Personal and Social Wellness as an Elective Class by Dallas

Personal and Social Wellness as an Elective Class by Dallas - February 2022 Scholarship Essay

If I had the opportunity to design a new elective class, my choice would be a class that focuses on personal and social wellness. Since the pandemic, the number of people suffering from anxiety has increased fourfold. This dramatic change makes it clear the importance of social and personal wellness. Covid-19 has shut down our communities and our personal lives. The requirements of online school found many students waking up, grabbing their computers, and studying all day into the night in their beds doing homework. Students went from being the most social group to being alone in their rooms doing homework. The answer to getting out of this isolated world is understanding and implementing personal and social wellness.

Personal wellness includes simple tasks like getting out of bed, going for a walk, getting fresh air, and exercising. These small things nearly disappeared as anxiety increased in the last couple of years. Meditation, mindfulness, and yoga are also part of this personal health that need to be introduced as easy tools that help us deal with anxiety and feel connected to ourselves and the world at large.

Equally important is social wellness, which means making sure to make time for social interactions with friends and family or otherwise people who care about us and help us reach positive goals in our lives. Although Zoom can fill in part of this need, socializing needs to be more than just over the internet, it needs to be in person. It is safe in the pandemic to spend time outside where social distancing is possible. Examples include meeting friends outside for picnics or fitness activities. Finding things to do with family or friends where you have a chance to check-in is the overall goal. Checking in includes discussing how you are doing, what your goals are and what you are doing to reach them, where you are struggling, and ideas for overcoming roadblocks. As we all face any personal struggle, it’s getting through the struggles by taking ownership that makes us stronger.

The biggest takeaway is that each person needs to take responsibility for themselves by creating personal and social wellness. They need to understand that these simple things, like mindfulness, exercise, socializing, and checking in, create a connection to the world in a way that makes us all feel safe and creates a healthy sense of self. This results in a healthier world and one with less anxiety. The benefits of having excellent social and personal wellness are important nowadays, especially to those of us who are still working or going to school from home. This is why I would choose to make an elective class that does just that and helps remind people of the benefits personal and social wellness can bring.