Compare And Contrast Essay, Research Paper

In both the junior high as well as the high school I attended, students were expected to

participate in various health classes in order to meet graduation requirements. Because of

these classes I was required to take, I consider myself to be somewhat knowledgeable on

the subject of human health. I learned about the six dimensions of health and understood

that there was more to being a healthy person than being well physically. I was also

taught that I have a great deal of control over my wellness. I was taught that by making

positive or negative lifestyle choices I would be controlling my level of wellness. I know

quite a bit about what I should and shouldn?t do, so why do I still make negative choices?

The first dimension of health that I learned about is that of physical wellness. I

learned that exersize is very important to a person who wants to be physically healthy. I

know that I can increase my life expectancy by exercising regularly, and that I can also

decrease my risk of dying from cardiovascular disease, but I just can?t bring myself to do

it. I have never had a problem with my weight. I can eat tons and not gain a pound, so I

never felt it was necessary to exersize regularly. Perhaps realizing how much it will

benefit me will inspire me. I would love to increase my resistance to fatigue and give

myself the ability to recover quicker from injury or illness. I just need to realize that my

physical wellness is more important that lounging in front of the television watching my

favorite television show. While as of now I have made to negative lifestyle choice of not

exercizing, I have made a possitive choice by not smoking. I hear about how smoking is

very dangerous, and that it causes cardiovascular disease, lung disease, numerous cancers,

circulatory problems, and birth defects. On television and in my health classes we are told

time and time again that smoking can kill you. I believe on of the smartest decisions I

have ever made was the day that I picked up my mom?s pack of cigarettes and began

debating in my mind whether or not to try one. I flipped the box in my hand and read the

surgeon?s general warning. At this pint I thought to myself, if they are telling the public

right on the box that smoking is very bad, shy in the world am I going to do it? Right then

I made the positive decision never to smoke.

The second dimension of health that I feel I know a great deal about is that of

emotional well-being. From my eighth grade year through my junior year of high school, I

will admit that I was not very healthy emotionally. A person?s emotional state is effected

by stress and one?s hormonal ability to cope with circumstances. Throughout those years

I was very stressed and was having much trouble coping with circumstances. My parents

had gotten divorced because my father was a crazy alcoholic, and he was giving us many

problems. M mom also got remarried, and I was not dealing with that situation well. I

was experiencing severe emotional problems due to low self-esteem and guilt because I

felt that everything was my fault. I made the negative decision of putting myself in

abusive relationships. I was hanging out with people who were mean to me and were into

drugs. The boyfriend that I had also treated me quite badly. But with the help of my

mother I realized that I had a problem and made the positive choice of seeing a therapist

and breaking off any relationships that were unhealthy or abusive. Today I consider

myself to be a very emotionally will individual.

Next there is intellectual wellness. Intellectual wellness consist of the brain?s

ability to process information. I have made a very positive decision in my quest to achieve

intellectual well-being. I read very often. My friends and family all call me a bookworm.

I read any assignment I have for school, and not a day goes by that I am not reading a

novel for pleasure. I have an active mind and a big imagination, and reading allows me to

explore those. I am interested in many different things, and always like to learn something

new. I have been taught that consuming alcohol will have a negative impact on

intellectual health. In the past I have been good about this, but since I have gotten to

college I am afraid I have been making some negative lifestyle choices involving the

consumption of alcohol. I realize that it affects the way one?s brain functions. I know that

alcohol makes it difficult for a person to process information, detect problems, and find

solutions, but I am having a great deal of trouble avoiding it.

Another dimension of wellness that I have learned a little bout in the past is that of

spiritual heath. I was taught that in order to achieve spiritual wellness, a person should

believe in a higher power and have an organized religion. I have always believed in God.

My religion is Eastern Orthodox. I was taught many important values through Sunday

school and church. Every night before I go to sleep I say my prayers. I have been doing

this for as long as I can remember. Saying my prayers gives me hope, and having faith in

God always helps me get through tough times. Unfortunately, this past year I have made

a negative decision by stopping my regular attendance to church. I have been very busy

and let it slip away. I?, sort mad at myself for doing so, but I still say my prayers every

night and ask that God understand and forgive me.

Yet another aspect of human health that I have been educated on is that of

interpersonal and social wellness. I have very good relationships with people and very

caring and supportive friends. I am now very close with my mother and I feel that there is

a lot of love on both sides of our relationship. My roommate here at school is very

supportive friend. She is very encouraging when I feel overwhelmed by schoolwork and

other things. I have learned to keep away from people who are unsupportive and cannot

be counted on.

The last dimension of wellness that I have learned a bit about in the past is

environmental wellness. I have realized how strong of an impact the environment has on

my life. I try to do things to help it. Back at home my family believed strongly in

recycling and I brought those beliefs to school with me. I don?t believe I ever throw a can

of pop in the trash. I also have told every girl who brushes their teeth at the same time as

me to turn off the water while doing so. Why not conserve? I feel good about myself

when I do things to help the enviornment which keeps humans alive. I am disgusted by

people who dump wasted into the ocean and get very upset when I see someone throw a

can in the trash when there is a recycling bin less that a foot away.

Every day I try to improve my health in some way. My goal is to achieve physical,

emotional, intellectual, spiritual, interpersonal, and environmental health. I realize that in

order to do so I will have to drop many negative habits that I have picked up, so I intend

to work hard at doing so. I want to live a long and healthy life and intend to use what I

learn in my health classes to reach my goal.