Emotional Wellness

When I first think of emotional wellness I think of trying to deal with stress. However, it is so much more than that. It also involves paying attention to your own thoughts, feelings, and behaviours. Not everyone is capable of always being aware of their emotions all the time... however, there are ways of getting better at it. With positive emotional health, you will be able to have an optimistic approach to life that will allow you to enjoy life even when things aren't going your way. Emotional wellness is one of the major dimensions of overall wellness.

Ways to practice Emotional Wellness:

• smile at least once a day

• read a self-help book that you find interesting
• attend a support group that is relevant to you
• practice management skills

• acknowledge your own thoughts and feelings
• using a positive attitude
• seek support when needed
• setting priorities
• taking responsibility for your actions
• learning from your mistakes
• forgiving others

The Importance of Forgiveness in Emotional Wellness

I'll be honest, I've held a lot of grudges in my teen years... so I'm not perfect. With that said, would you believe me if I told you that holding grudges is really unhealthy? Anger is perfectly natural, I'm not suggesting that you feel guilty for your basic human instincts. I just want to let you know what the negative health effects are for not forgiving. Being angry and unforgiving causes stress. Failure to forgive evokes a brain activity that will also increase in blood pressure, and lower your immune system. More specifically, you will have an increase in cortisol and adrenaline. Not to mention, being unforgiving also negatively affects mental health.

The Two Types of Forgiveness

Decisional Forgiveness - the intention NOT to seek revenge or engage in conflict

Emotional Forgiveness - the intention TO replace hate and anger with compassion and empathy

Forgiveness: It's Healthy

Adopting a forgiving attitude has many health benefits. Studies have shown that forgiveness actually lowers levels of stress, anxiety, and even depression. Physical benefits include, but are not limited to, lower blood cholesterol, less back pain (seriously), and spiritual well-being.

Forgiveness isn't just about forgiving others... it's also about forgiving yourself. As well, sometimes it's about seeking forgiveness from others. This includes forgiving god or gods. Blaming things on god is unhealthy as well. Making mistakes is art of the human condition and sometimes those mistakes harm others. These are the things that we wish we haven't done... but we can't go back in time to fix it. Forgiveness isn't about forgetting the past. Instead, it's about remembering it, learning from it and then finally... letting it go.

Forgiving yourself will also improve your self-esteem and your overall mental health. In fact, some people believe that forgiving yourself has the most effect on your health.

Hello. Nice to meet you! How are you? Hmm... this feels like a really one sided conversation... why don't you follow me on social media so I can get to know you too!

About the Author

I started blogging about two years ago and my collection of blogs and articles is getting pretty impressive. I’ve taken online classes for writing and even some classes about the art of blogging itself. It would be really awesome if you join the adventure and maybe even help me think of what to write about next. If you would like to submit some feedback or ideas, you can always tweet me on Twitter.

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Work Cited

National Wellness Institute