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Enriching the Lives of Seniors in Japan (Ikigai Healthy Ageing Policy in Japan)
Published in Goh Cheng Soon, Gerard Bodeker, Kishan Kariippanon, Healthy Ageing in Asia, 2022
A Western Web article I found, published by Water for Health, says that “ikigai” is a Japanese concept meaning “reason for being”. “It is the heart of things, the motivation at the centre of our existence: the source of value in a person’s life or the things that makes them put one foot in front of the other each day. As described in the book’s introduction, a deep connection with, and appreciation for, ikigai is one probable reason for the remarkable longevity of the Japanese, particularly those residing in Okinawa. Here, there are 24.55 people over the age of 100 for every 100,000 inhabitants: far more than the worldwide average. The authors speculate that there are many factors which might collude to explain Okinawa’s disproportionate populace of centenarians: their uncommon sense of community; a non-exclusionary sense of oneness wherein even strangers are treated like brothers; access to lush hills and crystalline waters; Moringa tea; a light, nutritious diet and moderate exercise, even after retirement”2.
Energise and motivate
Published in Amar Rughani, Joanna Bircher, The Leadership Hike, 2020
Next, let’s think about happiness and how this connects to motivation. There is an interesting representation of this which the Japanese call Ikigai, meaning one’s hopes from life. An interpretation of this is shown below. One insight that it offers is the importance of making the connections by trying to find out what people love, identifying what the practice needs and then making sure that people have the skills to apply what they love in a way that benefits the practice. The challenge for us as leaders is whether we just accept this as theory or whether we are prepared to make the sustained effort that can make this route to happiness a reality. What’s our motivation in doing so? Maybe it is that if we succeed, there is no limit to what people with this degree of fulfilment can achieve.
Emotional Health and Stress Management
Published in James M. Rippe, Lifestyle Medicine, 2019
Neil Nedly, Francisco E Ramirez
According to research, of the longest living centenaries, one pattern that emerges is that spirituality has an effect on stress level and longevity. Li reported that, “Frequent attendance at religious services was associated with significantly lower risk of all-cause, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality among women.”124 People in the Blue zones live in communities with significant religious support. They tend to have a purpose and meaning in life. The Okinawan Japanese call this Ikigai. It is thought to reduce the risk of death125 and improve mental health.126 Those that participate in religious activities stress less over finances, health, and daily concerns than non-spiritual types.127 Participating in prayer and scripture reading has a positive effect on blood pressure compared to those that don’t.128 Immune function, as measured in IL-6, is better among those that attend religious services on a regular basis.129 Those with depression recover faster: “Depressed patients with higher intrinsic (inner) religiosity scores had more rapid remissions than patients with lower scores.”130 In another study of 92,000 women, those who attended a religious service at least once a week had a 20% reduction in death even if they were smoking, drinking alcohol, and not doing exercise.131 Albert Ellis, founder of CBT and Rational-Emotive therapy, addressed the advantage of spiritual material in the improvement of the mind when he wrote, “I think that I can safely say that the Judeo – Christian Bible is a self-help book that has probably enabled more people to make more extensive and intensive personality and behavioral changes than all professional therapists combined.”132 Also of interest is an article published in an English newspaper entitled, “I’m an atheist who goes to church – here’s why you should too.” The author shared his experience fellowshipping with Christian believers and the benefits he experienced.133 If a strong spiritual element is combined with a healthy lifestyle it appears to work synergistically in combating stress.
Silently Screaming in the Dark: Gender-Based Dynamics of Distress in Japanese Migrants
Published in Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 2020
Courtney Julia Burns, Denise Marie Saint Arnault
This research is a secondary analysis of the interview data that was gathered in a larger mixed-methods project that examined distress and help-seeking in the Japanese immigrant women living in Michigan (NIMH R01MH071307). In that study, the senior author used interviews and surveys with 25 and 209 Japanese women living in the United States (Saint Arnault & Fetters, 2011). Previous research using this interview data has described social support (Saint Arnault, 2002), finding that the Japanese model of social support was a reciprocal one, differing from the American contractual model of social exchange. Another study found that the social networks formed by the Japanese community served a function of maintaining propriety and social order (Saint Arnault & Roels, 2012). A third study illuminated the importance of concept of Ikigai (purpose in life) and quality of life perceptions for the Japanese women in our study (Saint Arnault & Shimabukuro, 2016). This present study focused on the causal model the participants had that they used to explain their distress, and adds to this body of literature understanding how culture affects distress and help-seeking.