Faculty/Staff Assistance and Well-Being Services

The emotional dimension of wellness involves developing awareness and acceptance of one’s feelings. Emotionally well people are able to express feelings freely and manage feelings effectively. Emotional wellness is not an end stage but a continual process of change and growth. Emotional wellness enables one to maintain satisfying relationships, deal with conflict, and remain grounded during stressful times.

Practices that enhance emotional wellness include:

• Recognizing conflict as potentially healthy
• Taking responsibility for your actions
• Becoming more aware of your feelings through reflection, journaling, or other practices
• Accepting your feelings rather than denying them
• Accepting the feelings of others
• Expressing your feelings in responsible ways
• Seeking support and guidance when feelings and emotions seem to be getting out of control
• Building a strong social support network
• Being open to continual personal development
• Practicing positive financial behaviors that enhance security and emotional stability

Environmental wellness involves leading a lifestyle that is respectful of and in harmony with your environment. Environmental wellbeing involves being aware of the limits of the earth’s natural resources and understanding the impact of your actions on the environment. Environmentally well people consciously choose to live in ways that protect the world around them. Being environmentally well enhances your personal health and helps ensure the future health of our communities and the world.

Practices that enhance environmental wellness include:

• Walking or bicycling whenever possible instead of using cars
• Respecting nature and those species living in it
• Protecting yourself and others from environmental hazards such as noise, air, and water pollution; secondhand smoke; and ultraviolet radiation
• Recycling
• Reducing waste
• Joining an environmental organization
• Educating yourself on environmental issues
• Conserving energy and water
• Reducing or eliminating pesticide use

Dimensions Of Wellness: Intellectual
Intellectual wellness involves utilizing learning resources to expand knowledge, improve skills, and experience life more fully. Intellectual wellness refers to active participation in scholastic, cultural, and community activities. It also involves assimilating what is learned in the classroom with life experience. Valuing and nurturing creativity, curiosity, and lifelong learning is part of intellectual wellness. Intellectually well people are open to new ideas, think critically, and seek out new challenges. People who develop intellectual wellness are more likely to maintain good cognitive function as they age.

Practices that enhance intellectual wellness include:

• Obtaining good study and time management skills
• Learning to trust your ability to make good decisions
• Challenging yourself to see more than one side of an issue
• Recognizing and valuing learning as a lifelong process
• Developing creativity and resourcefulness
• Practicing discernment when taking in information from TV, the Internet, newspapers, etc.
• Taking advantage of the vast array of intellectually stimulating classes and activities on the Illinois campus
• Keeping abreast of current events, issues, and ideas
• Reading
• Developing new skills such as learning a language, learning how to play an instrument, or engaging in a new hobby
• Learning to manage your finances

Occupational wellness entails seeking personal satisfaction and enrichment in one’s life through work. Work is defined as paid or unpaid work as well as one’s academic endeavors. Occupational wellness involves contributing your unique gifts, skills, and talents to work that is personally meaningful and rewarding. Being occupationally well allows you to find personal self-fulfillment and to make a contribution to the wellbeing of the community at large. Research indicates that having a satisfying work life positively impacts physical and emotional health.

Practices that enhance occupational wellness include:

• Developing functional, transferable skills
• Choosing a career that is consistent with your personal values interests and beliefs
• Learning to accurately assess your strengths and weaknesses
• Exploring your talents and interests
• Maintaining a healthy work-life balance
• Seeking professional development opportunities
• Participating in an internship

The physical dimension of wellness entails taking good care of your physical body. Our bodies function for us in countless ways every day, allowing us to work, rest, eat, and play. Sometimes we expect our bodies to perform these tasks without providing the nourishment and support they need. Being physically well reduces the risk of illness, fatigue, and injury. In addition, physical wellness can lead to psychological benefits such as enhanced self-esteem, self-control, determination, and a sense of direction.

Practices that enhance physical wellness include:

• Getting physical activity on a regular basis
• Practicing safe and responsible sex
• Taking safety precautions such as using a seat belt or practicing safe lifting techniques
• Getting enough sleep
• Nourishing your body by eating a balanced diet of healthy foods
• Maintaining a healthy weight
• Abstaining from tobacco
• Abstaining from recreational drugs
• Drinking alcohol in moderation or abstaining from alcohol
• Practicing good hygiene
• Getting regular medical check-ups and screenings
• Paying attention to the signs and symptoms of disease and seeking medical attention when ill

The social dimension of wellness entails valuing living in harmony with your fellow human beings; seeking positive, interdependent relationships with others; and developing healthy communication skills. Social wellness involves embracing interconnectedness and understanding how your actions affect other people and their community. Socially well people consciously choose to enhance personal relationships, nurture important friendships, and build a just and caring community. Research indicates that being socially well enhances physical and emotional wellbeing.

Practices that enhance social wellness include:

• Building a strong social support network
• Learning and practicing healthy communication techniques
• Developing the ability to relate with people in a variety of settings
• Dealing with interpersonal conflict in a healthy and respectful manner
• Exploring diversity by interacting with people of other cultures, backgrounds, and beliefs
• Valuing time alone and time with other people
• Being aware of the social concerns in your community and getting involved in solving community problems

The spiritual dimension of wellness involves exploring meaning and purpose in human existence. It includes developing a deep appreciation for the depth and expanse of life and natural forces that exist in the universe. A sign of spiritual wellness is the ability to integrate your beliefs and values into your actions. Being spiritually well enables you to weather the ups and downs of life with resilience.

Practices that enhance spiritual wellness include:

• Pondering the meaning of life
• Respecting the beliefs of others
• Living in a way that is consistent with your values and beliefs
• Taking time for quiet reflection, prayer, or meditation
• Building awareness through journaling
• Becoming more aware of the deeper meanings of everyday events
• Serving your community through volunteerism, giving, or service projects
• Spending time in nature
• Taking time to appreciate the arts