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UNIT 9 ASSIGMENT: STATE OF WELLNESS 1

Unit 9 Assignment: State of Wellness

Colleen Labonte

Kaplan University

Prof. Maule

3/21/17
UNIT 9 ASSIGMENT: STATE OF WELLNESS 2

State of Wellness

Introduction

To help determine a persons spiritual wellness a questionnaire can be used. Open-ended

questions allow patients to explain their own viewpoint of spirituality and how it relates to their

everyday life. This information can be used to help improve the often-neglected side of health;

spiritual health.

Questions and Explanations

1. What does spirituality mean to you and why do you believe it is important to your overall

health?

a. This question is important because everyones definition of spirituality is

different. Seaward (2013) provides many examples of what spirituality is but no

one clear definition is defined. As a result, how an individual views spirituality is

what it means to them. In regards to health, this question explores whether the

person believes that spirituality impacts health.

2. Would you define yourself as an optimist or a pessimist and what factors led you to this

conclusion?

a. Understanding how a person views the world is useful in helping them better

themselves. As Seligman (2011) states, optimist view things as temporary

whereas pessimist view things as permanent. If life is always negative, then

spiritual health can be impacted. Although most people will define themselves as

an optimist, it is important to understand how the patient views them self.

3. What 3 desires do you have and why do these desires exist?


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a. Walsh (2000) alludes to the teachings of Buddha and how desire leads to

suffering. As a result, people endure trials trying to achieve what they want. This

is important to spiritual health because patients may not realize that they are

causing their own suffering. Suffering may be physical, emotional, or

psychological. Identifying desires is the first step in resolving problems.

4. Have you had a moment where you have felt at peace, if so please describe what

contributed to this feeling? If you have not felt at peace, please explain what you believe

may be hindering you from reaching peace.

a. This question is important in discovering a persons spiritual health because peace

is a difficult state of mind to accomplish. The rush of everyday life can make it

difficult for individuals to experience a calm feeling. In addition, this question

examines what stressors may be impacting the individual.

5. What are you thankful for in life and why?

a. To be thankful is to show appreciation. This is a common theme around the

holidays but it should be addressed on a daily basis. It allows a practitioner to see

if the individual appreciates the small things happening around them. Someone

who is not thankful may not be bitter but rather too busy to take notice of the

world around them.

6. What type of boundaries do you have in place regarding technology? If you do not have

any, what boundaries do you believe would improve your spiritual health?

a. There is a time and place for everything. Technology seems to have no off switch

these days but it is vital to know if patients are unplugging long enough to

experience a time where they are not constantly bombarded with information. As
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Seaward (2013) mentions, patients must experience the emptying process

before they can be filled.

7. How often do you have moments of solitude and how would you describe them?

a. Being alone is just as important as being around other people. However, these

times of solitude allow for self-reflection and growth. This information would

reveal to a practitioner if the person is taking the time to understand who they are

and how they feel. Solitude contributes to spirituality by helping to discover the

pillar of spirituality of lifes purpose (Seaward, 2013).

8. What spiritual strengths do you possess?

a. Just as the answer for the first question is unique to every person so is this answer.

Strengths will vary based off of how a person defines spirituality. This is

important for a practitioner to know because it reveals aspects that are going well

in the patients life. In addition, this information can also reveal what weaknesses

are hindering spiritual growth.

9. When having a conflict with others how do you resolve the issue?

a. It is important to spiritual health to resolve conflict and move on. However, this is

often more difficult than it sounds. Holding a grudge is damaging because the

individual is carrying around negative emotions and impacting other areas of their

life as a result. This question helps to determine a patients level of acceptance in

regards to conflict resolution.

10. What activities do you do to promote spiritual healing or growth?

a. It is vital for patients to take part in their own health. It shows that they care and

that they want to get better. This information shows what activities are already in
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place, how they can be improved, and what other activities can be added to the

patients routine.

Conclusion

Questionnaires are great for developing a baseline. The information can provide the

practitioner with the patients view of spirituality and allow them to develop a spiritual plan from

there. Everyone is different and the open-ended questions allow for comments that cannot be

gained from one-word answers. Improvements can be made but overall, I feel that my

questionnaire elicited the responses I desired.


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References

Seaward, B. L. (2013). Health of the Human Spirit, 2nd Edition. [Kaplan]. Retrieved from

https://kaplan.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781284090444/

Seligman, M. E. (2011). Learned optimism: How to change your mind and your life. Vintage.

Walsh, R. (2000). Essential spirituality: The 7 central practices to awaken heart and mind.

Wiley.

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