Click on any of the categories below to find quick tips and information on improving your wellbeing. Our wellbeing can affect every part of our life, even our health and safety at work. Cultivating self-awareness, personal empowerment and healthy habits can bring about positive changes in our life, equip us with better coping skills, and enable us to take control of the challenges we face at work, at home, or anywhere else.
doctor in consultation with depressed female patient
Most of us will do our best to maintain our physical health because we know it affects our wellbeing. We exercise, we take health supplements and we eat healthily. Yet, many of us will overlook our mental and emotional health. We overwork our brain. We pack our life with activities at work and at home. We also overload our brain with sensory stimulation. We attach ourselves to the cellphone, computer and television. We let our brain become mentally exhausted. The effects accumulate overtime, distracting our ability to focus and creating stress in our body. It also increase our chances of getting sick or injured.
Our mind and body shares a connection. Staying healthy mentally and emotionally is just as important as being healthy physically. When one aspect is compromised so will the other, and the consequence can affect every part of our life. When we get injured for example, we may have to stop working. This interruption may affect our income and our ability to support our family. It may create stress. We may also not be able to enjoy life because we can no longer spend time on doing the things that make us feel good.
Aside from health, our experiences and level of satisfaction in life also affect our wellbeing, and vice versa. These contributing factors shape our values and beliefs. They also drive our emotions and actions. For those considering retirement for instance, your decision may be influenced by your health status, your current financial situation, and your level of satisfaction at work. You may also have to consider your family responsibilities and the people you may need to take care of. All of these factors shape your perception on retirement and influence your decision. Generally, individuals who have poor health or have caregiving responsibilities tend to retire earlier than those in better health. Research has also found that individuals who exit the workforce with a positive outlook are more likely to enjoy retirement and live well.
healthy asian senior couple drinking coffee in the morning park
group of people planting vegetable in greenhouse
Relationships are vital to our wellbeing as well. Humans are social beings. When we are able to connect and bond with the people around us, our brain receives ‘feel good’ signals. Conversely, when we get rejected socially, our brain feels ‘hurt’. This feeling sometimes translates into physical pain. We get gut-wrenching feelings and our heart aches. Relationships can also affect our health in other ways. When we get into conflicts with our co-workers, we may get stressed and our blood pressure may rise. Poor relationships may also lead to emotional turmoil. Research has found that lonely individuals tend to be at great risk of depression.
Wellbeing is integral to success. Wellbeing embodies our health, our experiences and our level of satisfaction in life. It also encompasses our quality of life, and our relationship with others. We associate wellbeing with positive feelings and experiences. For example, happiness, healthiness, fulfilment and optimism. When we are happy, healthy and engaged in life, we bring forward the best version of ourselves. We are living well. But given that we are all unique, we all have a different version of our best self. It is up to us to find the right tools and resources to make it happen. Explore this site to see if there are resources, tips or information that you can use to support your journey towards living well.
- David Hay, Policy Horizons Canada (2011). What is Well-Being?
- Centre for Economic Performance (2018). The Causes and Effects of Wellbeing.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2016). Well-Being Concepts.
- Marcosa SM, Staiano W and Manning V (Mar 2009). J Appl Physiol (1985). 106(3): 857-64. Mental Fatigue Impairs Physical Performance in Humans.
- Kubicek B, Korunka C, Raymo J, Hoonakker P (2011). J Occup Health Psychol. 16(2): 230-46. Psychological well-being in retirement: the effects of personal and gendered contextual resources.
- Sandstrom G and Dunn E. Social Interactions and Well-being. (2014). Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. 40(7):910-922. Social Interactions and Well-Being: The Surprising Power of Weak Ties.
- Young S. (2008). J Psychiatry Neurosci. 33(5):391-392. The neurobiology of human social behaviour: an important but neglected topic.
- Melissa A.Z. Knoll, USA Social Security Administration (2011). Behavioural and Psychological Aspects of the Retirement Decision.
- Judith Davey, New Zealand Ministry of Social Development(2008). What Influences Retirement Decisions?
- Shanafelt T et al. J Clin Oncol. 32(11):1127-1135. Satisfaction With Work-Life Balance and the Career and Retirement Plans of US Oncologists.
- Moen P (1996). A Life Course Perspective on Retirement, Gender, and Well-Being. J Occup Health Psychol. 1(2):131-144
- Marshall V, Clarke P and Ballantyne P (2001). Instability in the Retirement transition: Effects on Health and Wellbeing in a Canadian Study. Res Aging. 23(4)379-409
- Heaphy E and Dutton J. (2008). Positive social interactions and the human body at work: linking organizations and physiology. Acad Manag Rev. 33(1):137-162
- Sandstrom G and Dunn E (2014). Social Interactions and Well-Being: The Surprising Power of Weak Ties. Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 40(7) 910-922
- MacDonald G, Leary MR. 2005. Why does social exclusion hurt? The relationship between social and physical pain. Psychol. Bull. 131:202–23
- Rick Nauert (2016). Mental & Physical Fatigue Linked.
- John M. Grohol (2009). The Connection between Mental & Physical Health.
- How your Emotions affect your Health and Immune System
- Retirement Transitions, Gender, and Psychological Well-Being: A Life-Course, Ecological Model
- Comfort, well-being and quality of life: Discussion of the differences and similarities among the concepts
- Why We Are Wired to Connect
- UCLA neuroscientist's book explains why social connection is as important as food and shelter
- What do we Know about Loneliness and Work
- Workplace loneliness is a real problem. For 45 hours a week I feel isolated
- Dan Gilbert. What is Happiness.
- The Retirement Decision: An emotional Rollercoaster.
- Inga Stasiulionyte (2016). 10 Tips to Achieve Anything You Want in Life.
- Hackenoon (2017). How Much Time Do People Spend on Their Mobile Phones in 2017?
- Deloitte. Global Mobile Consumer Survey: US Edition. The Dawn of the Next Era in Mobile.
- Considering Retirement
- Soma (2017). Positive Psychology: The Science of Success and Wellbeing.
- NIH (2017). Your Healthiest Self: Wellness Toolkits.