The importance of getting real while staying positive.

Often, when people consider the word "wellness," they default to the words "fitness" and "food." Their suspicion—their fear, perhaps—may be that, as a physical therapist (PT) or physical therapist assistant (PTA) who's offering wellness services, your primary intent is to badger (um, coax) them into exercising more faithfully and eating more healthily.

While that's not completely wrong—exercise and diet indeed are important components of wellness—the reality is that any effective wellness plan must be considerably broader than simply imbuing the messages "get your reps in" and "watch what you eat." The road to wellness—under one's own tutelage or with the help of a PT or PTA—encompasses everything from managing stress effectively and getting quality sleep to better ensuring work-life balance.