Health

Health (H) refers to establishing habits that support positive physical and psychological health (Norrish, Robinson & Williams 2013). Health is “a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” (WHO 2018a). Research asserts that students who thrive physically and psychologically also perform well in their studies (WHO 2011). In addition, developing healthy behaviours in adolescence can carry benefits into later life, which reduces the risk of adverse health conditions such as diabetes or heart disease (Norrish, Robinson & Williams 2013).

Health may be defined as the ability to adapt and manage physical, mental, and social challenges throughout life:

• Physical – physical and physiological health in the body and its systems

• Emotional – the presence of positive emotions and the ability to manage emotions

• Social – the presence of warm, trusting relationships and the capacity to interact with others

• Psychological – ability to handle challenges and feelings of confidence for the future (Keyes 2002, 2005).¹

"The first one from our study is: You need to take care of your body like you’re going to need it for 100 years. And if you do that, you end up much more likely to be happy, as well as well. And that means exercise. It means eating well. It means when you can, get regular health care. Getting enough sleep." - Robert Waldinger, Head of the Harvard Study of Adult Development discussing the two behaviors that most predict living a life of happiness and meaning. The second criteria is the importance of relationships. How to Build a Happy Life podcast.

Health textbook author Dianne Hales in her book "An invitation to health: Taking Charge of Your Health (19th ed.)" offers another breakdown of the components of health. There is a lot of crossover in her descriptions with the other PERMAH pillars.

• Community - "Educators have expanded the traditional individualistic concept of health to include the complex interrelationships between one person’s health and the health of the community and environment.

• Environmental - Environmental health refers to the impact your world has on your well-being. It involves protecting yourself from dangers in the air, water, and soil, as well as in products you use.

• Intellectual - Intellectual health refers to your ability to think and learn from life experience, your openness to new ideas, and your capacity to question and evaluate information.

• Occupational and Financial - Choosing work 'that is consistent with your personal values and beliefs and to learn how to manage your money and safeguard your financial well-being.'

• Physical - Physical health is an optimal state of well-being, not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. Health is not a static state but a process that depends on the decisions we make and the behaviors we practice every day.

• Psychological - Encompasses our emotional and mental states—that is, our feelings and our thoughts. It involves awareness and acceptance of a wide range of feelings in oneself and others, as well as the ability to express emotions, function independently, and cope with the challenges of daily stressors.

• Social - Social health refers to the ability to interact effectively with other people and the social environment, to develop satisfying interpersonal relationships, and fulfill social roles.

• Spiritual - Spiritually healthy individuals identify their own basic purpose in life; learn how to experience love, joy, peace, and fulfillment; and help themselves and others achieve their full potential. As they devote themselves to others’ needs more than their own, their spiritual development produces a sense of greater meaning in their lives."

"Physical and mental health issues are often interrelated and can have a profound effect on one’s self and those around them. The holistic view of self and wellbeing includes physical health, mental health, and attention to spirituality; all of which need attention." - The Positive Psychology People

Do note that the WHO does define mental health as separate from emotional health though there is overlap. Positive Psychology offers the following definition:

Mental health is a dynamic state of internal equilibrium that enables individuals to use their abilities in harmony with the universal values of society. Basic cognitive and social skills; ability to recognize, express, and modulate one’s own emotions, as well as empathize with others; the flexibility to cope with adverse life events and function in social roles; and harmonious relationship between body and mind represent essential components of mental health contribute, to varying degrees, to the state of internal equilibrium (Galderisi et al., 2015).

A more concise definition is that being mentally healthy is having "the ability to perceive reality as it is, respond to its challenges, and develop rational strategies for living". (Hales, D., 2021)

The characteristics of mental health include:

• The ability to function and carry out responsibilities.

• The ability to form relationships.

• Realistic perceptions of the motivations of others.

• Rational, logical thought processes.

• The ability to adapt to change and to cope with adversity.

The Canadian HeretoHelp consortium of mental health supporting agencies provides a helpful series of learning modules on the topics of:

• Mental Health Matters

• Stress and Well-Being

• Social Support

• Problem-Solving

• Anger Management

• Getting a Good Night’s Sleep

• Eating and Living Well

• Healthy Thinking

• Finding Balance

• Staying Mentally Healthy with Technology

• Mindfulness

Living It and Teaching with Health: Which strengths in which situations help us engage within this PERMAH pillar?

Living and Teaching Resources>

Characteristics of an emotionally healthy person from Positive Psychology:

• Coping skills toolkit ready to be engaged

• Emotional agility helps one thrive through difficulties. Check our section on the Character Strength of Grit (resilience)

• Kindness (Character Strength) and Curiosity (Character Strength) make up much of an emotionally healthy person's social interactions (Relationships Pillar)

• Living with Purpose thinking (Character Strength) about one's inner experiences less while focusing on how to serve others

• Manages stress well

• Self-acceptance

• Self-awareness

• Self-care to a high level

How Is the H of My PERMAH Today & Tomorrow? - Use this worksheet to drill down on the current state of your positive emotions while also planning for tomorrow.

Ways to Improve and Maintain Emotional Health from Positive Psychology:

• Practice mindfulness

• Practice meditation

• Improve sleep hygiene

• Nurture social connections (Relationships Pillar)

• Manage stress through regular exercise, accepting things out of one's control, having outlets to identify and express emotions (e.g., journaling, someone to listen to us), and self-reflection to acknowledge positive and negative emotional expression patterns.

• Raise the time spent discussing positive topics to keep the positive-to-negative ratio to at least 3:1

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Physical Fitness - There is a multitude of healthy eating, sleeping, fitness, and meditation apps, books, video channels, and other resources from which to choose to support one's physical and overall wellbeing (mind-body connection). Here is one collection of such resources.

Nurturing versus Depleting Activities - This worksheet helps you reflect upon which activities support your self-care and which detract from it.

Positive Self-Talk - Review the list of activities designed for adults and children to try some of the provided exercises.

Self-Care Check-In - Use this worksheet to assess how you are doing with your self-care.

Self-Care Wheel - The Self-Care Wheel is a positive psychology tool for supporting a balanced life while maximizing potential. It expands our understanding of health into intellectual, social, spiritual, and a few other versions of health. The author lists a HUGE number of self-care strategies.

Self-Compassion - "Self-compassion is a healthy form of self-acceptance and self-care that enhances wellness and strengthens resilience. Some psychologists describe it as being kind to yourself in the face of suffering and practicing a "reciprocal golden rule," in which you treat yourself with the kindness usually reserved for others. In contrast, individuals low in self-compassion are extremely critical of themselves, believe they are unique in their imperfection, and obsessively fixate on their mistakes." (Hales, D. 2021)

Individuals high in self-compassion tend to:

• Be understanding toward themselves when they make mistakes.

• Recognize that all humans are imperfect.

• Not ruminate about their errors in judgment or behavior.

• Accept their flaws. When feeling inadequate, engage in soothing and positive self-talk.

• Do not exaggerate the significance of painful thoughts (though they're mindful of them).

• Manage frustration by quelling self-pity and melodrama.

• Let go of regrets, illusions, and disappointments.

• Seek psychological help when needed.

• Take responsibility for actions that may have harmed others without needing to punish oneself.

Self-Compassion Through Self-Care - You can search the web for multiple strategies to help you care for yourself to practice self-compassion. Dr. Kristin Neff provides a list of activities that includes meditations and exercises. See below for a supporting graphic organizer from Positive Psychology.

Self-Understanding - Go through a helpful list of questions to help your self-reflection to support your mental health.

Stress - An essential aspect of self-understanding involves awareness of how life affects us. One common aspect of life is stress. While we often frame stress as a negative influence in our lives, we recognize that there are also positive stressors, such as important individual and family events such as a new job, a wedding, and personal athletic competitions. By understanding the types of stress, we can better exercise our Character Strengths within the PERMAH pillars to lessen how stress affects us. The following is one framework to help in this self-monitoring process.

• Physical - "Stress, whether physical or psychological, triggers molecular changes within your body that affect your heart, muscles, immune system, bones, blood vessels, skin, lungs, gastrointestinal (digestive) tract, and reproductive organs.

• Psychological - Chronic stress affects thoughts and feelings, impairing your ability to learn and remember and contributing to anxiety and depression. However, positive emotions and attitudes, such as compassion and gratitude, can buffer the ill effects of stress and enhance satisfaction and genuine happiness.

• Social - Your relationships with your family, friends, coworkers, and loved ones affect and are affected by the stress in your life—and in challenging times, social support can buffer the adverse effects of stress.

• Intellectual - Even mild stressors can interfere with your brain's functioning by impairing sleep, dampening creativity, disrupting concentration and memory, and undermining your ability to make good choices and decisions.

• Occupational - Yes, our jobs and physical workplace can offer myriad stressors.

• Environmental - External forces such as pollution, noise, natural disasters, exposure to toxic chemicals, and threats to your safety can cause or intensify the stress in your life. These days, you also have to cope with a by-product of our 24/7, nonstop digital world: technostress, created by an unending barrage of texts, tweets, emails, notifications, pins, pokes, and other digital distractions." Note: Look to review the information and support strategies in the Digital Wellness section of this website. (Hales, D. 2021)

Stress Reduction - The folks at Positive Psychology offer their usual clear explanations along with many stress reduction activities. They put together two write-ups of breathing exercises: 1 and 2.

Stress Management Techniques

¹ UPP

Hales, D. (2021). An invitation to health: Taking Charge of Your Health (19th ed.). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning