses approach the study of wellness with respect to the individual and society?

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How do the four lenses represent a way of seeing wellness?

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What are the implications of wellness on the future?

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How are you going to implement what you have learned in this course into your own life?

Answer: As with any course, I am always blown away by how quick 8 weeks comes and goes! Reflecting back to the Module One discussion, I, in my own terms, defined wellness as taking necessary actions to ensure on is healthy – both physically and mentally. I have learned throughout this course, while my first definition, is true, wellness means much more and incorporates many different areas than just physical and mental aspects. Wellness in brief, is the state of ones’ overall health or wellbeing, which can be determined by focusing on the eight dimensions (i.e. emotional, environmental, financial, intellectual, occupational, physical, social, and spiritual). (Garcia, 2015). Correlating with such, representing how we see wellness can also be seen through utilization of the four general education lenses (i.e. the humanities, history, the natural and applied sciences, and the social sciences). (Southern New Hampshire University, n.d.). Looking at how the four lenses approach the study of wellness can be seen in a multitude of ways. Briefly describing the lenses, humanities include “…the study of languages, literature, history, jurisprudence, philosophy, comparative religion, ethics, and the arts – are disciplines of memory and imagination, telling us where we have been and helping us envision where we are going” (Liu, 2014). The lens of history is so important in that “…it can provide us with solutions to many of the problems of the present” (The School of Life, 2014). Continuing, “the natural and applied sciences study the physical world to help us better understand ourselves and our place in nature, and nature’s role in shaping us” (Southern New Hampshire University, n.d.) – natural science further incorporates the use of “…fields such as biology, chemistry, and physics, while the applied sciences include STEM-related fields such as mathematics and technology” (Southern New Hampshire University, n.d.). Finally, social science can be defined as “a branch of science that deals with the institutions and functioning of human society and with the interpersonal relationships of individuals as members of society” (Merriam-Webster, n.d.). These four lenses approach wellness through multiple views; represented as a way to see wellness, it gives individuals and society a multitude of perspectives to connect to both

personally and professionally. For example, with the humanities lens, individuals and society are exposed to multiple experiences to broaden perspectives of the world. We begin to question why certain art was created or why do cultural values matter? (Southern New Hampshire University, n.d.). Overlapping with the history lens, we can ask how the art, films, stories, etc. created overlaps with the period of time those individuals lived in, which forwards more information regarding where we began and how the world has advanced. The natural and applied sciences give individuals a chance to reflect on how science has transformed the areas of wellness in individuals in medical terms, diets, knowledge, etc. and how that transformation has impacted human cultures. Finally, social sciences give insight to how people live and how to better our own lives and wellbeing; all four lenses combined provide in-depth information on multiple areas of wellness and how it differs from each individual or differing societies, but how it can begin to transform through the common ground found in the four lenses. Looking towards the future, the implications wellness plays in such is vast and hits from multiple perspectives and angles. Looking specifically at the wellness industry, “…new technologies and techniques of self-optimization will transform the wellness market over the next dozen years” (Global Wellness Institute, n.d.); “for instance, if humans have constantly tried to discover the key to happiness (using every tool they had access to), digitalization has expanded the technical range of these tools and offers up individual metrics for happiness” (Global Wellness Institute, n.d.). These technological trends include converging humans and technology, utilization of biohacking, data selfies, placing the importance on social wellness, and the use of biofeedback over surveys and “likes”. (Global Wellness Institute, n.d.). In a world of technologies constantly being innovated through grand advancements, I believe the measure of self-care and blurring the boundaries between wellness and multiple areas lacking (i.e. healthcare, poverty, etc.) is key. Without adequate wellness in individuals, society does not have a chance to advance and without wellness on societal terms (locally and globally), the world will remain as is. Throughout this course I have learned an abundant of knowledge; my favorite information to have learned is regarding the eight dimensions of well because they apply on an extremely personal level. Since I am a stay at home and have been for over 3 years, I realized even before this course that I do not take a lot of time for myself and my own needs; through the midweek check-ins posted in the announcements I am constantly answering no to every question, which is sad to say the least. This course has opened my eyes to how much personal care really matters in my overall wellbeing. I have begun to create personal goals for my own life to start working on my own wellness, such as taking time out of each day to do something for myself (i.e. putting makeup on, walking my dogs, small workouts, etc.); it has been a struggle with a 3 year old and 2 month old, but I am hopeful that the information learned in this course will provide a strong foundation on getting to where I want to be. Sincerely, Cheyenne Nelson References

Garcia, C. (2015). What are the Eight Dimensions of Wellness in Your Life? Colorado Nurse, 115(1), 6. Global Wellness Institute. (n.d.). Wellness 2030. Retrieved December 08, 2020, from https://globalwellnessinstitute.org/industry-research/wellness-2030/ Liu, A. (2014, December 21). What Are the Humanities? Retrieved December 08, 2020, from https://4humanities.org/2014/12/what-are-the-humanities/ Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Social Science. Retrieved December 08, 2020, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/social%20science Southern New Hampshire University. (n.d.). The Four General Education Lenses [PDF]. Manchester: Southern New Hampshire University. The School of Life. (2014, October 31). What is History for? December 08, 2020, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLE-5ElGlPM...