Wellness

Ms. MacLean

Family Life 421

October 2011

What is wellness?

What is wellness? Good health practices which prevent or postpone

illness, or decrease their severity.

A way of living each day.

Choices and decisions based on healthy attitudes.

What we will discuss… Proper Nutrition

Emotional Wellness

Physical Wellness (Exercise)

Threats to Wellness (Alcohol, Drugs, Smoking)

Spiritual Wellness

Proper Nutrition

Proper Nutrition What is nutrition?

What is proper nutrition?

Why is proper nutrition important?

How does proper nutrition relate to wellness?

Proper Nutrition

Sesame Street – Healthy Food

Canada’s Food Guide Nutrition guide distributed by Health Canada.

The second most requested government document (after tax forms). WHY?

Divides healthy food into 4 categories. All other food are considered to be “others” and consumed in moderation.

Canada’s Food Guide Meat and Alternatives

Milk and Alternatives

Vegetables and Fruit

Grain Products

Emotional Wellness

Emotional Wellness Emotions are feelings experienced in reaction to

thoughts, remarks, or events.

Emotions are not right or wrong.

Reactions to emotions can be right or wrong.

Emotional Wellness Emotions are:

Common

Found in varying degrees (strong, subtle)

Ever-changing

Mixed (experience several emotions at the same time)

Emotional Wellness We all experience emotion differently.

What are some events in which you experience emotion?

What are your daily emotions?

It is important to understand WHY you feel something!

Emotional Wellness Just as it is important to be physically fit, it is also

important to be emotionally fit.

What is Emotional Fitness?

How can I be emotionally fit?

Emotional Development (p.33) Several basic needs must be met to develop

healthy emotions:

Security

Anxiety about one’s own well-being develops feelings of anger, frustration, and fear

Acceptance

Without this, children have trouble understanding and accepting others, and finding love

Emotional Development (p.33) Companionship

People need friendship and need to learn how to relate to others.

Success

Feelings of failure and inadequacy will result if one never feels success.

Opportunity

Need to have the chance to try new things.

Common Emotions (p. 34-36) Anger

Anger is an acceptable emotion.

Learning to handle anger constructively is a sign of maturity.

Closing anger inside of you is harmful.

Fear

A good emotion to keep you from doing something foolish.

Anxiety is a form of fear.

Phobias are extreme fears which are difficult to overcome.

Common Emotions (p. 34-36) Depression

Mood swings during adolescence are normal, but you must learn to manage the swings.

When you feel down, do an activity that fits your mood and this should improve your emotions.

Inferiority

Usually the feelings of inferiority are temporary,

Change your focus from yourself to someone or something else; this will take off the pressure you put on yourself.

The Development of Emotional Wellness

The way you deal with emotions today, has been

largely influenced by your emotional development

throughout childhood.

The Development of Emotional Wellness

Mary Ainsworth (1913-1999):

Developmental Psychologist (Studied the development of children)

A Canadian

Famous for her development of the

“Strange Situation” and the

“Attachment Theory”

“The Strange Situation” A procedure used to observe attachment

relationships between a child and their caregiver.

The child is observed playing for 20 minutes while caregivers and strangers enter and leave the room.

This is meant to recreate the flow of the familiar and unfamiliar presence of adults in children's lives.

“The Strange Situation” Parent and infant are introduced to the experimental room.

Parent and infant are alone. Parent does not participate while infant explores.

Stranger enters, converses with parent, then approaches infant. Parent leaves inconspicuously.

First separation episode: Stranger's behavior is geared to that of infant.

First reunion episode: Parent greets and comforts infant, then leaves again.

Second separation episode: Infant is alone.

Continuation of second separation episode: Stranger enters and gears behavior to that of infant.

Second reunion episode: Parent enters, greets infant, and picks up infant; stranger leaves inconspicuously.

“The Strange Situation” Four aspects of the child's behavior are observed:

1. The amount of exploration (e.g. playing with new toys) the child engages in throughout.

2. The child's reactions to the departure of its caregiver.

3. The stranger anxiety (when the baby is alone with the stranger).

4. The child's reunion behaviour with its caregiver.

“The Strange Situation”

The Strange Situation

Attachment Theory 3 types of attachment result from Ainsworth’s

theory:

Secure attachment

Anxious-resistant insecure attachment

Anxious-avoidant insecure attachment

Attachment Theory – Secure Attachment

The child will explore freely while the caregiver is present, will engage with strangers, will be visibly upset when the caregiver departs and happy to see the caregiver return.

The child will not engage with a stranger if their mother is not in the room.

Develops when the caregiver is available and able to meet the needs of the child in a responsive and appropriate manner.

Attachment Theory – Anxious Resistance (Insecure) Attachment

The child is anxious of exploration and of strangers, even when the caregiver is present.

When the caregiver departs, the child is extremely upset.

The child does not seem to care when the caregiver returns.

The baby may also hit or push the caregiver when approached or when picked up.

Attachment Theory – Anxious Avoidant Insecure Attachment

The child tends to avoid or ignore the caregiver - showing little emotion when the caregiver departs or returns.

Strangers will not be treated much differently from the caregiver. There is not much emotional range regardless of who is in the room or if it is empty.

The child's needs are frequently not met and the child comes to believe that communication of needs has no influence on the caregiver.

Attachment Theory

Secure, Avoidant & Ambivalent Attachment

Attachment Theory Well what happens if children do not develop

healthy emotional attachment relationships?

When Attachment Does Not Happen