don's report archive

by Donald B. Ardell, Ph. D.

Wellness in the Headlines
(Don's Report to the World)

History is replete with schisms, among the best known of which are those of a religious nature. Judaism, for instance, is broken into three main groups--Orthodox, Conservative and Reform, as well as a smaller group called Reconstructionists. (Some claim these are "sects," not schisms, but sect, sex, schism--they all run together in my mind.) Christianity is loaded with schisms, often called heresies (for example, Arrian Heresy, Gnostic Heresy, Manichean Heresy, Eastern Orthodox~Roman Catholic Heresy and so on--all heresies or schisms have been soaked in rivers of blood.) I won't slight the Islamics--they have the Great (and fearsome) Schism into Sunni and Shiite. In addition, we have all been affected by a more recent Islamic schism into what we in the West call Islamic Fundamentalism. This development within Islam joins both Christian and Jewish fundamentalism as poxes on the planet.

Now comes yet another schism, also somewhat religious, between quasi-spiritual wellness and secular wellness. The former is based on faith, emotions, supernaturalism, the recovery movement, wishful thinking, weepy/swaying hand-holding, New Age mysticism, guru-worship and all things antediluvian and reprehensible; the latter is based on science, personal responsibility, critical thinking, exercise and fitness and a conscious quest for added meaning and purpose in life. As you might intuit, I favor the latter school of wellness.

I have been describing what wellness means for thirty years. I started down this track in the mid-seventies as an administrator of a health-planning agency in the San Francisco Bay Area. As director of one of a hundred or more such organizations in metropolitan regions across the land, I argued that health planning would be more effective at promoting healthy lifestyles than trying to moderate hospital expansions. At that time and ever since, in books, newsletters, journal articles, lectures and with this website, I have promoted secular wellness. Maybe I would have had more success, more impact and a huge following of devoted acolytes if I promoted quasi-spiritual wellness. This certainly would be the case if I had done so at the annual National Wellness Conferences in Stevens Point, WI. Well, maybe, but could I have lived with myself? (Rhetorical question not to be answered at this time or taken seriously, ever.)

Although the wellness concept has been around since Halbert L. Dunn began using the phrase "high level wellness" in the fifties (he wrote a book by that title in 1961 based on a series of lectures at a Unitarian Universalist Church in Arlington, VA), the term did not gain much attention until the late 70's. Much of the credit for spreading wellness, both the terms and ideas associated with it, goes to the National Wellness Institute (NWI), based at the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point. The NWI's annual conferences in July have attracted tens of thousands who in turn have promoted the term and assorted interpretations of it to the present day. The 29th Annual National Wellness Conference (NWC) is scheduled for July 10-15, 2004. This event will surely be an occasion for those who favor the quasi-religious (the vastly predominant element at NWC gatherings) and the secular wellness-types to share their respective perspectives and seek converts to their way of thinking.

Unlike the religious schisms I described earlier, the quasi-spiritual and the secular "wings" or schools do not perceive the existence of a split--or at least don't make a big deal about it! Furthermore, nearly everyone involved in wellness promotion seems to respect and enjoy everyone else's company, no matter what he or she believes or favors. At the annual NWC, leaders of both camps exchange ideas freely, applaud and support speakers on both sides of the ideological divide and selectively pick and choose aspects of philosophy and programming from the opposing camp. This is a rather remarkable situation, and we might all wish (wistfully) that those attached to one view of a religion or another were as tolerant and sensible. The world would be a much quieter, more peaceful place. Of course, this is also a very upbeat, "look on the bright side" view of the wellness schism. It might be that folks on the one side are planning to throttle those on the other!

While I do not seek to start a wellness war of words or otherwise, it is my intention to announce and describe the existence of a wellness schism at this year's annual meeting. The fact that the schism is not widely recognized does not mean it is not there! No question but that there is such a divide. What's needed is a recognition of the schism, both to better settle on and clarify the nature of the wellness movement and to encourage wellness promoters and enthusiasts to choose what they perceive as the most effective way to influence healthier lifestyles and more fulfilling lives.

The NWC is the logical place to do this, since this grand event is a Mecca-like one-of-a-kind gathering place both for those who favor a quasi-spiritual school of wellness and others seeking more secular expressions.

Tomorrow, I will provide more information on the two schools of wellness and preview a couple of presentations scheduled for this summer's conference. Specifically, I'll sketch the nature of a "Legacy" presentation I have been invited to deliver as well as a related session about critical thinking and evidence-based wellness. Both should provide a clearer sense of why a sensible person such as you will surely favor the secular side of the wellness divide!

Until then, be well and look on the bright side of life.

(Note: This essay will be filed in the archives in the MENTAL DOMAIN under the skill area of factual knowledge. Additional articles related to this theme may be found there.)

(Ed. Note: Views expressed in this and other columns are those of the author and not necessarily those of the SeekWellness Editorial Board.)

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