What is holistic well-being all about?

"For everyone, well-being is a journey. The secret is committing to that journey and taking those first steps with hope and belief in yourself". By Deepak Chopra

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, well-being is defined as "the state of being happy, healthy, or prosperous".

The key word here for me is being. When I am able to become present and give myself the gift of just "being" in the present moment, then wellness is available to me in all the ways imaginable.

Yes, I can choose to be happy - purely and simply happy despite what is going on around me. I can choose to be healthy which is another aspect of well-being. When I care about what my body needs - water, sleep, nurturing foods, movement, my 'being' is well. And the key here is progress, not perfection.

This might lead you to wonder how the word prosperous fits into well-being. The word prosperous, is defined by Merriam-Webster in two ways; firstly as "auspicious, favorable", and also marked by "a) success or economic well-being and b) enjoying vigorous and healthy growth," and in another word "Flourishing". By reading the words carefully and with discernment you can come to a place of assessment for yourself. Success and economic well-being is relative to your own definition, meaning you get to assess it for you. Likewise, vigorous and healthy growth and flourishing are subjective words - and all of the above are, in my mind, strongly connected to being self-responsible. In other words, you get to choose all of this!

If you decide to move towards well-being, adding well-being intentionally to your life will help you flourish in all dimensions - physically, spiritually, mentally, and emotionally.

We have been taught that doing things specifically for ourselves can be selfish and so some hesitate to focus on themselves. Another way to look at it is, when we look after ourselves well, with a spirit of reverence and well-being, we are much better able to look after others from a stable platform.

Things to ponder:

• Where are you on your journey of well-being?
• What small steps can you take towards it?
• What would well-being feel like and mean for you?
• How do you bring wellness to YOUR being?
• How are you being self-responsible for your well-being?