Please note: I encourage you to check out the original article, The 7 Dimensions of Wellness, before going further on this article. This article spends a lot of time deconstructing ideas we talked about in the original article.
Now that we know a little more about the 7 Dimensions of Wellness, how do we figure out how “well” we really are? As with most problem-solving, it starts with asking ourselves some hard questions followed by some honest answers. Try not to judge yourself too much for the answers you come up with. You may be learning new things about yourself or thinking about things you’ve not given much conscious thought before. Just try to be gentle and compassionate with yourself.
Ask Yourself
- What am I fueling my body with?
- Am I drinking enough water?
- Am I getting between 7 and 10 hours of sleep a night?
- How often am I moving my body and getting my heart rate up?
- How is my relationship with drugs & alcohol?
- How is my immune system doing?
- Am I making responsible choices for my sexual health?
- What concerns does my doctor have for my health?
- How often do I hold myself accountable for what I say and do?
- Do I confront the feelings I have or do I shove them down?
- What do I think of myself? Do I like who I am?
- Am I expressing my emotions with others in an appropriate way?
- Am I communicating my boundaries with others?
- Is it difficult for me to manage my emotions?
- How do I cope with stress?
- What is my relationship with escapism and avoidance like?
- How often do I question my beliefs and actions?
- Am I stimulating my brain enough through puzzles, problem-solving, or philosophical discussions?
- Do I develop my own opinions or do I adopt the opinions of those around me?
- Am I making enough effort to understand other people’s cultures?
- Do I spend enough time learning new skills?
- In what ways am I being creative in my life?
- What does intellectual wellness look like to me?
- Am I confident with my money management skills?
- Am I budgeting my money appropriately?
- Where does most of my money go?
- What are my thoughts on my current financial situation?
- In case of an emergency, do I have the resources to handle unexpected expenses?
- Am I satisfied with where my future finances will be based on where I am today?
- What are my thoughts and beliefs on money?
- If I were financially well, what would that look like to me?
- When I’m hanging out with my friends, do I feel like I belong?
- Are there people in my life that support me?
- Do my friends share the same values as me?
- Do I tend to isolate myself from family and friends?
- Am I making time for the important people in my life?
- Do the people in my life want me to succeed?
- Are my relationships stable or unstable?
- How often do I feel alone or lonely?
- How invested am I in my own self-improvement?
- Am I satisfied with where my life is going?
- How often do I try to help others?
- Do I have meaningful values that contribute to a better world for everyone?
- Am I in alignment with my values and beliefs?
- How often do I practice gratitude?
- For me to be spiritually well, what is it that I need?
- How do I feel about littering?
- What do I do to protect and preserve the earth?
- Am I being mindful of how much waste I’m creating?
- Is my environment safe to be in?
- Do I feel like I can live freely where I am?
- Am I afraid to be myself?
- Is my neighborhood safe for me?
- Has my home been taken well care of?
- How much importance do I put on having a clean space?
Creating a Wellness Wheel
Once you ask yourself these questions, it’s time to see where we measure up! Take a look at the example below and then let’s create one of your own.
As you can see, there are many ways you can measure the dimensions of wellness. Sometimes it’s easier to see where you are when you have a visual aid to help see where your strengths are and where you need to spend some time setting goals to help you improve.
- Draw a chart of your own or download and print the chart above
- Rate how well you’re doing in each dimension on a scale of 1-10
- With a colored pencil or marker, mark each dimension accordingly, imagining the center of the wheel is 0 and the outside is 10
Pause & Reflect
Voilà! You now have an idea on where your strengths lie and what needs a bit of improving. You’ve sat with yourself and really taken a deep look at what’s going on in your life, who you are, and what is important to you. Treat yourself to some self-care after all that, because you deserve it. Even if you feel like you’re lacking in a lot of these dimensions, that’s okay! We’re all on a different journey and learning at our own pace. Regardless of what your chart looks like, just keep doing your best and you’ll never disappoint yourself.
To learn how to make specific improvements for each dimension, keep an eye out for upcoming articles!
To learn how to make improvements specifically for each dimension, keep an eye out for upcoming posts! In the meantime, check out the related articles below.
Room for Improvement
Now that you can see where you lie for each dimension, let’s see how we can improve those marks for the future. Check out the related posts below for more information on how to improve. Keep your eye out as more articles in the series will be published.