Wellness coaching is a series of conversations that help you identify and make lifestyle changes that improve your wellbeing.

Wellbeing is a holistic concept that encompasses physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health, as well as everything that impacts them. That means wellness coaching often involves discussing topics beyond diet and exercise, such as your daily habits, home environment, work life, digital practices, and social, romantic, and family relationships.

My wellness coaching sessions are a judgment-free zone. I approach each session with gentleness, kindness, and patience. I listen deeply and provide affirmation and support. It is my hope that the way I approach you in our sessions will model the gentle and loving way you can approach your body and mind as we move through the sessions.

In early sessions, we identify your values and personal wellness vision. That way, we can ensure that any lifestyle changes you make align with your values and help you move toward the vision you see for yourself. Instead of focusing on what isn’t working or what went wrong in the past, we identify your strengths and assets, then work together to figure out ways you can expand and build on them.

After the first few sessions, in which we get to know each other and identify your values, strengths, and wellness vision, the sessions are led by you. That means you get to decide which topics are most important for us to focus on. I will not try to make you discuss any topic you don’t want to discuss or make any lifestyle changes you don’t want to make.

Yes! Over 150 research studies have been conducted on health and wellness coaching.

Research has found that undergoing wellness coaching can help people exercise more, quit smoking, increase fruit and vegetable intake, save $286-$412 per month on medical costs, improve quality of life, improve mood, and reduce stress.

Wellness coaching has also shown promising results for those managing chronic illness. Studies suggest wellness coaching helps those with cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and pre-diabetes. Wellness coaching has also been found to reduce chronic pain and improve symptoms in people with fibromyalgia.

In some circles, wellness coaching has earned a bad reputation. Because the term “wellness coach” isn’t legally regulated the same way terms like “doctor” or “therapist” are, there are people out there calling themselves “wellness coaches” while giving health advice they aren’t qualified to give instead of doing actual wellness coaching. But, when wellness coaching is done the right way, as defined by the National Board for Health and Wellness Coaching, it can be immensely powerful and life-changing.

What wellness coaching will do for you depends on your unique situation. It can be difficult to identify how wellness coaching will help a person in advance, since many people are often uncertain about what lifestyle changes would benefit them most. Often, people come to wellness coaching unnecessarily burdened with “shoulds” that aren’t actually fitting for their unique situation and body — things they think they should be doing because of an article they read, a social media post they saw, or something a friend or family member said.

It might take a few coaching sessions, some experimentation, and time connecting with your body and intuition to drop the “shoulds” and recognize your own unique needs at this point in time. For example, someone might come to wellness coaching thinking they need to eat less, when really they would most benefit from eating different kinds of food instead of restricting the amount of food they eat. Or, someone might be convinced that they need to exercise more, then, through the coaching process, realize that prioritizing time with family and beginning a meditation practice would actually most benefit their wellbeing.

Wellness coaching has helped many people make dramatic lifestyle changes and stick to new healthy habits long-term, so it can likely do the same for you if you approach it with openness and commitment

That said, I personally don’t use the words “discipline” or “goals” when it comes to wellness coaching.

When I hear the word “discipline,” I think of a boot camp instructor barking orders at people as they try to white-knuckle their way through painful exercises, or people feeling famished as they try to stick to restrictive diets that they hate. I detest phrases like “no pain no gain” and “pain is weakness leaving the body.” The changes you make through coaching should help you feel good, not cause pain or require impossible-seeming effort.

Instead of setting “goals,” we will work together to identify “experiments” led by your body and intuition. Often, when people set wellness goals, the goals are unrealistic or a poor fit for the person’s current life, which makes them unpleasant to work toward and ultimately unsustainable. By contrast, experimenting with small habits and practices that resonate with your body and intuition allows you to gently and gradually identify the habits and practices that align with your wellness vision in a way that feels good and is sustainable for the long-term.

A common misconception about wellness coaches is that we are qualified to give health advice. The truth is, unless a wellness coach has additional training or certifications, they should not be giving health advice. As my Mayo Clinic instructors said, wellness coaches are behavior change experts, not health experts. That means, I do not give my clients health advice.

Of course, when a client feels completely stuck or clueless about what types of lifestyle changes to make, I will share relevant information with them. But, I make it very clear that the information is coming from an expert source and not from my own expertise. I also make clear that I’m sharing the information to help them identify their options, not to advise them on the health choices they should make. Examples of health information I might share include the CDC’s exercise guidelines, the CDC’s sleep guidelines, and Harvard’s Healthy Eating Plate nutrition guidelines.

I offer a free, one-hour introductory session to all potential clients. This intro session allows us to get to know each other and decide if wellness coaching with me is a good fit for you given your current life situation and what you’re seeking.

If we decide to move forward after the intro session, the cost is $100 for a package of five sessions that run from 30-60 minutes each, depending on your needs. I’m offering this majorly discounted rate because I’m still earning practice hours as I work toward my certification. Generally, wellness coaches charge $50 to $250 per hour-long session.

I do not currently accept health insurance. Insurance is a gray area in the world of wellness coaching. Not all insurance companies cover coaching. Also, I wouldn’t be able to accept insurance now, while I’m still working toward certification. Once I am certified, I may accept insurance.

A doctor can diagnose illnesses and treat them by prescribing medications. A wellness coach cannot diagnose illnesses or prescribe medications. Wellness coaching isn’t an adequate substitute for seeing a doctor.

A wellness coach may be helpful if your doctor has recommended you make lifestyle changes that you are struggling to make or aren’t sure how to make. If you’ve been diagnosed with an illness that can be improved through lifestyle changes or simply want to improve your wellbeing, a wellness coach can guide you as you make changes that might help.

Although a wellness coach and therapist often use overlapping tools and discuss similar topics with their clients, the roles differ. A therapist can diagnose and treat mental illnesses. A therapist can also help a person process traumatic events. A wellness coach cannot diagnose or treat mental illnesses. Processing traumatic events also falls outside of the scope of wellness coaching.

If you have a mental illness or past history of trauma, you can bring that up to your wellness coach. Mental illness and trauma can greatly affect a person’s wellbeing, so they might be useful for a coach to know about. That said, it isn’t the coach’s role to treat these issues directly, and wellness coaching isn’t an adequate substitute for therapy or mental health counseling.

A dietitian has received extensive nutrition training and often provides their clients with specific meal plans and eating recommendations. A dietitian may also analyze a client’s current or proposed diet according to the macronutrients and micronutrients it contains.

As a wellness coach, I do not have the same nutrition expertise as a dietitian, and I will not make you meal plans or analyze the macronutrient or micronutrient content of your diet. However, I can share details of popular, evidence-based diets with you (such as the Mediterranean diet, plant-based vegetarian diet, or Paleo diet) and provide support as you identify which diet is most appropriate for you. I can also provide guidance and support in making gradual dietary changes that move you toward the diet you want to be practicing.

A personal trainer has earned certification in exercise science and strength training. They often create exercise plans for their clients, demonstrate how to do certain exercises, and provide feedback on their clients’ form as they move.

As a wellness coach, I can help you identify what types of exercises might be best for you through conversation, but I will not assign certain exercises to you or make you an exercise plan or schedule. I can help you identify how to integrate exercise into your life in a sustainable way, but I won’t demonstrate specific exercises for you or give feedback on your form.

Absolutely. For example, if a doctor or dietitian has suggested you follow a specific type of diet, I can work with you to figure out how to move from your current diet to the new diet in a gradual, gentle way that is more likely to result in a sustainable change than attempting to overhaul your entire diet overnight.

You can also share any notes or documents with me from any other professionals you see, if you think they are relevant. For example, if you want to share notes from your doctors or nurses, therapist, dietitian, personal trainer, acupuncturist, chiropractor, physical therapist, massage therapist, another coach, etc., I will take a look and we can discuss the information and recommendations in our sessions. However, at the end of the day, our sessions are led by you, not by dictates from your other healthcare professionals.