Intellectual wellness is accomplished through expanding knowledge, continually challenging your mind, and having the desire to learn new things, stay curious and improve skills.
In the wellness quiz that I posted in previous blog posts, the quiz had 3 statements you had to rate pertaining to intellectual wellness (the quiz calls it ‘academic/career’): “I feel optimistic about my academic program and career goals,” “I feel satisfied with my school performance,” and “I seek out new challenges related to my academic and career goals,” (if you haven’t already, take the time to complete the quiz now to see how balanced you are in the intellectual section of wellness). If you are looking for something more specific, try the Intellectual Wellness Assessment here: http://definitionofwellness.com/dimensions-of-wellness/intellectual-wellness/
According to the Western University website, achieving wellness in this area (they say specifically in academic and career wellness), means:
- Setting challenging and healthy academic and career goals
- Seeking resources to help you make decisions and succeed
- Continuously striving to learn and improve your skills
- Being open-minded to new life experiences and career paths
- Creating networks with classmates, professors, and future employers
Here at Brescia, we have many resources available to help with your intellectual wellness:
- There is a wide variety of books available at the Beryl Ivey Library – http://brescia.uwo.ca/library/
- The Student Life Centre offers career and professional development support – http://brescia.uwo.ca/life/student-life/
- Brescia`s Writing Centre offers services to help with student`s writing, along with workshops – http://writing.bresciauc.ca/contact-info-and-hours/
- Academic Advising offers services to help students with their degree and university policies – http://brescia.uwo.ca/academics/academic-advising/
Western also has resources, which you can find here: http://iwellness.uwo.ca/academiccareer_wellness/index.html
According to the National College Health Assessment survey (which was completed by Brescia students in the Spring 2016), 94% of Brescia students stated they felt overwhelmed by all they have to do and 49% of Brescia students said they experienced stress as their top health and wellness related reason for academic difficulty. The resources above are here to help you with your university experience, and there is nothing wrong with asking for help. Some may believe that asking for help is a sign of weakness, however asking for help in order to support your whole self and/or your intellectual wellness is sign of strength, because you are demonstrating you want to grow and develop to be the best version of yourself.
If you interested in resources outside of Brescia, while doing research on this week`s topic I found a great blog post, 10 Online Resources To Improve Intellectual Wellness.