Author: Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas
Why do people burnout and find
themselves spiraling into hopeless despair? Part of the answer lies in upstream
preventative maintenance, or “wellness.” In our very busy world, we all need to
figure out how to take better care of ourselves. When people hear the term
“wellness” they often just think of physical wellness: sleeping eight hours a night, drinking
64 ounces of water a day, working out for at least ½ hour three times a week,
eating five fruits and vegetables a day, etc. Physical wellness is important, but it is only one dimension
of overall wellness. Mental, social and emotional, and spiritual aspects of
wellness are also key and highly related to each other.
I
remember my first run after the death of my brother. I had been running as my
main form of exercise for almost 8 years before he died. I found that running
was the sport for me – someone who valued exercise but didn’t bring many
athletic gifts to the table. I started doing marathons in 2002, and found
myself hooked. I was training for the Little Rock Marathon in Arkansas when
Carson’s suicide literally knocked me off my feet. I was barely able to get out
of bed and function each day, let alone train. But somehow, one day I put on my
running shoes and headed out the door. Thoughout the whole run, I had tears on
my face. For the next 10 weeks, running became my therapy. My time alone, away
from all the trauma; my time to grieve and to think. I ran the marathon and
dedicated each mile to a memory of our lives together. Today, I continue to run
almost daily, and find it is a critical part of my mental health practice.
A large
body of research shows a positive association between physical activity and
psychological well-being.[1]
New research is supporting a connection between exercise and suicide
prevention. Even after adjusting for confounding variables such as
demographics, depression, alcoholism, and more, the risk for nearly lethal
suicide attempts was five times greater among those who had not been physically
active in the past month than for those who were.[2] Another study
compared athletic and nonathletic adolescents and found that the most athletic
felt depressed less often and were much less likely to report suicidal thoughts
or attempts.[3]
A more recent study found that aerobic activity provided a distinct protection
against suicide by reducing the risk of hopelessness and depression. There was
one exception to this finding: women who combined frequent physical activity
with deleterious dieting behavior had a greater risk for suicidal behavior.[4]
So yes, physical wellness is a very important contributor to overall health,
but there is much more to wellness than this.
Mental
wellness is about always sharpening our skills and committing to lifelong
learning. Mental wellness comes
from a sense of inner responsibility to always finding ways to improve –
increasing knowledge, asking critical questions, trying new things, advancing
skill sets, and so on. Social and emotional wellness is about keeping our
relationships and our emotional well-being intact. It’s about conflict
resolution, self-esteem, and coping skills. Finally, spiritual wellness is
about committing to something larger than us – whether that is participating in
our faith community, volunteering to serve the common good, standing up for
injustice, or appreciating nature.
As with
any preventative maintenance process, each wellness component needs attention
over the long term so that we can sustain high performance over time.
Unfortunately, when we are in crisis mode, these wellness practices are often
the first to go. We cut out sleep, skip our weekly faith services, and drop out
of therapy because we are just too overwhelmed with our lives. And just like
when we neglect to change the oil and rotate the tires on our car, these
decisions come back to haunt us.
In
order to self-assess your commitment to wellness, track the amount of time and
money you spend in crisis mode – cramming for exams, dealing with drama in
their relationships, tending to illnesses and injuries, and so on – and how
much time and money you spend in true wellness practices (escape behaviors like
hours of video games and excessive drinking do not count). When you do this,
you often quickly realize that one of the reasons you constantly feel in a state
of distress is because you are neglecting yourself.
Research
tells us that pro-healthy-lifestyle attitudes matter greatly.[5]
Those who see health as a value and have an optimistic perspective have
built-in buffers against psychological distress. Optimism was actually the best
predictor of both psychological well-being and decreased levels of distress.
The researchers explained that this positive outlook helped students persevere
during difficult times. “Health as a value” was seen in students who are likely
to refrain from health-compromising behaviors like substance abuse and who are
more like to engage in health-promoting behaviors like working out. This
stable, enduring characteristic was linked to psychological well-being.
In
closing, sometimes all you need to get through the bumps in life is a little
reminder of an Irish proverb, “A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the
doctor's book.”
[1] Taliaferro, Lindsay, Rienzo, Barbara,
Pigg, Morgan, Miller, M. David, and Dodd, Virginia (2008). Associations between
physical activity and reduced rates of hopelessness, depression and suicidal
behavior among college students. Journal
of American College Health, 57, 427-435.
[2] Simon, T., Powell, K. & Swann, A.
Involvement in physical activity and risk for nearly lethal suicide attempts. American Journal of Preventive Medicine,
27(4), 310-315.
[3] Ferron, C., Narring, F., Cauderay, M.,
& Michaud, P (1999). Sport activity in adolescence: Associations with
health perceptions and experimental behaviours. Health Education Research, 14(2), 225-233.
[4] Taliaferro, Lindsay, Rienzo, Barbara,
Pigg, Morgan, Miller, M. David, and Dodd, Virginia (2008). Associations between
physical activity and reduced rates of hopelessness, depression and suicidal
behavior among college students. Journal
of American College Health, 57, 427-435.
[5] Burris, Jessica, Brechting, Emily,
Salsman, John, Carlson, Charles (2009). Factors associated with psychological
well-being and distress of university students. Journal of American College Health, 57(5), 536-542.
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