Creating a Healthier Life: 8 Dimensions of Wellness

SAMHSA has created a very helpful step-by-step guide to a healthier life that addresses the eight essential dimensions of wellness.* Use the guide to develop your personalized wellness plan. Here are a few excerpts and a link to the complete guide:

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) Wellness Initiative envisions a future in which people with mental or substance use problems pursue health, happiness, recovery, and a full and satisfying life in the community.

Each individual’s path will be a bit different.

Every aspect of wellness can affect a person’s life.

Working toward all of them in one way or another is a great goal, because wellness relates directly to the quality of a person’s life.

This guide offers a broad approach for things we can do—at our own pace, in our own time, and within our own abilities—that can help us feel better and live longer. Check it out.

*Source: Adapted from Swarbrick, M. (2006). A Wellness Approach. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 29(4), 311–314.

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