The idea here is based around what we call it the Five Systems Model (shown below). The Model says that all humans are made up of five systems – body, mind, behaviour, context and spirit.
The mind and body are connected in building and maintaining health and wellbeing. In fact all five systems are connected and can work in harmony to create and sustain great health and wellbeing.
What we do in one area of our life effects the way we feel in another area.
For example, the way we feel in our body (our physical health) affects the way our brain and mind functions (e.g. attention, mood, thoughts and feelings) and this in turn affects our behaviour, including the way we behave with others.
There is an emerging and highly significant research evidence base on the importance of mind-body connections in health and wellbeing. And you will know this from your own everyday experiences – a sore back or headache makes everything seem more negative, while a bad mood affects our energy and our approach to tasks and to people.
Positive input in one aspect of ourselves or our lives, ensures positive impact will flow naturally and simply into the other areas too. This creates balance or homeostasis in all five systems.
The Five Systems which feature in the LifeMatters model are:
(1) Body (2) Mind (3) Behaviour (4) Context and (5) Spirit
Getting the most out of life means thinking, feeling and behaving in healthy, resilient and stress regulated ways. The aim is to work at keeping health and balance in all five systems. Steps taken to work on any one system will affect all other systems also.
THE LIFEMATTERS TAKE FIVE MODEL:
Using the Five Systems model, we can find a new way of looking at our well- being that considers a human being as a whole, with connections between the mind, body, behaviour and environment. Looking after your Spirit helps promote balance, health and wellbeing in your life and in your world.
As humans we have this amazing drive towards health and happiness and an ability to restore balance when given time to rest and restore. This ability does not stay the same, it changes over time. Every day brings a new chance to build on experience or to start again.
The ability to restore balance is not the same for all of us. We each have our different strengths and vulnerabilities and we can learn to get to know these and work with them to build and maintain great health and wellbeing. For all of us, whatever our own particular strengths and weaknesses may be, and whatever our starting point, we can use the TAKE Five steps to make ourselves healthy and happy.
In the TAKE FIVE Model there are five parts to health and wellbeing and five parts to ill health. This is an idea that can be found throughout history and all over the world. It is an idea shared by the mystics of Tibet, by top athletes, and by successful people in all areas of life.
Why not start building great mental health and wellbeing today. Just remember to take 5.
Download the picture above and stick it somewhere you will see it often and it will remind you to take care by TAKE FIVE
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