Wellness is a way of being, living, and feeling through evaluating whole self to improve quality of life. Living a life that revolves around wellness looks different for everyone and no mold fits everybody’s lifestyle, and that’s okay. The importance of wellness is to live life authentically and wholeheartedly through enjoying the little moments. It’s more than just being healthy, it’s about being happy as well. There are eight primary areas to focus on when it comes to improving your wellness. These are called the eight dimensions of wellness. They are physical wellness, intellectual wellness, emotional wellness, spiritual wellness, environmental wellness, financial wellness, occupational wellness, and social wellness.

Each of the dimensions of wellness has its own unique qualities and focuses but they all tend to intertwine with each other as well. If you lack wellness in one dimension, you are likely to feel the effects in the others. For example, if you hate your job and dread it each day, you lack occupational wellness. However, this could lead to poor diet and exercise due to lack of time (physical wellness), depression (emotional wellness), and the inability to hang out with friends (social wellness). Understanding the dimensions of wellness and how they play a role in your life is important to take action in your wellness journey.

Physical Wellness

Being physically well is important for optimal health and functionality. Physical wellness reduces your risk of chronic disease and boosts productivity. You spend your entire life inside your body so taking care of it is the key to overall health. The four primary aspects of physical wellness are proper nutrition, physical activity, rest, and genetics. Finding ways to move that are exhilarating and fun makes life so much more empowering but it is equally important to nourish your body through food and rest.

Intellectual Wellness

Being intellectually well doesn’t mean you have to be a genius! It means that you’re constantly seeking knowledge to strengthen your brain. Intellectual wellness involves sharing and accepting knowledge from others. This allows you to be open to new ideas and improve upon what you already know. Intellectual wellness helps expand your perspective on the world and can come from traditional classroom-style education, podcasts, life lessons, communities, people around you, books, research, etc.

Emotional Wellness

Being emotionally well makes it easier to accept and learn from your feelings. When you can acknowledge not only what you are feeling but why you’re feeling that way, you’ll be able to react in a positive light. Emotional wellness is about being able to identify all your emotions (positive and negative) since each one plays a role in our lives. It’s okay to feel down sometimes but having a strong sense of emotional wellness makes it easier to turn those negative emotions into long-term motivation, drive, and positivity.

Spiritual Wellness

Spiritual wellness gives a greater perspective on the world. It gives a sense of meaning and expression through the belief of a higher power. Though spiritual wellness can come from religion, it doesn’t always have to be organized. Being spiritually well may mean that you’re deeply rooted in your faith or it can mean that you are internally content and have found harmony and balance from within. Being in tune with your inner self and having self-awareness makes life easier and it less likely to be shaken by the world around you.

Environmental Wellness

Environmental wellness makes it easier to be organized, productive, and encourages clean and organized spaces that are comfortable and pleasant to be in. When you have a surrounding area that’s welcoming and uplifting, you’re less likely to get sick and more likely to get work done. Environmental wellness also encourages respect to Mother Nature to allow for connection and feeling grounded. This includes getting sunlight and spending time in nature.

Financial Wellness

Being financially well doesn’t mean you have to be rich; it means you’re content with what you have. One of the largest sources of stress is money. Being able to balance income to expenses is important to reduce stress. It’s important to be financially well in order to pay for an education, unexpected emergencies, debt, and sustainable life. There are a lot of components to financial wellness. Start budgeting now to reduce your stress, boost your credit, and being able to enjoy the little things in life.

Occupational Wellness

You work to live, not live to work. Find a career that you are passionate about. If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life. Being well in your work life means that you’re excited to work every day because there is meaning in what you do. You don’t wake up dreading work every single day. Occupational wellness will challenge you and help you find what you’re meant to do in life. Being able to identify when you’re unhappy with your job will bring you closer to wellness in this dimension as well as others.

Social Wellness

Social wellness makes it easier to build interpersonal relationships that make you feel good. Having a strong support team makes life so much more rewarding. Social wellness involves relationships between friends, family, partners, and the people that are active in your life. Toxic relationships can drastically weigh you down so choosing who you involve in your life is a big choice. Social wellness involves a balance of interactions and self-dependence. Choose people who you trust, support you, and uplift you.