Last month, I talked about the importance of vacation as well as a vacation mind-set by taking life a little slower to savor activities that are healthy. This is the part of wellness that is defined by the value of good practices that promote mental and physical balance. With Labor Day behind us and orderliness returning to our lives, we can now focus on bringing wellness to work.

We spend so much time at our jobs that work becomes the home away from home. Hopefully it is a healthy atmosphere, but work stress is often blamed for an unbalanced life. People feel squeezed between their ability to earn a living and how they live when they are off duty. Work becomes a necessary evil when it should be a vocational passion that allows us to enhance the lives of others.

This is part of the wellness mind-set that prompts us to view our actions and attitudes as health promoting or health damaging. How we perform in our work environment is just as important as the enjoyment of our personal lives.

Business owners who recognize the important connection between the health of their workers and the health of their businesses are implementing employee wellness programs to help manage stress, decrease absenteeism and increase productivity. With increased productivity the workers also experience higher satisfaction overall in their lives.

Early on employee wellness programs consisted of blood pressure checks and a small gym added on to the worker break room. Research has shown wellness programs that are mere pep rallies do not make much of an impact. Health screenings that feel more like slaps on the wrist for high cholesterol levels and BMI's are more damaging to worker morale than helpful. The missing ingredient is an educational component that reinforces consistent and motivational health practices rather than making them seem like unpleasant chores.

Chiropractors are now serving as wellness coaches in the workplace because of their specialized knowledge of the benefits of proactive wellness behaviors. In order for successful wellness habits to take hold, there must be mental and physical coordination through the nervous system.

Chiropractors adjust the spine to fine tune the person's motor and neurological functioning. They can evaluate how well a person responds to stress and implement a personalized system to improve mental and physical performance. Chiropractors also assess the work environment for ergonomic safety.

When brought to the workplace, a chiropractic wellness program creates a unique momentum that builds as a team effort. This is where the mind-set of wellness becomes bigger than a prevention program. It evolves into a social connector that takes on a life of its own creating an atmosphere of efficiency and fulfillment.

Now, chiropractic can't make someone like his or her job. If the job is the right fit for the person, a chiropractic centered wellness program makes it a win-win situation for the employee and employer.

Lisa Ann Homic, M.Ed. D.C., may be contacted at www.DrHomic.com