Find support in your journey to improving your health this year at Cleveland County Wellness Square (The Well), 210 S. James Garner Ave.
A Way to Wellness is a free, 9-week healthy lifestyle change program that targets multiple aspects of health and wellness through intentional goal setting and peer support. Previous courses have been very successful.
“It made me realize that it’s not just about what you eat and losing weight, it’s a whole body thing,” said former participant Anna Thompson. “Mind, body and soul work together. And when you can lead your mind, body, and soul to live a better life every day, that’s joy.
Taught by educators from the Cleveland County Health Department, the program will run Wednesdays from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., January 8 through March 5. Participants must commit to taking as many courses as possible.
“It’s incredibly rewarding to see participants go through this 9-week healthy living program,” said Catherine Willis, Health Educator. “You can see the concept of food as fuel coupled with personalized goal setting changing participants’ lives by creating lifelong habits and behavior change.”
Weekly classes cover a variety of health-related topics, such as sleeping more and stressing less, overcoming daily challenges, managing triggers, and more.
“As someone who has spent her entire life with a negative relationship with food and diet culture, it heals my soul to be able to practice and teach this program as it re-educates, inspires and empowers people to rebuild their relationship to wellness , never mind. how far along they are in their journey,” said health educator Micah Caruso. This is truly a one-of-a-kind course and I hope everyone gets the chance to be a part of it.
Participants benefit from one-on-one coaching, free health screenings, and the opportunity to develop a strong peer support group. There will be weekly prizes to boost motivation.
Previous courses have focused on diabetes prevention, but this course is for everyone and takes a more holistic approach, although many of the same evidence-based methods will be used in this lifestyle change program .
According to information provided by the Cleveland County Health Department, “The Oklahoma State Department of Health’s Chronic Disease Prevention Services developed A Way to Wellness to uniquely meet the needs of Oklahomans with an interactive, multi-week course to help participants learn how to make healthy, lasting changes in their lives.
The program was piloted in spring 2024 in collaboration with the Cleveland County Health Department’s Community Engagement Team. The goals included helping people adopt a healthy diet and get 150 minutes of physical activity per week.
“While we encourage people to see their doctors, we also recognize that on some levels we are the experts in our own health,” Willis said. “This course teaches you how to develop an individual action plan, which is very stimulating. This is what I like most about this program.
Sign up for this free course via The Well OK’s new app or online at https://thewellok.org/all-classes/.
Joy Hampton is Public Information Specialist for Cleveland County