Whole Person Health

One of the things that became clear through the M.A.P.P. interviews, was the 3 core connections necessary in order to live a fully expressed, whole and healthy life.

The ways in which we nourish these connections may look differently for each of us- but they are critical to every person’s core needs for well being and vitality.

1.  Connection to Self

I firmly believe that to live out your full potential on any level, you must have a thriving and intentional practice of connecting to and caring for yourself. 

This encompasses the way you care for your physical body, your emotional health, your mental well being, and your spirit.

I often get asked by women interested in my courses, whether or not I am a Christian. I am, and though my work through the WellGrounded Life is not explicitly faith-based, there is no doubt that my faith plays a key role in the message I share and the way I guide and support women to health and wellness.

One of the main areas is how I understand our inner life and spirit.  When I seek to understand my own spirit more fully, I am also seeking to understand God’s Spirit more fully.  I do not see my need for deep connection to my inner self as distinct from my connection to God. 

If God dwells within me… the journey of looking inward is the way in which we can also look toward the Creator and Source of our life.

Caring for your body with true and real nourishment, fresh air, movement and respect is an extension of caring for your emotional, mental and spiritual well being – it is all connected.  You are not a compartmentalized being and the more you integrate your life, the more all the parts of who you are rise and expand.

2.  Connection to Others

The second connection is our connection to others.  Our relational health and well being. 

This is the care and feeding of those essential relationships of trust, understanding, love, camaraderie and honor that we were designed to experience.  While no one really needs a research study to prove this point, reams of data confirm that human beings were specifically made to be in relationship with others.

While this plays out differently in each woman’s life- her relationship with her spouse, children, friends, mother, sister, family and community- all play key roles in either supporting her to thrive and grow or limit her full expression.  Painful, disrespectful and shaming relationships are not nuetral.

Another common theme that surfaced from the MAPP Gathering interviews was the essential need for an inner tribe, a maternal network.  I spoke of this before when I talked about a conspiracy group.  Often these special and binding relationships are the main elements of a resilient and thriving personal life. 

3.  Connection to Purpose

Finally, is our outward connection to a greater purpose and meaning. 

Within each of us there is a growing, evolving expansive spirit.  Our desire to express ourselves, to be heard and known and to create meaning from our lives, is a universal experience. 

Expressing our creativity, following our passions, pursuing our dreams, connecting to meaning and purpose in our lives is the third critical connection we make and must nourish.

As a mother, there are seasons when this inner fire is well satisfied with the tending and raising and loving of our families.  For others the need to extend beyond our role as mothers and contribute and engage in the world in other ways as well, begins to surface and requires our attention.  And the way we navigate that path will be ours uniquely– though the exploration of what that roadmap looks like is almost always richer when we can explore it in the context of a loving, supportive network. 

These three core needs are always overlapping upon each other. 

The only way to distill the calling of your inner creative urges, your passions and purpose is to have a strong and clear connection and relationship with yourself.  And one of the best ways to nourish that connection and clarify your direction is within a circle of relationships that are based on honor, respect, and genuine care so that can safely be who you truly are.

This is the reason I created the MAPP Gathering interview series…and then conceived of the MAPP Toolkit: A Guided Workshop. 

I would love to hear your thoughts on these 3 core connections.  Which of these areas are in most need of care and nourishment in your life right now?

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