Unit 10, Reflections

After reflecting on my Unit 3 blog post, I feel like I can say that my assessment at that time was pretty true, and has only slightly improved in the last few weeks. I feel as though I can genuinely say that overall I am in good health mentally, physically, emotionally, as well as spiritually. This is something that has been the core of my personality for as long as I can remember. I was raised to be string and self-reliant, yet also knew the importance of family and spirituality. For me I would say that my level of physical health could still be rated as an 8 or 9, with room to improve my strength and cardiovascular fitness. I continue to live a very physically active life, with regular exercise healthy meal choices and a medically good health status. My spiritual well-being has improved slightly to about an 8 out of ten as I feel that my efforts to reconnect with nature and my beliefs has benefited me. In the case of my psychological and emotional well-being I would say that I am at about an 8 or 9 as well. I continue to be a strong and self-aware individual with the ability to see the positive in nearly any situation. I was raised to believe that everything happens for a reason, and I truly still let that guide my views of life. As I said in unit 3, “I do not suffer from depression or PTSD as a result of my military service or as a result of my experiences as a firefighter/paramedic. I have a very good relationship with my friends and family and can easily talk about anything that is bothering me. I also pay close attention to my emotions and try to deal with them appropriately as they change. My training and expertise as both a combat medic and paramedic have prepared me well to recognize and manage the signs of mental illness, depression, anger, and remorse. As a result I feel that my acute awareness makes me uniquely prepared to handle the stresses of my job and life”. I do not feel that these aspects of my personality have changed in any way as I continue to draw from my experiences as a source of inner strength. I have continued to strive to improve myself as I previously laid out in unit three: my goals in each of these areas would be to continue to maintain my diet and exercise routine while also striving to improve my health and fitness, to pay closer attention to my spiritual beliefs and try meditation or some other form of spiritual exercise, and to continue to confront my emotions as they arise while also setting a good example for my son by striving to remain a kind, caring, and gentle man. Mainly I have spent more time reconnecting with nature as a source of spiritual and psychological health, which has benefited me greatly. In addition, this course has truly fostered my inner peace and taught me the importance of patience. Although it was tough to open up about my experiences in the last two years which have brought me much pain and unhappiness, I feel as though I have come through a stronger and more in-touch individual. I feel that this newly found feeling of inner peace and patience has already helped me to be more accepting of others and more willing to understand where people are coming from before making up my mind.