| Wellness has been used in the context of alternative medicine since Halbert Dunn began using the phrase
high level wellness in the fifties, based on a series of lectures at a Unitarian Universalist Church in Arlington,
Virginia, in the United States. The modern concept of wellness did not, however, become popular until the 1970's.[1] (http://www.seekwellness.com/wellness/reports/2004-02-10.htm)
Wellness is generally used to mean a healthy balance of the mind-body and spirit that results in an overall feeling of
well-being.
Introduction
Alternative approaches to wellness is often denoted by the use of two difference phrases: health and wellness, and
wellness programs. These kind of wellness programs offer complementary and alternative medicine techniques to improve wellness. Whether these
techniques actually improve physical health is a different question. James
Randi and the James Randi
Educational Foundation are outspoken critics of this alternative new age concept
of wellness. The behaviors in the pursuit of wellness often include many health related
practices, such as natural therapies.
Wellness, as a luxury pursuit, is found obviously in the more affluent societies because it involves managing the body state
after the basic needs of food, shelter and basic medical care have already been met. Many of the practices applied in the pursuit
of wellness, in fact, are aimed at controlling the side effects of affluence, such as obesity and inactivity. Wellness grew as a popular concept starting in the 19th century, just as the middle class
began emerging in the industrialized world, and a time when a newly prosperous public had the time and the resources to pursue
wellness and other forms of self-improvement.
Wellness Programs
Definitions of wellness vary depending upon who is promoting it. These wellness promoters try to facilitate a healthier
population and a higher quality of life. Wellness can be defined as the pursuit of a healthy, balanced lifestyle.
Wellness, as an alternative concept, is generally thought to mean more than the mere absence of disease; rather it is a optimal
state of health. Wellness is pursued by people interested in recovering from ill health or specific health conditions or by those
interested in optimizing their already good state of health.
Supporters of these programs believe that many factors contribute to wellness: living in a clean environment, eating organic
food, regularly engaging in physical exercise, balance in career;
family; and relationships, and developing religious faith. But, there are two basic widely different
approaches to wellness. The original faith-based wellness programs offer a spiritual approach which is in opposition to the more
recent secular wellness promoters.[2] (http://www.seekwellness.com/wellness/reports/2004-02-10.htm)
Some well known wellness promoters, or speakers, would be: Deepak
Chopra, Ken Cooper, Stephen Gould, Robert Schuller, Elaine Sullivan, and Andrew Weil.
Secular-based wellness programs
The aging population participates in wellness programs in order to feel better and have more energy. Wellness programs allows
individuals to take increased responsibility for their health behaviors. People often enroll in a private wellness program in
order to improve fitness, stop smoking, or to learn how to manage their weight.
Workplace wellness programs are recognized by more and more companies for their value in improving health and well-being of
their employees. They are part of a company's health and safety program. These wellness programs are design to improve employee
morale, loyalty, and productivity. They could consist of as little as a gym full of exercise equipment that is available to their
employees on company property during the workday. But they may also cover smoking cessation programs, nutrition; weight; or stress
management training, health risk assessments, and health screenings.
Faith-based wellness programs
Faith organizations often provide an array of services to residents in need, such as food, shelter, clothing, childcare and
senior services in the community. Faith based wellness ministries are simply wellness programs sponsored by the faith-based
community which are similar to those offered by the business community, but generally also offer information on the
quasi-spiritual, New Age and quasi-religious aspects of wellness. Here, wellness is viewed as a quest for spiritual wholeness.
Robert Schuller's be happy Beatitudes. for example, expounds upon the New Testament and presents eight positive principles for fulfillment. These types
of conferences offer themes like: Faith, Hope and Health. New Age guru Deepak Chopra,
author of more than 40 books on spirituality and health, offers an alternative and New Age spirituality perspective to
wellness.
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