November 2015:  Be Aware of Your Intellectual Wellbeing

Wellness through Awareness!

Welcome to the November issue of TotalWellbeing! In honor of Alzheimer’s Awareness Month we want to talk about Intellectual Wellbeing. This month we ask you to strive to make good habits that support your intellect and lifelong building of neuro-pathways in your brain. Read books, study music, lean new languages, dance, or try to do tasks with your non-dominant hand. All these things will build new pathways and help reinforce your brain as you get older. For a closer look at intellectual wellbeing and how it relates to our topics this month please read The Path, below.

As usual we invite to check out MINESblog. October was Breast Cancer Awareness month, so we took the opportunity to explore this topic from the eyes of caretakers and others who are caring for a loved one that has been diagnosed with a deadly disease. Our post explored the huge emotional and physical toll care-giving can have, and ways that a caretaker can support themselves while also supporting their loved one. On a lighter note, October 21^st was “Back to the Future Day,” which for those of you who don’t know, was the day that Marty and Doc traveled to in the movie “Back to the Future 2.” In honor of this fun occasion, we took some time to look at the top advancements in health care, employee benefits, and mental health since the movie’s release in 1989. Check it out!

Continue to watch the MINESblog to see the latest discussions about wellbeing topics and tips on staying healthy and stress-free. For even more great resources be sure to explore the links to the left with important resources such as our LinkedIn showcase pages and Balanced Living Magazine.

To your total wellbeing,

The MINES Team

The Path

Intellectual wellbeing, like any of the dimensions of wellbeing we discuss, is something that you should strive to nurture every day and throughout your life. Intellect is something that you can grow but you must also maintain it. Especially as you get older it becomes increasingly important that you strive to feed your brain and keep it busy to avoid losing any of your cognitive functioning. Make it fun. Choose puzzles or games that you enjoy, but that will also engage your memory or complex thinking. It can be anything from doing Sudoku puzzles in the morning all the way to dedicating yourself to learning a new language or a musical instrument. The goal here is to build new neuro-pathways. Over time various factors such as disease, lifestyle habits, and environmental contamination, can breakdown pathways in your brain and the more pathways you have already built, the more prepared your brain will be for whatever might happen.

No matter what your age it is important to exercise your memory. Great ways to do this include puzzles and learning new things like a musical instrument or a foreign language. The ways you can expand your mind are endless. Check out some great tips and facts about improving your memory from HelpGuide.org by clicking below.

Read the full article here!

If you want to join the battle against Alzheimer’s and help end this terrible disease once and for all, click below and find out how you can join the cause with the Alzheimer’s Association.

Get Involved!

 Chakra To Your Senses

Many cultures believe in Chakras (shock-ras) which are, simply put, energy centers in your body that govern various aspects of your physiology. We will stay away from any religious aspects of these, such as their Buddhist symbolism, and instead focus on the general concept behind them to bring you more ways to nurture your body as well as mind. Click here to see a complete list of the 7 chakras and their properties.

Chakras to nurture this month: Crown and Heart

In order to support your intellectual wellbeing it will be important to be aware of, and nurture, your Third Eye and Throat Chakras. Your Third Eye Chakra, located on your forehead, is the location of your center for intelligence and wisdom, while your Throat Chakra is right where you think it would be. No surprise your Throat Chakra is the center for communication and expression. The reason these two are important to intellectual wellbeing is that in order for ideas and wisdom to prosper and spread we not only need to have free thought but also free expression to share the ideas and wisdom that we create as individuals. Support your centers of intelligence by creating and thinking outside the box, but don’t stop there, share your ideas and get others to do the same. Now get out there and have fun and be well!