absence of illness. (WHO) We have to take steps to prevent illness/disease. Taking steps involve:- Discovering Body Using All our mind Protecting resources soul family community environment Using the wholistic approach health is presented as having many components. These are: Spiritual Psychological Social Intellectual Environmental Physical Wellness is a broader term which includes health and happiness.
Wellness purposeful, enjoyable living. It is a deliberate life style choice which is characterized by personal responsibility and optimal enhancement of physical, mental and spiritual health. Belief in God and His ability to provide for life. Continuous faith in God. Prayer is very important.
Refers to both emotional and mental states, i.e. feelings and thoughts It involves:- Our awareness Our acceptance of feelings Ability to express emotions Ability to function independently Coping with stress This refers to the ability to interact effectively with other people and the social environment. To develop satisfying interpersonal relationships and to fulfill social roles. Your ability to think and learn from life experiences, your openness to new ideas and your capacity to question and evaluate information. Everyday you and I use our mind (brain) to:- gather, process and act on information access our values make decisions set goals cope with stress Refers to the impact that your world has on your well-being. It means protection from hazards in air, water, soil and products. It also means preservation of the environment itself. Nutrition feed our bodies nutritiously Exercise regularly Water Sunshine Temperance Air Relaxation (Rest) Trust in God To be physically healthy we have to avoid harmful substances and behaviour, watch for signs and symptoms and protect self from accidents. Health Education An activity aimed at informing people about the prevention of disease and motivating them to make voluntary health behaviour change.
Health Promotion The combination of educational and organizational support to help people reduce negative health behaviour and promote positive change. This is the field concerned with the development of behavioural science, knowledge and techniques relevant to the understanding of physical health and illness and the application of this knowledge and these techniques to prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation. Psychosis, neurosis and substance abuse are included only when they contribute to physical disorders. Several characteristics of this definition are particularly important. (1) The definition recognized the need for collaboration between physical, biomedical scientists and behavioural scientists.
(2) The definition stresses the application of behavioural knowledge to the problems in physical health, which is traditionally not stressed in psychology
(3) The definition excludes the more traditional topics of clinical-abnormal psychology, psychosis, neurosis and substance abuse In summary Behavioural medicine is a collaboration of behavioural and medical scientists to improve health. Health Psychology is a diverse field. It is the application of psychological methods and principles to the study of health. For example, health psychology depends upon research methodologies derived from statistics, experimental psychology and psychometrics. Health psychology since it often involves changing health behaviours, there is a significant overlap with social, clinical and community psychology. This refers to the effect of social relationships upon health outcome, defined either by the number of social contacts or by the satisfaction with social relationships. Prevention (Effectual Hindrance) before the fact (illness) There are three (3) levels of prevention:- (1) Primary prevention This is the prevention of the problem before it develops. Used for completely well people. E.g. controlling weight to prevent high blood pressure. (2) Secondary Prevention In this type of prevention we begin with a population at risk and develop efforts to prevent the condition from becoming worse or developing into a more serious problem. E.g. using medication to lower blood pressure.
(3) Tertiary Prevention For people with developed disease. E.g. heart disease as a result of high blood pressure. It involves rehabilitation to prevent the condition from getting worse.