It’s hard to believe summer is almost over, and we are heading towards the beautiful display of fall colors and then on to the holiday season. Just as each season appears to stand alone, it actually depends on the conditions in the other seasons to be at its peak. The same is true for us. To be at our overall best, we need a healthy balance of the different dimensions of wellness.

Eight Dimensions of Wellness

These dimensions are interconnected and important to an overall balanced life. Awareness of the factors that influence wellness allows you to make choices that contribute to your overall quality of life.

1. Physical
2. Occupational/Vocational
3. Financial
4. Social
5. Psychological
6. Intellectual
7. Spiritual
8. Environmental

Fall VigR — Focus on Dimensions of Wellness

Our Fall 2017 VigR® programming was designed with the eight dimensions of wellness in mind. Of course, keeping our physical body healthy is a must. A sleep expert will help us get a good night’s sleep, a pharmacist will tell us what we need to know about medications and their interactions, a nutritionist will fill us in on the foods that will help to maximize our cognitive health and a physical therapist will teach us exercises to strengthen our bones. If you can’t wait until the fall to learn the exercises to build your bones, get an early start by hiking with the Philadelphia Trail Club.

All Aspects of Life are Interconnected

Since all aspects of our life are interconnected, a healthy physical body can’t be at its best without a healthy mind and spirit.  Learn how to live in the moment in our six-week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction workshop and the retreat that follows.  Go within and experience the peacefulness that results from walking a labyrinth in a beautiful setting. If you would like to focus on what really matters to you at the end of life and learn the best way to communicate it to loved ones, attend the Frontline PBS screening and panel discussion on Dr. Atul Gawande’s Being Mortal best-selling book.

New experiences and learning new things help to keep our brains healthy and are a lot of fun to boot. For those of you who are mushroom fans, join us for the tour of The Woodlands at Phillips to learn how gourmet mushrooms are grown, the health benefits of these tasty treats and to try a gourmet mushroom sample.

Having a good handle on our financial health is extremely important to our well-being. Attend our VigR Wellness Webinar to learn the ins and outs of Medicare and how the Apprise program can help you choose the supplemental coverage that is the most beneficial to you.

If you would really like a brain teaser, attend our workshop on organizing and storing the many pictures that you have acquired over the years! Our workshop leader will show you step-by-step how to organize your photos into digital albums. Bring new life to your memories by organizing them to share with family and friends.

Since we had such a long waiting list for her spring tour of Boathouse Row, Dotty Brown has agreed to lead another tour this fall. Dotty’s spring tour was full of interesting information and her passion for her subject came through loud and clear.

Clarissa Dillon, a living historian, wowed her audience so much in the spring that they asked for more. Clarissa brings history to life in a very entertaining, informative and engaging way. She will be teaching us about 18^th-century mothers and how they served as the doctors in their communities.

Friends Life Care members are a wonderful source of expertise and we asked two Friends Life Care members, who led programs in the spring, to return in the fall so they could share their programs with even more members.

Register Today For a VigR Workshop

Learn more about the dimensions of wellness.  Check out the whole Fall 2017 VigR schedule and register online.  Bring a friend too. There are programs for everyone. Some have limited space so be sure to reserve your spot today! You can also register by calling Friends Life Care at 215-628-8964. We look forward to seeing you this fall.

Blog Contributor:

Gail Tomarchio, MA, LPC, BCC, Director of Wellness Initiatives, is a Licensed Professional Counselor, a Board-Certified Coach, and a certified yoga instructor.  She is passionate about health and wellness and about helping others overcome their self-perceived limitations to live their most authentic life. Her expertise comes from years of studying human behavior, the Dimensions of Wellness, positive psychology, and habit change and integrating this into every aspect of her work. In addition to program development, counseling and coaching, Gail has presented workshops on various wellness topics, written articles for wellness newsletters and an article on the positive role of mindfulness in the workplace, published in CDHC Solutions, a magazine for employee health professionals.  She formerly hosted a radio show on B101 Philadelphia, discussing health related issues.