WELLNESS, SELF-CARE

AND CREATIVITY
Counseling And Psychiatric Services
(CAPS)
Dr. Makon Fardis

Holistic View of Wellness

Wellness

Optimal health and vitality

Includes the following domains:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Physical
Socioemotional
Intellectual
Spiritual
Environmental

Domains of Wellness
Physical

Eating well
Exercising
Avoiding harmful habits
Healthy sexual practices
Medical / dental checkups &
treatment
Preventing injuries

Socioemotional

Awareness and expression of

thoughts and feelings
Satisfying relationships and
interactions
Positive self-image
Communication & conflict
resolution skills
Capacity for intimacy
Support network of friends
and/or family
Participation in and contribution
to the community

Spiritual

Having guiding beliefs,

principles, values that give
meaning and purpose to life
Capacity for love, compassion,
forgiveness, altruism, and joy
Can be fulfilled in different ways
like religion, art, nature,
meditation, political action, etc.

Intellectual:

Mental and intellectual

stimulation and activity
Openness to new ideas as well
as capacity to question & think
critically
Humor, creativity, curiosity

Environmental

Both the community and global

environment
Protecting oneself against health
hazards, eg avoiding secondhand smoke.

Wellness Indicators
Consistent, satisfying
relationships & support
network

Adapting to changing
conditions

Occupational/academic
productivity

Pleasant
activities/hobbies/interests

Joyful, happy experiences

Identifying & communicating

feelings in an adaptive way

Expressing gratitude

Sense of humor
Spiritual involvement
Recovery after setbacks
Positive expectations &
tendency to frame events
constructively

Wellness Continuum

Optimal Levels of Stress

Major Vs. Minor Stressors:

An event doesnt have to be catastrophic to be stressful;
small events can add up.

Types of Stress

Frustration:
Conflict:
Change:
Pressure:

Blocked goal
Two or more incompatible motivations
Having to adapt
Expectations to behave in certain
ways; to perform or conform

Conflict as a
Cause of
Stress

Classic Example of Conflict: Hamlet

To be, or not to be: that is the question:

Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles.
And by opposing end them?
Act III, Scene I

Response to Stress
Fight or Flight Response (Cannon, 1914)
Bodys evolutionary response to help deal with danger
Decision: Fight or run?
Physiological reactions

heart rate, blood pressure, temperature, muscular strength &

tone, etc

Cognitive reactions

Interpretation / appraisal of situation

Psychological response to stress

Annoyance, anger, rage
Apprehension, anxiety, fear
Dejection, sadness, depression

Cognitive Appraisal of a Situation

Stress Response over Time

Some of Health Consequences of Stress

immunity ( risk of infections)

risk for cardiovascular disease
risk for hypertension
gastrointestinal problems
musculoskeletal pain
sleep problems
skin complaints

Signs Of Stress

There just arent enough hours in the day

Difficulty making decisions or concentrating
Trouble meeting deadlines
Self-esteem problems
Irritability/becoming argumentative
Moodiness or depression
Forgetfulness/disorganization
Changes in sleep & appetite
Fatigue even with enough sleep
Having to smoke, drink , or use drugs to cope
Aches and pains

Personality & Stress

Pessimistic traits:

Tend to see the world a dismal, negative lens, worse-case-scenario

outlook
They worry excessively about things going wrong, expect more bad things
than good, tend to catastrophize, and have a hard time believing in
themselves and others
Think of problems as pervasive, long lasting, insolvable, & someones fault

Perfectionist traits:

Can cause unrealistic expectations & excessive stress

Often beat themselves up for falling short of their standards
May not even try a task because theyre too terrified of failure

Excitability:

Some are naturally more excitable & have a stronger emotional and
physiological response to events

Conscientiousness:

Fosters better health habits

Wellness & Creativity

Stress negatively impacts creativity.
Under stress, people hang on to the familiar.
Some broadly-accepted ideas to cultivate creativity (Epstein,
2000):

Capture your new idea

Seek out challenging tasks
Broaden your knowledge
Surround yourself with interesting things and people

Wellness & Creativity

Negative emotions narrow the scope of attention and

thought.
Stress fight or flight reaction tunnel vision
Creativity needs a broadened perspective on things.
Sadness is also found to inhibit innovation (Gasper, 2004).
Simple activities such as relaxation or stretching can lower the
anxiety and expand the creative capacity (Khasky & Smith, 1999).

There may be occassions when ingenuity happens under

time pressure but that is not the case most of the time.
Under stress, we get fixated on a specific detail of a project,
instead of recognizing the larger problem and exploring
other options.

Lifestyle & Stress

Bad habits feel good at the time but can create more
stress in the long run e.g. smoking, drinking,
overspending, overeating

Too much work

Inadequate help & support personally / professionally
No time for hobbies / fun / self-care
Insufficient sleep, exercise, breaks / vacation
Poor nutrition

Adaptive Coping Skills

Social support

Satisfying relationships
Talking to friends

Fun & games

Hobbies
TV, video games, etc for a
reasonable amount of time
Pampering yourself e.g.
warm bath, manicure /
pedicure, etc

Spending time with

yourself

Journaling
Mindfulness & mediation

Building yourself up

Positive affirmations & self

talk
Exercising
Improving lifestyle e.g. good
nutrition, adequate sleep &
down time

Positive Self Talk

Based in reality.
Examples

I can handle this.

I am a good person.
I dont need to be perfect.
I can do it.
I will be just fine.
This is not the end of the world.
Time for myself is important.
I can stay calm.
I have been able to manage it all in the past.

Teflon Mind
Accepts the things that
cannot change.

Changes the things can

be changed.

Develops the wisdom to

know the difference
between the two.

Acceptance vs. Change

Three of my major stressors which I CAN do something about:
1)____________________________________
2)____________________________________
3)____________________________________
My plan for this week / month to do something about these three stressors:
1)____________________________________
2)____________________________________
3)____________________________________
Three of my major stressors which I CANNOT do much about:
1)____________________________________
2)____________________________________
3)____________________________________
Even though I may not be able to control these stressors, how can I better deal with
them? What coping skills can help me?
1)____________________________________
2)____________________________________
3)____________________________________

Lifestyle
Nutrition

Good nutrition to have energy and stamina to handle stress.

Poor nutrition contributes to irritability, fatigue, sluggishness,
decreased cognitive functioning, mood fluctuations, etc.
Key issues:

Skipping meals may result in fluctuation of blood glucose

Avoiding excessive caffeine
Limiting high-fat, high-sugar foods
Fruit, vegetables, & water

Exercise

An outlet to release tension

Release of endorphins (feel-good chemicals), that in turn make one feel

calm and energized

Reduction of cortisol, a stress hormone

American Heart Association: 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise

at least 4-5 times/ week for good health & 30 60 minutes most
days for weight loss

More on Lifestyle
Inadequate Sleep
Anxiety, impatience, irritability, moodiness
Cognitive functioning, including reaction time, short-term
memory, information processing
Motivation,
Carelessness
Stress & burnout
Impaired judgment

Good Sleep Habits

Amount of sleep needed is different for people, most need about 8 h
Avoiding conflict or stressful conversations before bedtime
Avoid anything overstimulating e.g. some TV shows, dealing with
finances, etc

Time Management

Set Priorities
Schedule tasks for a time when youre most productive
Set realistic goals
Keep track of complete and incomplete tasks
Use all of your time wisely, such as time between classes
Make difficult / unpleasant tasks fun
Combine tasks whenever possible
Say NO when necessary

CAPS
Regular Hours:

Mon Fri
9 am 5 pm
202-687-6985

After Hours:

Any time outside of office hours

Emergency Phone: 202-444-PAGE (7243)
Ask for the CAPS clinician on call

Web:

http://caps.georgetown.edu/

For a copy of this presentation, contact:

Dr. Makon Fardis
Makon.Fardis@georgetown.edu
202-687-7058