I was thinking that there were five aspects to wellness, and for that matter illness too.

Environment
Physical Body
Mind
Emotions
Spiritual

And we need to address all of these to keep healthy. We also need to address all of these if we become sick.

What do others think? And what is the most important thing you can do for each aspect of your life? I came up with:

Environment - avoid pollution in all its forms
Physical/Body - eat a nutritious diet
Mind - think positively
Emotions - express then appropriately
Spiritual - meditate on the goodness of the Universe, God or whatever you believe.

All feedback positively encouraged

Oooops, in which case I'm buggered. Yes, I have an extremely optimistic eye. Also, I hope that I do express my emotions in a suitable, beneficial way... The rest of it however....

Oh well. I simply love my life, so all, obviously, is not lost. That spiritual thing though. What does it mean exactly?

Yours laughing

Tanya

Hi, Mermaid! How perceptive of you! I agree with your interpretation of each of the five elements. The only thing I would add is that the problems occur when a person focuses on only one of these to heal. All are equally important. Very enlightening!

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"I am always ready to learn, but I do not always like being taught." Winston Churchill

Well Mermaid, I guess I'm out of luck here, being bipolar it's kind of hard to express my emotions appropriately. Any suggestions?
moonladyc

Why is it hard to express them appropriatly? Do you mean you don't know if they're valid or not? I know you must have extremes of emotion. I suppose the aim is to express how you feel without going over the top and alienating people. Do you write down how you feel, I find that quite helpful.

Hi Mermaid ~ Sometimes I can write, but lately I can't. The words don't even come into my head. It's impossibe at times to understand what emotion I'm even feeling, let alone finding an appropriate way of expressing it. Also, there are times when my emotions don't fit the circumstances, like I know logically I should be happy about something, but I don't feel it. Right now, you could tell me I won a million dollars or that I just lost everything and emotionally I would feel the same way, nothing. How can I act appropriately, if I don't feel it?
moonladyc

MoonladyC, every One goes through what you described. God forbid that I would tell some One who insists that she is disordered that she isn't, but I just wanted you to k-now that what you describe is normal for all of Us. Are you on medication? Drugs can inhibit appropriate emotional response. I just wanted to put my two cents' worth in this conversation. I don't like hearing people say that they CAN'T do something or that they believe what some doctor told them about them not fitting society's narrow definition of "normal." I hope I haven't offended any One. Peace and Love to all.

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"I am always ready to learn, but I do not always like being taught." Winston Churchill

Deathnomore ~ No, I'm not on med's, I wish I were. I knew something was wrong years before I saw a doctor, my first suicide attempt was at 14, and I knew for years before that. I''m 43 now and was just diagnosed last year. As far as everyone feeling this way? Nobody I know personally does. Moonladyc

Hi MoonladyC, I have sent you an extract of an article about depression. It is on the "Astrology and Mental Illness" thread.

Love, Tanya

Hello again MoonladyC

You say you have been diagnosed but not if you are receiving any kind of treatment? It would be rough if you had to deal with this disorder on your own. Did anything traumatic happen to you when you wanted to commit suicide? Are you conversant at all with Martin Seligman's work on depression? He is a cognitive-behaviourist who looked at how styles of thinking can cause you to learn to be depressive? Do you have a history of depression in your family? I hope you don't mind all the questions and that you know you have lots of people who care about you here.

MoonClady,and ALL
I know I talked to you on another post about the manic depression, dysthymia, anxiety and all of that. I have dysthymia, SAD, PMS, anxiety...the SAD aggravates the PMS...not so good. After I talked to you, I saw the head shrinker again, in a last desperate attempt to find a medication that will work. Basically, he wanted to give me a medication that could potentially damage all my vital organs from A-Z. No thanks. I tried St. John's Wort-AGAIN. You know what? I am doing REALLY well on it. Did you know that it's effectiveness will greatly depend on what kind it is? Not all are the same. Compared to other medications, it is soooo cheap in price. Mine is St. John's Wort Extract from Enzymatic Therapy Natural Medicines. It has 4% hyperforin, whereas most of them contain only 3%.
I COMPLETELY unerstand how you feel, and the older you get, the worse things often are. I am getting a Ph.D in psychology, because I believe that I can overcome my illnesses on my own, naturally-without harmful drugs. I also believe these things are actually a blessing in disguise. They assist me in understanding human suffering. Through the wide range of emotions that I have been through, I feel there is little I cannot understand or empathize deeply with. I know how it is...if a person does not have these "disorders", they have a difficult time understanding the scope of living with them. Everybody has had their periods...but not an entire lifetime...there are people in my family who don't even believe that these things exist...they think it's all a lot of nonsense. The best thing you can do for yourself is BELIEVE you can change. Believe that you can alter your brain chemistry. Believe that you own what you have, and that you can make it make sense.
I know how infinitely difficult it becomes to catagorize what you are feeling at times. For me, Tarot cards have been IMMENSELY helpful in organizing my train of thought. I remember daily not to use these things as a crutch or as an excuse to not get things done. The most important thing is to CHANGE your thinking. No medication or herb is going to help unless you can alter your thinking positively. That can be difficult, but imagine the rewards! And well...you know...many of the most creative, intelligent, tuned in people in history were manic depressive etc. That should tell you something...perhaps...these things are a reaction to evil and suffering in the world to very sensitive souls. I often wake up feeling like I've been dragged through Hades only to find out something TERRIBLE happened in the world while I slumbered.
So...you know...all you can do is try. Keep smiling-it won't kill you...feeling bad and thinking bad will. There is always HOPE.
Those five elements are right on! It's just a little different when you have difficulty starting on even one!
LOVE AND LIGHT AND SPECIAL BLESSINGS,
Kelly

MoonladyC, I believe that we learn how to be depressed, and then we aggravate the condition with negative self-talk. We get used to depression, and some people are actually happy (in a way) by being unhappy! But we can also learn to be happy! I am not trying to downplay your condition; I just want you to k-now that there are people here that care about you, and we are simply trying to help. Peace always.

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"I am always ready to learn, but I do not always like being taught." Winston Churchill

Moonlady and everyone

i had a thought on the emotional part of this while reading all of your thoughtful threads...
perhaps it is not just about properly expressing emotion (that would imply that there is a 'wrong' and 'right' way to feel) but more so that the expression is effected by how easily we let it pass through us and accept it for what it is - an important part of who we are and way to learn about Who We Choose To Be.
perhaps if we resist a certain emotion because it is scarey or we feel we should be ashamed for it, then it becomes unhealthy and could cause illness as it would then be supressed even deeper.
what do you think?
love,
crystllyne

by the way...(afterthought)
Eternal Mask and Deathnomore Bravo!

eternal mask, i think you took my future thoughts right out of my mind...about those who are manic depressive as posibly being very sensitive and therefore a bit more tuned into the energies within and without. it is just a theory, and every situation is unique, but in a way, when one is manic depressive, they are just feeling emotions we all feel yes at a more intense degree in one period of time and therefore are unbalanced.
i do believe there is a lesson and a True Strength to be gained by all hardships.
perhaps there are some extremes that were not yet worked out in former experiences and this is a choice the soul made on a higher level in order to learn and master balance.
all i know is that anything negative can be turned around, anything.
Moonlady, i wish you Love
crystllyne

by the way...(afterthought)
Eternal Mask and Deathnomore Bravo!

eternal mask, i think you took my future thoughts right out of my mind...about those who are manic depressive as posibly being very sensitive and therefore a bit more tuned into the energies within and without. it is just a theory, and every situation is unique, but in a way, when one is manic depressive, they are just feeling emotions we all feel yes at a more intense degree in one period of time and therefore are unbalanced.
i do believe there is a lesson and a True Strength to be gained by all hardships.
perhaps there are some extremes that were not yet worked out in former experiences and this is a choice the soul made on a higher level in order to learn and master balance.
all i know is that anything negative can be turned around, anything.
Moonlady, i wish you Love
crystllyne

MoonladyC,
I'm sorry I spelled your name wrong...oops...forgive me? =)
Thanks Crystllyne for your thoughtful and insightful posts. I think you are right...these things may be a choice on the part of the higher s-elf to resolve difficulties in another life. Accepeting them and working with them instead of against them is the best way I've found.
In addition, a lot of manic depressives and such display behavior that instead of being unevolved, is acutally the opposite. Many of them are very creative, and tend to be intrinsically motivated-that is, they are motivated to do things because they want to, not because there is pressure from an outside force. Facing structured environments and overbearing situations will kind of fry the circuitry. I think, in a way, these things are like an inner warning bell that tells someone with these things to remove themselves from these types of situations, as they tend to involve unethical people with unethical behaviors. The "disorders" themselves are not negative, it's what a person chooses to do with these afflictive emotions that can be negative. These are very very serious things that should not be taken lightly though...and it is my belief that a good majority of people are being over medicated and misdiagnosed. It's like ADD and ADHD. If you see somebody who needs to be treated for those things-you'll know it! Especially with children. I have seen many, in my opinion, who are just excruciatingly normal, and they are being drugged...
Anyway, have a good day ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Remember that we all just want to be happy, and we all want to avoid suffering-be compassionate.
Light and Love,
Kelly

Kelly, you are treading in dangerous territory when you speak against ADD and ADHD! One very bad problem that we have as a society is the inability to admit that we are wrong and to learn from those mistakes. It's like the stock market. Winners can sell and accept a loss, but perpetual losers cannot admit that they made a mistake and move on; therefore, they continue to hold a losing stock for years hoping that it will go back up, thereby increasing their losses. We can't face the fact that some of us received the wrong advice and have medicated perfectly normal children. But I do agree with every word you have written. Congrats on taking an unpopular stance and for going with your conscience. Peace.

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"I am always ready to learn, but I do not always like being taught." Winston Churchill

Thanks Deathnomore!
I have spent so much time in the psychology department, and so much time with the public, that I can certainly see the difference between who "has" what. Really, we are so interested as a society in creating conformity, that we forget what we may learn from people who are "different".
A lady I work with brought in her daughter and her grandson. I had heard about this little boy, about how extremely ADHD he was. He is young, so I had my suspicions. I don't personally want to meet small children who aren't wild and hyper! =) The first thing he did was stomp on a dress rack, and the whole thing slid right down. Clothes went everywhere. His mother looked weary and embarrased, and the lady I work with shook her head. I laughed and said, "That's alright! I didn't even know those things went down." I made him a paper airplane, and he was perfectly happy...I told his grandmother that someday, he's going to be the guy who knows how to dismantle things that nobody else does.
I really don't like to see anybody medicated...in some cases...well, psychologists just must not be handling them right.
I do appreciate the support. I have never cared if my opinion is popular or not. I know when I'm right, and the rest of the world usually figures it out eventually...=)
Can't you just see the Leo ego dripping out of that! =)Pop culture is just too screwy most of the time.
LOVE AND LIGHT,
Kelly

Kelly, you are very special! Yes, the world does catch up...eventually. *sigh* World views are slow to change. You're right--I wouldn't want to meet a young child who isn't hyperactive! Children that are easily distracted are usually far more creative than so-called "normal" children! Albert Einstein is a perfect example! Who would call him (arguably the smartest person who ever lived) disordered? Yet, today, he would no doubt be medicated! Conformity, conformity, CONFORMITY!!! As Nazi Germany proved to us, it is not the minor rule-breakers (ADD behavior) that endanger society; it is those people that are too compliant, too still, and too atrentive that are a danger to the world. An experiment was done called the Milgram Experiments where students were told by an authority figure to electrically shock other students who answered questions wrong. Even though they thought the shocks were getting more and more intense, and even though the students being shocked cried out in pain, a high percentage of the students continued to follow orders and shock the other participants. We, as human beings, are far to quick to follow orders given to us by authority figures. ADD children do not conform to this mold. They are also of higher than average intelligence, and many exhibit near-genius creative abilities. This scares the status quo. These are our future political and business leaders--the individuals that are risk-takers, without which, we would have nothing. I do not see any disordered children at all. I only see unique children that have unique needs. All children deserve to be loved for their unique capabilities, and all children deserve the time and attention necesary to understand them. Unfortunately, in today's world with both parents working, it is just far easier to medicate than to take the time to show children the attention that they need. Now that I am off my soap box, I just want you see that there are others out here that feel the same as you do. You are very special, and this world is a brighter place for having you in it. Bless you, Kelly.

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"I am always ready to learn, but I do not always like being taught." Winston Churchill

Eternal Mask and Deathnomore
beautiful thoughts

you are both special.
crystllyne

OH YEA!!!!!!!!! Warm Fuzzies running rampant all over the place-all over my space, yippee, and gOOdies for the GOOberz!!!!!!!!
Thanks you guys, Deathnomore and Crystllyne, and ALL. You have made my day-well, night actually-because I was feeling a little frustrated by my day you see...The world is enriched by thoughts like yours. Tomorrow, I will have extra smiles because of your uplifting words...and maybe then other people will have extra smiles tOO! Just a little can go such a long way!
Deathnomore, I am aware of the experiment you are speaking of. I know it's been replicated in several places, and it's my understanding that the students were not actually giving electric shocks. They thought they were, but the people they were giving shocks to were actually in on the experiment. Still-isn't it awful, truly terrible, that people can do that?!! I know that not all of them could though...and it had something to do with the conditions that the psychologists gave them. They would tell the "shocker" something disagreeable about the subject...or something positive, on the flipside. I will look it up, it should not be hard to find. I believe that by these experiments, the psychologists felt that they were partially able to explain what happened with the Nazi's. How people were able to inflict such cruel torture on their brothers and sisters. The whole thought of that awful event in our human history just terrifies me...I can still feel pain resonating from it.
I believe we may be reaching a point in human history in which it is necessary to have people who are "tuned in", and unfortunately, highly sensitive to pain, although the joys are there too. I belive this is because we have been slacking as a human race...and it's time for some highly energized folks to get out there and get things going along with everybody else. I also feel that this is very connected to Atlantis, in a way. Atlantis is still here, just different...and it's up to us all not to repeat the same mistakes. Through the duality of a manic depressive, if one can get a grip on it, one can also see the "oneness" in it. The sameness. The mastering of duality to bring it back to one as it were. Through the energy of ADD and ADHD, one can see how incredible energy can be used to help or to heal...and Deathnomore, you're right, perhaps no one demonstrated this better than good old Pisces gotta love him Albert Enstein. He was a catalyst, in my opinion.
Whoa. I have no idea where all that just came from...what do you guys think? =)
By the way...I have been on this site for awhile, and I am ashamed to admit it...but HOW, oh HOW do you make the smiles and the hearts and the sad faces?
Sorry if I got a little out there... =)
LIGHT AND LOVE AND COMPASSION TO ALL,
Kelly

Kelly, I would be upset if you WEREN'T "out there." More people should express what they really feel! Yes, I am aware that they were not really shocking them, but they THOUGHT they were, and they heard excruciating cries of pain, but it didn't matter (because no One minded). I like the way you expressed the blessings in those "disorders." Very perceptive. Do a search by punching in keywords on this site, and you will find the threads that tell you how to make the faces and hearts. The faces are easy. The hearts are much more complicated, though. And Crystllyne: Peace to all.

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"I am always ready to learn, but I do not always like being taught." Winston Churchill

Eternal mask
hehehe, after a while i had to break down and ask about the smiles and hearts too, i couldn't figure out how they got them.
im in a rush, maybe deathnomore can help you.
crystllyne

Mermaid, we haven't seen you post in here for awhile. Are you doing okay?

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"You are a magnanimous entity! Live up to your reputation!" Randall Mixon

Kelly, go to the Words and Numbers Forum, and read the "Flowers are Red..." thread. I k-now that you will enjoy it.

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"You are a magnanimous entity! Live up to your reputation!" Randall Mixon