What is a Holistic Health Coach anyway?


Have you heard the term “health coach” and wondered, "What is a Health Coach?" You are not alone. The new career field is popping up in nutritional circles, appearing in magazine articles and on TV more and more frequently. However, I still often find when I tell someone that I’m a health coach, they have absolutely no idea what I’m talking about. Health and wellness coaches are on the rise and being included as a viable team member in doctor’s offices, spas, gyms and private practices all over the country. They often offer services and fill gaps that doctors, nutritionists and dietitians don’t have the time or resources to fill, or even proper training, as health and wellness coaches view all dimensions of a person, including spiritual wellness.


"A Health Coach is a wellness authority and supportive mentor who motivates individuals to cultivate positive health choices. Health Coaches educate and support clients to achieve their health goals through lifestyle and behavior adjustments." -The Institute for Integrative Nutrition

On the cutting edge of a health revolution! Chronic diseases are the epidemic of our generation and people desperately need nutrition and lifestyle guidance to find their way back to holistic health. That's where the Health Coach comes in. As more and more awareness is given to preventative care, health coaching is seen as a vital aspect of creating healthy lifestyle changes. Health Coaches are becoming recognized as essential and integral parts of people's health and wellness paradigms. Not only is there a collective shift to live healthier lives, people are finding that helping others become healthier makes their lives better too. I have indeed found this to be true for me. 

 

"The primary objectives of health coaching are to educate the patient regarding self health management and to encourage patients in taking a more proactive role in staying healthy." -Medical Economics, Nov 2010

 

Sarah has received her BA in Contemporary and Alternative Health, equipping her with a solid foundation to help her clients meet their health and wellness needs and goals. While studying, Sarah learned about the SPECIES model of health and wellness (or sometimes referred to as the Wellness Tree). This model breaks the human health paradigm down into seven dimensions of wellness:


  • S - Social
  • P - Physical
  • E - Emotional
  • C - Career (or Occupational)
  • I - Intellectual
  • E - Environmental
  • S - Spiritual

It is by approaching human health and wellness through this truly holistic model that Sarah's coaching clients begin to see more clarity in what they need to do to not just improve their health, but increase their overall sense of well-being, thereby increasing states of fulfillment and vitality!

 
 

Why would someone need a Health Coach?

Are you feeling overwhelmed, stressed, stuck in your life? Is your health being affected by your current lifestyle? Do want to learn more about product labels and how to read them or just even navigating grocery stores to make better food choices? Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed at the idea of making behavioral changes that you know will only benefit you and your health? Would you like to know more about living a more eco-friendly life and how to reduce your carbon footprint, but don't know where to start? Do you suffer from various social disorders or other mental health disorders and would like to know more about a holistic approach in helping to remedy or ease symptoms? Do you have or have you suffered from any emotional traumas (quite frankly, who hasn't)? Do you feel you need spiritual guidance? If you answered "YES!" to any of these questions, then you would more than likely benefit from the services of a Health Coach.
 

What then, is the difference between a Health Coach and a Transpersonal Life Coach?

Where a Health Coach would help a client look at, measure, and set goals in all the dimensions of wellness, a Life Coach usually tends to focus more closely on career (occupational) goals and helping to create overall beneficial behavioral changes in relationships of any kind. According to WebMD, Life Coaches are:

"[...] professionals [that] provide the drive and guidance their clients need to improve their careers, relationships, and lives."

Holistic Health & Transformational Life Coaching Options


Pay per session.........................$55/hour

1 month Intensive Program.......$265

6 month Extended Program......$175/month

Coaching Year-round................$155/month

In many ways a Health Coach IS a Life Coach, but not necessarily vice versa. Sarah's approach to Life Coaching doesn't necessarily just focus on your career goals or relationships either, but mostly focuses on reframing how we are viewing even these dimensions of our lives through our Spiritual (Transpersonal) dimension. As Sarah's clients are reaching the end of their journey with Sarah as their coach, they are equipped with tools to help empower themselves to make life decisions with more clarity and confidence, with the ultimate goal being discovery of the true Self and Purpose in life. Sarah provides several unique approaches as a Transpersonal Life Coach to helping her clients discover and unlock their greatest potentials.
 

Have questions? Feel free to inquire about each package. Sarah usually advises to take advantage of her FREE consultation to see which package is best for you. Total time for the consultation is usually 45-60 minutes.