Weekly Spark #120: Vrabel's House of Wellness
What is that sticky note? And what in the WORLD do those words say? I remember my high school English teachers asking me that same latter question. Legible or not, in this week’s Weekly Spark, I’m excited to unveil a draft of Vrabel’s House of Wellness. It’s important to note that this entire Weekly Spark and concept is merely in draft form, as evidenced by my sticky note above, but something that includes important concepts for wellness and self-care, two topics which I’m passionate about.
First off, before I go any further, let’s clarify what the 8 concepts are listed above: sleep, diet, exercise, meditation, meaningful social connection, learning, exploring, and reflection. These are the concepts that I believe can be woven into every day (without much effort at all) and play vital roles in contributing to one’s well-being. I have found myself talking about these concepts over and over again, and how they relate to building a solid foundation, personal routine, and leading a more intentional and authentic life. These eight elements have been vital parts of my growth journey, as well as many others that I’ve talked to or studied. The good news is that they are open-ended, not prescriptive, and allow you to adapt and customize them to what they mean for YOU in your growth journey.
Behind every good house is a solid foundation. That foundation for your wellness starts with YOU- physically, mentally, and spiritually. The four elements of this foundation are sleep, diet, exercise, and meditation. Sleep is the bedrock of all else. Without solid and consistent sleep, your mind and body will perform at suboptimal levels. Diet is what you need to sustain your brain and body and give it the energy to perform near optimal levels. Exercise is important to train the body in challenging ways to maintain fitness. Just the same as you train the body, you need to train the mind, for focus, stress reduction, anxiety reduction, and more clarity, which is where meditation comes into play. The mind is an overlooked part of wellness, but proactively managing one’s mental health, much like you would physical health, is so important in the long run. These elements can be customized however you’d like, but having them as part of your routine lay an important personal foundation.
Next up, the three pillars- meaningful social connection, learning, and exploring. These are the sustaining parts that hold up the house and give you life. Meaningful social connection is not just any social connection. It’s not “hey how are you doing, let’s talk about sports, Covid or the weather.” It’s a deeper, values-based connection with people you care about, whether it’s friendships, relationships, or family. These are the people that light your heart on fire. Another pillar is learning, which is the continuous pursuit and acquisition of knowledge, both about yourself and the world around you. Lastly, exploring- new, novel, and perspective-opening experiences. This doesn’t have to be rolling up to a unknown jungle and trying to find your way through. You can incorporate elements of exploration into it parts of every day, which could be something as simple as walking a new route to work, trying new foods, and finding ways to push your comfort zone and explore both yourself and the world around you.
These 7 elements are great and if you can consciously weave these into all of your days, you’ll feel pretty good. By most standards, you’ll live a great life. But as beautiful as a house may be, it’s nothing without a roof. And that’s where reflection comes in. Reflection is a powerful tool to take stock of where you’ve been, where you’re at, and where you’re going. It allows you the time to process life on a deeper level, and live more intentionally and authentically as you were meant to. For me, this takes the form of journaling, as well as reflective conversations with others. As Socrates said in this week’s Quote of the Week: “The unexamined life is not worth living.”
That’s Vrabel’s House of Well-Being. Notice it’s not anything ground-breaking or Earth-shattering. This is stuff I’ve written about for quite some time now. It’s finally packaged in a format that I believe makes sense, but as I mentioned, I’m seeking feedback on this model. Feel free to reply to this email, text, or call me with yours.
What would you change?
What’s missing?
What’s worked or not worked for you in your wellness journey?
I’m planning to do a dialogue on each of the 8 components in 8 separate podcasts over the course of the next few weeks, so please chime in where you feel called to. Thanks for supporting and thanks for any constructive/helpful feedback that you can provide.
Happy Holidays!
Nathan
Mental Diet
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Quote of the Week:
“The unexamined life is not worth living.” - Socrates
I hope you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing. If you found this piece valuable, please share with a friend, family member, co-worker, or someone who may benefit. If you offer additional viewpoints, please send me a message as I’d love to discuss and expand my knowledge/perspectives on the topics that I write about. Take care of yourself and take care of each other; let’s stay positive and make it a great week for everyone around us! 🙏
Nathan