The 4 pillars of well-being

The high level of stress you face may be affecting the attention you give to basic principles for your physical and emotional health.

In this sense, our body and mind need to maintain a state of balance to live, not only with quality of life but with full health. Health is priceless.

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The main pillars of well-being

Have you noticed how sometimes people are more interested in physical goods, such as the house, the car, and even the external physical appearance? In relation to this, here is a case that makes us aware of the importance of the 4 pillars of well-being that They will allow you to strengthen your physical, psychological and emotional well-being and make you aware of how to reach your best state.

Pillar 1: The state of rest and the sleep-wake process

Naroa is a young woman who has a husband who loves her and whom she loves, two wonderful children, and for 3 years, she has been working in the company that she always wanted.

The Christmas season is Naroa's favorite; however, the days seem to be getting more and more complicated. She is not easy To fall asleep and when she seems like she has managed to sleep she rings the alarm clock. It is not easy to get up, but she knows that she has to wake up her children and then take them to school; And at the company she works for, she currently has big projects that require her full attention.

She knows that she has to fulfill her responsibilities, but she seems currently she does not find enjoyment in what she previously loved and was passionate about doing.

What about Naroa?

What happens to our body when there is not enough rest or as such, we do not have a restorative rest due to physical (health) or emotional conditions? What we know as allostasis implies that neurological, physiological and hormonal processes work in balance with sleep-wake processes.

Pillar 2: Food as the basis for obtaining nutrients that are converted into energy

Days go by and Naroa's children and husband have the illusion of living a beautiful Christmas, but it is no secret to anyone that Naroa's mood is not the best. Her family and her coworkers seek to cheer her up but they don't know what is wrong with her, and in reality she doesn't know it too. Her apathy is so much that she is not even feeding properly anymore.

In the morning, when she manages to wake up, she hardly has a coffee. On many occasions, her lack of time prevents her from having breakfast and she is left with only coffee in her stomach. Lunchtime arrives and Naroa feels her stomach irritate her. Her stomach has only received coffee, and therefore when she manages to rescue some energy and take action, her physical balance is not ideal.

What about Naroa?

What happens to our body when our intake is reduced, to the point of reaching an insufficient level, ceasing to consume foods that adequately supply the energy that the body requires?

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Pillar 3: Physical activity is key

Naroa still does not find well-being. Her husband, who has always supported her, asks her to seek professional help; she refuses, because she does not see any sense in it and she cannot imagine how a psychologist can help her. She wants to get up and get her energy back.

She remembers times when going out and doing at least one simple physical activity has allowed her to have a greater energy level, feeling of well-being and even very happy moments in which she has had a physical balance and emotional.

What about Naroa?

This pillar has to do with physical activity as a basis for the proper functioning of muscles, blood circulation, hydration processes and even as an adjunct for organic functioning.

Everything requires balance, and in this case, if Naroa simply allowed himself to start a process of intense exercise that did not correspond to the 2 pillars previous (if she does not rest and eats in a more balanced way), the exercise would become an imbalance factor that could cause a decompensation.

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Pillar 4: Social interaction as a factor that favors physical and mental health

Naroa feels a bit uncertain about what it will be like to help her family and continue to be an important supportive factor for those she loves. As she is thinking about Christmas Eve dinner, Naroa remembers how much she enjoys preparing for Christmas and how she loved being with the family; she thinks of her children, her husband and her professional successes.

Naroa's friends have not received communication from her for months, and consequently, what at some point they were demonstrations of interest and appreciation for the people with whom she related she is seeing herself severely affected.

Your socialization is being severely affected and, as a consequence, her mood is also being affected by this situation. She has even distanced herself from her family and has little social interaction with them, she no longer shows joy from communicating with them. The principle of "Be good yourself first so that you can offer something better to those you love" begins to make sense.

What about Naroa?

Social interaction is a factor that favors emotional balance, psychological regulation, and physical and mental health. It is no secret that when we maintain healthy social interaction and emotional ties with other people, psychological well-being improves, self-esteem and self-confidence are favored and we become a source of positive contribution to the lives of other people.

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What can we learn from all this?

Naroa, like most of us when faced with something new and unknown to us, she had refused the opportunity to go to therapy. However, once the opportunity for improvement is identified and once she has spoken with her psychologist, she begins to see the possibility of feeling liberated by expressing what she is feeling, and later begin to identify and assimilate the process that she has been going through, until reaching the root cause u "origin". Something that seems less difficult now that she feels supported and loved by her friends and family.

His therapist began by asking him about his quality of sleep. "How are you sleeping?", She asks Naroa. She expressed to him how difficult it is to spend nights without sleep and feeling exhausted all day and going to bed again and not being able to fall asleep.

He also asked him about his physical activity, to which he replied that between his activities at home and his work he had no time to exercise.

The next question was about feeding him, to which he replied that there were times that he did not have time to eat, and that when he finally had the opportunity to do so, his diet was unbalanced.

And when the therapist asked him about time to relax, he simply replied that he hasn't known in a long time what it's like to feel relaxed.

Unfortunately, more and more people are living situations very similar to those that Naroa was experiencing. The demands that many of us have imposed on ourselves lead us to forget about living and enjoying life. And we even believe that the fast-paced way in which we live is normal.

It is time for you to think if the meaning you are giving to your life is what you really want and if what you are doing is what is going to give you the quality of life you want.

I know you can tell me: you do not know the condition in which I live and what I have to do to get things out go ahead, I can't afford to stop let alone relax, that's not for me, it just isn't for me possible... I invite you to reflect on the following: if we sleep well, eat healthily, do physical activity and learn relaxation techniques, in addition to achieving physical and psychological well-being, our level of productivity is multiply.

When we sleep, the body relaxes and favors the production of serotonin which helps reduce stress, improves concentration and helps us to be happier and emotionally stronger.

Healthy eating helps us to keep the heart healthy, stimulate the brain, reduce the probability of developing certain diseases and to feel well-being.

Exercising produces endorphins, which they allow us to feel in a good mood and allow the brain to cope with stress in a better way; it also helps prevent disease and increases our energy.

On the other hand, relax decreases physical and mental stress, increases creativity, improves the quality of learning and memorization.

To achieve balance in your daily life it is necessary that you take these pillars into account; If we do not pay attention to any of them, this physical and emotional balance cannot be achieved.

Returning to Naroa's case, it is likely that she has begun to lose her physical and emotional balance because without a conscious intention stopped attending to any of these pillars and, as a consequence, the other pillars were also seen affected. Coupled with this is the lack of attention to one or more of the events in the early stages of life that required to be assimilated and / or re-signified.

What led Naroa to live her life in "automatic", without enthusiasm or motivation, were situations that were a bit less complicated than she imagined, and now that she has allowed herself to receive the care she needs and is deserves.