Kevin Ko

Health Education 44
Project 1: Personal Prescription Paper Final

I used to think that the term "health and wellness" only encompassed the physical health;
with a focus on exercise and diet. However, after working as a scribe in the emergency room for
about a year and half I realized that "health and wellness" could also refer to the emotional,
social, environmental and spiritual aspects of our life. I've seen numerous patients overdose on
drugs or attempt suicide. I've recognized that many of these patients have been dealing with
various issues that range from financial issues to problems with their spouse and family. Even
the most physically healthy person may not be truly "healthy" if he lacked in the other
dimensions of health. As mentioned from an article in the American Holistic Health
Association, "Achieving wellness requires balancing the various aspects of the whole person.
These aspects are physical, emotional, mental and spiritual," (American Holistic Health
Association 1). Understanding that I must achieve some sort of balance in my life in order to
improve my wellness, has made me re-evaluate my life and activities.
After taking the self assessment quiz in Health the Basics textbook, I found that I lacked
in the following dimensions: physical, emotional, social and spiritual. It is clear to me that I do
not exercise enough. In fact, I only walk my dogs 2 times a week and even then I have not done
any strenuous activity. My poor level of fitness was reaffirmed on the day of my first Beginners
Basketball course at PCC. The dribble squats should not have made me exhausted after 20
minutes of continued activity. The following day, I felt cramps and pain all throughout my legs,
back and trunk. I always told myself that as long as I am not gaining weight, I should be healthy.
I reconsidered this belief after learning about preventive health and how important maintaining
physical health is. As for social, I realize I do not go out enough and talk with my friends due to
our busy schedules. On the days I get off, I prefer to sit back on the sofa and watch my sports. I
feel that I should prioritize my schedules to improve my social health. I feel that I get stressed
out very easily and at times it makes it difficult for me to adapt to my surroundings. I work at a
hospital so I can attest to the amount of stress I have to endure. I believe that spending more time
with my dogs and playing guitar can help me redirect my stress, into something productive.
Lastly, I find that spiritual health has become more important as I have gotten older. I have
begun to question my purpose in life and how I could fulfill that purpose. I will follow the
advice of my wise professor, "You won't know what you're good at until you try it."
I always heard from my parent's doctor that the first step in abstaining from smoking and
drinking is to recognize you have problems and admit that it is an illness. On the same note, I
realize how poor my physical health is and have finally begun to accept my weaknesses. I will
be creating a schedule to designate a timeframe to walk my dogs more regularly and participate
in basketball activities near my park. I used to walk my dogs 3-4 times a week and that has now
changed to 1 or at most 2 times a week. Part of it is because I have become more busy but the
primary culprit is that I have become lazy. In order to address this laziness I believe a strict
schedule will help to alleviate some of my problems. Diet is also another factor that I believe will
improve my physical health. After reviewing my bank statements, I realized how much money I
spend on fast food. I ate fast food at least three times a week. I will limit my fast food
expenditures to only once a week. However, the main difference between now and then, is
motivation. I feel that I am motivated to improve my health after having a better understanding
of my lifestyle.
The self assessment test and my experiences at work have made me re-evaluate my life.
Taking this class is part of the first step to improve my health by understanding what dimensions
I lack in. This motivation also plays a role in improving all the dimensions of health that I
mentioned before. As quoted by the article from the National Wellness Organization, "It is
better to live in harmony with others and our environment than to live in conflict with them." I
believe this environment involves the people we live and interact with and our physical
environment. Improving social health will require me to be proactive; seeking and enhancing
personal relationships and important friendships. I will try to schedule nightly meetings with
friends and join clubs or online associations that line up with my hobbies. I have already joined a
Kennel club for Corgis to bring my dogs to these events and talk with other owners on how they
raise their dogs. The emotional dimension is something I have realized develops slowly as one
interacts with more people. Many times, I struggle to grasp and admit my feelings and be honest
about them with others. My mother once told me to be clear with your emotions and
communicate them honestly. I now realized how important her words are. I had a few instances
in my life where I would bottle up my emotions inside and never share it with others. It was
difficult to communicate with people and this made me feel miserable. I will try my best to
share these emotions and be more honest with people. Lastly, spiritual dimension is something I
believe will develop over time through experience and age. I am at the point in my life where I
am trying to find my career and question what my purpose in life is. How do I fit in society?
These type of questions make me take the time to be introspective about life.
So after talking about my desire to improve my health and wellness, the question as to
why I want to improve them needs to be addressed. In Rebecca Donatelle's textbook "Health the
Basics," she notes that those who lived to a late age, focused on health at an early age. She
mentions that health isn't just about "hardy genes" but is a "process" that takes effort to achieve.
She suggests that a healthy life is one that is characterized by good health and a fulfilling life that
is filled with stories of productive careers, special relationships and accomplishments. As such,
it is only by achieving a balance of the six dimensions; emotional, physical, spiritual,
environmental, intellectual and social health, that we can live a "healthy life." My experiences in
the emergency room and my desire for a healthy life are few of the reasons I want to improve my
lifestyle.
Currently, my three goals to improve my life style focus on these three dimensions:
physical, social and intellectual. As noted by articles from both the National Wellness Institute
and American Holistic Health Association, preventative medicine is a field that focuses on
preventative measures to avoid health issues. Exercise plays a critical role in maintaning and
preventing heart disease and other various ailments. The earlier I start building my habits of
exercising the better chance I have to maintain that regiment later in my life. This includes a
selective diet and abstaining from fast food. The second goal is something that I believe affects
children as much as adults. Being able to communicate with other people not only establishes
relationships but helps the person grow as an individual. Sharing ideas and knowledge is one
benefit of such a relationship. Living in a world that is nearly filled with 7.5 billion people, I
would find it important to be able to interact with others since people are part of our
environments as are the trees and animals that inhabit them. Lastly, intellectual dimension is
also better established a younger age when our brain cells are functioning at its peak. It is why
education is so important at a young age to help us prepare to live as adults in the world.
In order to take a more strategic approach to improve all my dimensions of health, I have
focused on understanding each dimension in order to make improvements in my life. I used the
following resources listed below. All of the resources cited explain the dimensions of health in a
similar manner but what differentiates them is how they propose to better our health. For
example, the fourth reference based on Steven Hawk's article in the American Journal of Health,
talks about focusing on health education to not only improve the intellectual dimensions of our
life but our physical and spiritual aspects of our health. By emphasizing preventive medicine,
the author proposes that by instilling such knowledge of preventing diseases at an early age, we
can improve the future of our health care. As for the sixth reference, the article provides mutiple
avenues in improving our health by breaking down the dimensions into 4 categories; physical,
spiritual emotional and mental. In each category, the author provides activities and tips to
improve ourself. Often times, its difficult to grasp such concepts but this reference was able to
simplify the objectives. More importantly, the article mentions the significance of understanding
yourself before you can help yourself. Much like smokers who are in denial, the article states that
one must recognize their weaknesses first before they can change themselves. As for the first
reference, the article was written by a certified health education specialist and she focuses on the
public setting to improve our wellness. She emphasizes rehabilitation services, stress-relieving
facilities and dietary classes. As an instructor herself, she believes that by fostering a sense of
teamwork and community, people will be able to share their goals and improve their social
health as well.
In conclusion, I have a better understanding of what my weaknesses are and how to
improve on them. I realized that I have ignored many of the dimensions of health and by taking
this quiz, it has painted a better picture of who I am. I feel that I am one step closer to improving
my health because of my new-found motivation, awareness and goal to practice holistic
healthcare.


Works Cited
1. Applebaum, Valerie. "A Holistic Approach to Health." IDEA Health & Fitness Association.
Web. January 2008.
2. Ballard, Jill. "Dimensions of Wellnes." National Wellness Institute. n.d. Web.
3. Donatelle, Rebecca. (2015) Health the Basics. San Francisco: Benjamin Cummings. Print.
4. Hawks, Steven. "Spiritual Wellness, Holistic Health, and the Practice of Health Education."
American Journal of Health Education 35 (2004): 11-16.
5. Hettler, Bill. "The Six Dimensions of Wellness Model." National Wellness Institute. Web.
1976.
6. "Wellness from Within: The First Step." American Holistic Health Association. 2003. Web.