The Wellness Wheel
10 Facets that Define and Refine your Self- care Narrative
When it comes to our wellness, it’s easy to develop blind spots. We get so caught up in habits and patterns that we lose connection to the innate wisdom that keeps us in sync. After years of drain and strain, our bodies begin to give way. Ultimately by our 40s, we start to see signs of illness and dis-ease. As if it were suddenly all new to us, we question how did this happen? Well, how did I get here? (same as it ever was).
Let’s have a look…
The foundation of our wellness can be seen as a wheel. There’s a radial center with many spokes -- - each spindle influencing the integrity of the whole structure. According to Dr. Vasant Lad, there are ten main contributing factors to our wellness, both physically and mentally.
The initial five factors primarily govern our adaptability to the living experience.
The second five are based on the choices we make to negotiate our lifestyle in relationship to the living experience.
Each new season and cycle of life requires just a little finetuning to guide us back to balance. Most illness occurs when we are out of rhythm with both our internal and external landscape.
It really comes down to reaction, response, and relationship. Even though there are some things we cannot control like the passing of time, our genetics, and the seasons, we can use self-care tactics and tools to mitigate the effects of living. So even things seemingly out of our control can be tended to. We are, after all, the center of the wheel radiating outward.
Wellness Wheel Assessment:
With the wellness wheel as a map, you can navigate your own radical self-care plan. Empowerment comes in the ability of this awareness to adjust and adapt. Take a few moments to consider which factors in your life could be leaving you the most vulnerable.
We’re on a mission to refine and tailor our self-care to what we deeply need as individuals. Self-care isn’t exactly “one size fits all".” You need your own magic toolbox of traditions and techniques to illuminate a path of healing.
In a couple weeks in the Dharma Days Collective, we’ll get a little more specific with an Ayurvedic Assessment and self-care initiative to guide what you need in this moment. Then, in your own insight and understanding, use the healing potential to craft your health narrative.
But first, what exactly is the Wellness Wheel and how do these factors impact the way we claim our creative power?
