Intellectual Well-Being Workbook

Intellectual well-being is important to a sense of overall wellness. The intellectual dimension of wellness, although often overlooked and undervalued, is extremely important in coping with stress and living a fulfilling life. Intellectual well-being can be difficult to describe, but it is essentially related to how interested your clients are in learning new skills, expanding their knowledge, thinking critically, seeking out new and interesting challenges, maintaining a sense of creativity and curiosity, searching for lifelong learning opportunities and stimulating mental activities, and being open to new ideas. If your clients are not exhibiting these characteristics, they may need to develop more effective intellectual wellness habits. When clients begin developing intellectual well-being habits, they begin to exhibit greater participation in creative, scholastic, cultural and community-based activities. The Intellectual Well-Being Workbook is designed to help your clients enhance existing intellectual wellness traits and develop new attitudes that will improve their intellectual health.The seven sections include: Open to New Ideas, Lifelong Learning, Thinking Skills, Creative Thinking, Critical Thinking, Mental Sharpness, and Independent Thinking.

Ester A. Leutenberg has worked in the mental health field for many years as a publisher, author and advocate for those suffering from loss. She personally experienced a devastating loss when her son Mitchell, after struggling with a mental illness for eight years, died by suicide in 1986. Soon after, as a way of both healing and helping others, Ester co-founded Wellness Reproductions & Publishing with her daughter Kathy Khalsa and began developing therapeutic products that help facilitators help their clients. Ester is the co-author of the SEALS series for teen-agers, Life Management Skills series for adults and Meaningful Life Skills for older adults, as well as a variety of other therapeutic card games, board games and posters. Ester has co-written three books on GriefWork, as well as Creating a Healthy Balanced Life, The Complete Caregiver Guide, Motivation, and Veterans Surviving and Thriving, and now a new series, Transitional Life Skills for Teens. John J. Liptak, EdD, frequently conducts workshops on assessment-related topics. He has written three books on career-related topics and these books have been featured in numerous newspapers including The Washington Post, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and the Associated Press. His work has also been featured on MSNBC, CNN Radio and on the PAX / ION television series, “Success without a College Degree.” John has many years of experience in providing counseling services to individuals and groups in a variety of settings including job training programs, correctional institutions, and colleges and universities. In addition, John has about ten years of teaching experience as an assistant professor. With Kathy Khalsa and Ester Leutenberg, he has written three other comprehensive books for teachers and counselors to use with their students and clients: The Self-Esteem Program, The Social Skills Program and The Stress Management Program: Inventories, Activities & Educational Handouts. Ester and John have co-written the Mental Health & Life Skills Workbook Series, the Teen Mental Health & Life Skills Workbook Series, Coping Workbook Series, Mind-Body Wellness Series, and the new Erasing the Stigma of Mental Health Issues Through Awareness series.