Recently I have been thinking more about how to maximize the wellness of those around me, as this is an important part of my essential question. Through the research I have done, I have found that focusing on one’s own wellness alone already has immense impacts on the wellness of their friends, family and larger community. For example, after meditating, people are often more patient, understanding, and compassionate than before which can lead to better relationships and a life with more ease/less stress. This concept really just follows the idea that if you are healthy and happy your energy exudes to those around you. Manifesting one’s own wellness is very helpful in contributing to the wellness of those around them, but I don’t think that should be the soul focus. Practices such as gratitude, random acts of kindness and more are greatly beneficial to one’s own wellness, but when done with the intent of benefitting the other person, I believe these acts are more powerful.

Prior to my project, I had heard many times that before you love someone else you must first love yourself and I feel like wellness is very similar to that concept (but I think you can work on both relationships simultaneously – or at least after you have built a foundation of your own wellness). Ultimately, I believe the wellness of oneself and those they interact with is intertwined, and improving the quality of either of these components benefits the both of them. The nice thing about wellness is that even if you are trying to improve that is beneficial to you and others.