Achieving Physical, Mental And Social Well Being

Achieving and maintaining well being, whether physical, mental and social can prove very difficult at times. Yet, such achievements are crucial for our survival. One thing is for sure- one cannot be happy by maintaining well being in only one of these three spheres. To live a healthy and happy life one has to be physically, mentally and socially healthy simultaneously. There is no specific step by step procedure to follow if one wishes to achieve well being. But nevertheless, people try, they hope and they succeed. But how? Although there are no rules, there definitely are cues, clues that can lead to such achievement. All that is required is a genuine effort from your side. Some people think that things will happen to them on their own and when nothing happens they have the habit to curse the environment surrounding them. All that is required is a positive attitude to achieve individual well being.

First, there is physical well being. It has been proven scientifically that the well being of the body is the key to a happy life. A physically unhealthy person can never mentally content, neither can he/she be sociable. Ill health deters him/her from achieving the other two. According to a very famous psychological model put forward by Professor Maslow, human beings must meet physiological needs first, and only then can he/she concentrate on the other four needs like need for security, affiliation, self-esteem and self-actualization. To maintain physical fitness, someone does not have to go through rigorous exercise or follow strict diets. Mere free hand exercise five minutes a day and nutritious and timely meals three times a day (and no skipping meals in the name of dieting!) will do the trick. If one can steal some time from one’s busy schedule for himself/herself and can go for Yoga, Aerobics, Pilates and other things like that, then that helps as a major plus point. In case of eating habit, strict diets are to be thought of twice before adoption and physicians must be consulted. People falling for random diet charts with weight loss warranties that are found online often have negative reactions in the body. Timely meals (preferably home-made) and a lot of water keep us healthy. Water can be substituted with watery fruits like melon, cucumber etc occasionally. But carbonated beverages should not be taken in plenty. Junk food should be avoided as much as possible. Since busy daily routine compels us to eat out at least on weekdays, these take-away foods must be chosen carefully. Too much oil and fat must be avoided. Protein can often substitute carbohydrate which is good for health.

As far as mental health is concerned, we all know that we are born with a certain extent of sanity. But we often tend to forget that, just like physical health, mental health requires close attention. We know that our mind resides in our body, but ignorance to mental health can prove dangerous for our physical health as well. Like physical check up, “mental check-up” is very important. To keep our mind from going through depression or stress which often follows our individualistic busy life-style, we can conduct counselors in extreme cases. But this is not a day to day solution. So, what should be done? Self-meditation is a very good remedy to get rid of stress. Nowadays, we often hear about meditation courses, but results vary from person to person. Thinking happy, positively and always trying to remain optimistic can help us achieve mental well being.

As far as social well being is concerned, it should be always kept in mind that physical and mental well being precedes social well being. Apart from these, regular contact with the dear ones, sharing various spheres of life with friends, relatives and neighbors can help maintain a dynamic and happy social life. One thing should be remembered here; the less we talk ill about others, the better our social lives are. One more important factor in social well being is financial security. This is one very important and often determining factor that commands our well being. If one has a constant flow of income, he/she is a lot less stressed than someone who does not.

To sum it all up, physical, mental and social well beings are keys to a happy life and play major roles in its longevity. In order to remain content in life, we should always try to achieve these well beings. We must remember that these three follow a circular pattern and are interdependent. If we can maintain this trio in a proper manner without compromising any one of them, only then we can hope for happiness. After all, it is hope that the world is always looking up to.

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