Written by: Caitlin Alfonso, LMSW
You are a multi-dimensional person, meaning there are many layers and aspects of you that make you a uniquely whole person. In fact, there is a framework known as the Eight Dimensions of Wellness. The Eight Dimensions of Wellness is often visually represented as a pie, divided into 8 equally important slices. These slices represent the different areas of health. The idea is that each slice is mutually important and if one slice is out of balance it impacts the other areas of wellness. Let’s explore the Eight Dimensions a bit further.
- Physical – This area of wellness focuses on your physical wellbeing and how to take care of your body. This could be through nutrition, exercise, and sleep.
- Emotional – This area of wellness focuses on your feelings and how you cope and self-regulate during challenging times.
- Intellectual – For this area, think hobbies and fun! It focuses on your creative stimulation and your ability to further expand your knowledge and develop your skill sets.
- Financial – As the saying goes, money matters! This area looks at your financial situation and alignment with your goals.
- Social – Humans are not meant to do life alone, so it makes sense that this area of wellness delves into a person’s sense of connection, belonging, and having an identified support system.
- Environmental – This area of wellness delves into one’s surroundings and physical space – how do you feel in your space? While this might sound odd, in China feng shui has been a practice since the ninth century.
- Spiritual – This area of wellness challenges one to explore their own sense of purpose and whether they are in alignment with their sense of life meaning.
- Occupational – This area of wellness explores personal satisfaction with one’s work – this can be work in the sense of employment, being a student, or more.
Alone, these dimensions are all valuable. However, because they fit together if one area is off balance it begins to impact the other areas of wellness. Let’s take a cliché example, you and your significant other are fighting. Your emotions are all over the place and they begin to keep you up at night. Because of that, you don’t have your normal energy, so you lay in bed more and you have indulged in more ice cream than normal. You want to change into your favorite pajamas, but realize your clothes are all over your room and you’ve got a stack of those ice cream bowls taking over your desk space – not that you’ve used your desk but you probably should because you have a chem test coming up on Thursday…..
You get the picture right? That one example started with just the emotional dimension of wellness being impacted, but it very quickly spiraled into impacting the physical, environmental, and occupational dimensions as well.
So how do you keep the eight dimensions of wellness in balance? It’s not easy but there are some actionable steps you can take. Make time to check in with yourself and reflect. By becoming more self-aware you can better implement your self-care strategies. Lastly, focus on practicing daily habits in areas of wellness that you might need extra support and attention.
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Caitlin Alfonso is a lover of coffee, reading, traveling, and her dog, Remy. She is a Licensed Master Social Worker and owner of Acornic Consulting, LLC.