Did you know there is a difference between wellness and wellbeing?
It’s actually fairly distinct. This discussion has been making the rounds for almost a decade, but it’s worth repeating because it could make the difference in how you approach your own wellness or wellbeing.
The actual difference between wellness and wellbeing
Starting with the basics, Merriam-Webster defines them as follows:
Well-being: the state of being happy, healthy, or prosperous
Wellness: the quality or state of being in good health especially as an actively sought goal
Expanding wellbeing
I would take that even further. Wellbeing is all of the above, and I would swap being happy for having joy, and add balance. Happiness is fleeting, but joy is cultivated. David Brooks had his characterization of happiness and joy: “Happiness usually involves a victory for the self. Joy tends to involve the transcendence of self.” Like gratitude, joy can be cultivated and nurtured. It’s something we feel within. Something intrinsic we can access when we need it. It’s like a reservoir within us, waiting to be tapped. Happiness however is more extrinsic. It’s fleeting and we can find it when we taste some great chocolate or someone brings us flowers. It’s the “dopamine hit,” rather than the “oxytocin drip” we can get from hugging someone we love. We will get to more on why that matters in a bit.
Balance is another critical piece of wellbeing. Similar to driving a car, if a wheel gets off balance, it can throw everything off. Your risk of a blow-out, messing up your alignment, or worse case, an accident. Balance in our life is no different. Our overall wellbeing is comprised of multiple components as well. Gallup research found that wellbeing falls into 5 major categories:
Career wellbeing: You like what you do every day.
Social wellbeing: You have meaningful friendships in your life.
Financial wellbeing: You manage your money well.
Physical wellbeing: You have energy to get things done.
Community wellbeing: You like where you live.
I think Gallup did a great job in finding a place to start. It gives a foundational framework of the things that make us tick, as humans. I’m sure there are others, but I will offer at least one more.
Spiritual wellbeing
I would take this even further I would add spiritual wellbeing. There is lots of data showing that a religious or spiritual practice results in better health outcomes. I believe we are remiss in not taking this into consideration as we look at overall wellbeing. Like anything, this isn’t about causation but rather a strong correlation. There was a large meta-study completed in 2012 that concluded:
Religious/spiritual (R/S) beliefs and practices are commonly used by both medical and psychiatric patients to cope with illness and other stressful life changes. A large volume of research shows that people who are more R/S have better mental health and adapt more quickly to health problems compared to those who are less R/S. These possible benefits to mental health and well-being have physiological consequences that impact physical health, affect the risk of disease, and influence response to treatment.
This study looked at data from 1872 to 2010, so the body of evidence was significant. In 2022, the Harvard School of Public Health, in partnership with Brigham and Women’s Hospital, released another study in JAMA. Tyler VanderWeele, a lead researcher said, “Focusing on spirituality in health care means caring for the whole person, not just their disease.” This is why I factor this into the work I do with clients at Pomona Wellness. In honoring the whole person, it’s critical not to take for granted this component of our wellbeing.
The flavor doesn’t matter
This isn’t about a specific religion or spiritual practice, either. It’s about a belief in a higher power, energy, or Goddess, to name a few. For most people, this higher power provides a source of hope and when you are struggling with your health, that’s all many of us want. We want to know we aren’t alone in this giant universe.
The expanse of wellness
Wellbeing encompasses a more holistic view of the components to a well-lived life. However, I would be remiss if I didn’t recognize that both are far more wide reaching than we often consider. From my perspective, wellness falls under the broader category of greater wellbeing. It’s not a wellness versus wellbeing, but rather wellness as an aspect of wellbeing.
The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) division of the National Institute for Health (NIH), describes the multifaceted view of wellness. They say “Wellness has several dimensions, including [emotional] well-being and [physical] well-being.” Let’s unpack that a bit further. When discussion emotional wellbeing, think of that as resilience, relationships and mental health. Physical wellbeing is a bit more straight forward with things like movement, sleep and nutrition.
Explain it to me like I’m 5
So still not sure if the difference between wellness and wellbeing? Think of it this way. Remember the tire analogy earlier? This is a big tire and sometimes it gets a flat. If wellbeing is the car, wellness is one of the wheels. Here is another more practical example. When we go to the doctor, she may tell us, “you need to reduce your stress, change your diet, and start exercising.” This is the “physical wellbeing” pillar.
When you start working on your wellbeing, there is no right or wrong place to start. It’s about what works for you. Some people like to focus exclusively on their financial wellbeing where others like to focus on their physical wellness. If you need some help prioritizing, maybe it’s time to invite a wellbeing coach into your healing journey. That’s what I specialize in at Pomona Wellness. Not everyone is ready to step with both feet into their healing journey and that’s OK. However, if you are one of those people that is, I invite you to schedule a breakthrough session. If you want to learn more about Pomona Wellness and what I do, check out Wellspiration or my Substack, to learn more.