Looking to start a wellness journey?

A wellness journey is an ongoing process of self-development that focuses on mental, emotional, spiritual, and physical well-being. The idea is that you can’t just focus on one aspect of your life without considering how it impacts all the others. You can’t just strive to be physically fit if you’re experiencing anxiety or depression. And you can’t just be spiritually fulfilled if you’re not taking care of your body.

So how do you begin a wellness journey? It’s not a short process—it’s something that takes time and effort, but it’s worth it! 

What does wellness look like to you?

It might be a long walk in the park, or a long soak in a hot tub. Maybe it’s taking time to meditate, or just spending quality time with your friends and family and letting go of obligations for a little bit. Whatever form your wellness journey takes, it is important to know that these activities can have a positive effect on your life—and they’re completely different from what you might expect!

Let’s take a look at what happens when we are NOT well:

-We get sick more often

-We have trouble sleeping

-Our relationships with others suffer

-We feel depressed or anxious

And now let’s consider what happens when we ARE well:

-We feel happier and more optimistic about our future

-We are able to focus on tasks effectively without getting distracted by negative thoughts or feelings like depression or anxiety 

-Our relationships with others improve because we don’t have an excuse for why we’re not doing things like socializing or going out on dates anymore (I know this sounds crazy but it’s true!)

Here are some tips for starting out:

Make sure that it’s for YOU—not anyone else. If you feel like your wellness journey is more about pleasing other people than pleasing yourself, then maybe it’s time to reevaluate what “wellness” means for you. It doesn’t have to be perfect or all-consuming; in fact, those are usually signs that you’re trying too hard. Just remember: This is YOUR time and space to relax and recharge, so make sure that whatever you do during that time makes YOU feel good!

Start small. Figure out what kind of wellness journey you want to go on, then start small with one goal at a time. Don’t try to do too much at once; just focus on getting yourself started. If you’re going through a tough time, find something that will help alleviate some stress (like going for a walk or taking a yoga class). Then think about how you can expand on that experience—maybe signing up for a group fitness class would be fun? Or maybe doing some research into healthy eating would be useful? Whatever it is that gets you started is perfect! Just take it one step at a time.

Take stock of where you are right now. Your baseline is where everything starts. So take some time to think about what’s working well in your life right now, what isn’t working so well, and how that affects the way you feel about yourself. Write it down if that helps! You’ll use these insights later on when we talk about strengthening current wellness practice.

Set goals for yourself! Goals help us focus our energy on something specific rather than just floating around out there with no direction at all (which is exhausting). Think about what matters most to you in terms of health and happiness—then set some.

I hope that these tips will help you get started on your wellness journey. You don’t have to fit yourself into a box labeled “wellness.” You might value a good night’s sleep over dieting, or take pleasure in a long bike ride alongside a dairy and gluten-filled brunch. Wellness is a personal journey, and you have the opportunity to find the things that work for you and your individual needs. Just make sure that you’re putting yourself first and treating yourself as well as you treat others. By doing so, you’ll be giving your body and mind what they need to function at their best in whatever it is that you want to accomplish.