About Kim
What makes any of us develop a deeper understanding of our own selves? For some of us it comes naturally, others have to go through experiences – whether good or bad – to garner more knowledge about who we are.
For me it was the latter. A lifechanging incident took me from someone settled into my life, towards emotional exhaustion, burnout and anxiety. I had already experienced what it was like to live with someone who suffered with their mental health. And my own subsequent battles helped me increase my understanding at a core level. When I delved further into my state of being, I learned more about myself than ever before.
Hello, I am Kim Rutherford – psychotherapist, mental wellness specialist and corporate coach and what I learned was that I was inquisitive and a problem solver. These qualities made me understand my need for clarity and process in my life, which in turn led to me understand my own recovery process. Help myself so to speak. In my quest for wellness and mental wellbeing, I discovered the eight dimensions.
There is never a time when you cannot retrain and re-learn. Once I understood the eight dimensions, I did exactly that. I went back to university as a mature student and re-trained in psychotherapy with a new insight. This eventually propelled me towards developing the 8Wise™ Mental Wellness Model that I want to share with you in this book.
My own journey toward mental wellness revealed to me that mental health is a positive thing that can be channelled not only for those with mental health issues but also for those who want to protect their mental health. It gels with my own thinking that we need to look at mental health holistically and at all stages. Not just treat it reactively when we come across issues. This is exactly what I have tried to do in this book. My 8Wise™ method is for everyone. It is a self-help formula that puts YOU in control of your wellness, enabling you to protect both your mental and physical health. My aim is that this book should enable people to protect their mental health, prevent mental health issues from developing or to support with recovery. I want the 8Wise™ method to serve as a guide to prevention, as well as a source of a cure.
This is what my self-reflection and re-learning has taught me and this is what I bring to you.
As a psychotherapist, mental wellness specialist and corporate coach it has been my calling to help people achieve better and more satisfying employment. Developing the 8Wise™ approach has added to that knowledge and my own journey has led me to be passionate about overall wellbeing. Because our wellbeing leads to the achievement of our life goals.
I want you to use this book and develop your own effective lifelong strategies for wellness to protect your mental health. It might be viewed as a cliché but it is still true: prevention is always better than cure.
So, join me in this journey. I can assure you that the 8Wise™ will help you to develop a more positive attitude towards finding your unique path towards a happier, healthier and fulfilling life. That’s what I call living the 8Wise™ Way.