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THE WELLNESS COMPASS TRAVEL GUIDE by Joda P. Derrickson

THE WELLNESS COMPASS TRAVEL GUIDE

by Joda P. Derrickson

Pub Date: June 16th, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5320-1205-1
Publisher: iUniverse

A debut guide offers readers advice on achieving wellness in the most foundational aspects of their lives.

Derrickson’s book “is about obtaining and maintaining wellness through proactive self-care.” The author has simplified previous theories on the subject by grouping wellness principles into five overarching categories forming a compass (with the fifth one as the center): spiritual well-being, socioemotional well-being, physical health, life’s purpose, and maintaining balance. Her chapters follow an organized pattern of providing an overview of each dimension followed by the associated goals. For readers unsure of where to start, she offers a Wellness Compass Profile self-assessment toward the end of the volume (one of many beneficial resources) to help readers see how they are faring in each category. Her ideas are well-supported by research (cited in footnotes) and are written to be applicable to everybody, regardless of religion, gender, race, age, or background. For example, the spiritual dimension focuses on upholding universal, honorable principles, and the life’s purpose category encourages goals such as constant learning and sustaining financial security. Instead of being purely informational, this thorough manual often simultaneously acts as a workbook, presenting various assessments to give direction, questions to encourage reflection, and activities to promote action. Derrickson’s organization is skillful, not just on a large scale with polished chapters, but also on a small scale with bold headings, clearly focused sections, well-formatted lists, and aptly placed visuals and charts. The casual reader may be overwhelmed by the length and density of the material, but as the author asserts, “If you are searching for quick fixes, keep looking!” The content is ultimately designed for deep personal study and application, and there truly is something here for everyone. The author’s prose style is much more fact-based than story-based, so those who learn best through narrative may struggle. But that doesn’t stop this work from being very appealing and highly effective.

Comprehensive, rich, engaging, and organized—a superb manual for improving one’s life.