We are all on a journey through life, one that has many different seasons to it, and the most satisfied clients I have realize I am along for just a portion of that journey. I don’t know where you are in your life, but I will walk with you until you feel our time is over. Here are some answers to questions I usually get beforehand:
What’s the difference between a Wellness Coach and a Counselor?
Both of these roles require graduate level training and accreditation. A counselor is usually used when there are things in someone’s past which are keeping them from changing, and further impacts their relationships with others in the present. It is considered therapy and might further result in a mental health diagnosis and treatment. A Wellness Coach focuses on what a person is feeling about changes that need to happen involving different areas of Wellness (physical, emotional, intellectual, and/or spiritual) and what might be keeping someone from moving forward with that change, and further helps you clarify and set goals that you really want in a positive, affirming, and encouraging atmosphere. Sessions do not involve diagnosing or treating illnesses or chronic conditions. Propempo Wellness Coaching is certified through the Mayo Clinic College of Science and Medicine to work with you.
Who can use a Wellness Coach?
If you are contemplating–or would like to want to contemplate–making a change with your health, a Propempo Wellness Coach will help you do that in the most efficient way. It’s not just for weight loss! Maybe you received a bad medical report which shows the need for lifestyle change, or need to get your diabetes (or other chronic condition) under control. Or maybe you feel a lot of stress and are starting to see the physical manifestations of that stress. You might need to change a habit you know is causing you harm, but you enjoy it and feel conflicted about changing it. Or, perhaps you are in a new stage of life and would like to adopt healthier practices because you finally have that time. Propempo Wellness will provide you with the ability to make those changes in a way that meets your needs, tailored to your lifestyle.
What does a session look like with a Propempo Wellness Coach?
A coaching session is a block of time (usually 50 minutes) where a framework, based in positive psychology and motivational interviewing, is used to help the client figure out what is going through his/her head about a change he/she is considering. Often, the client finds they talk a lot about both sides of what they are feeling about a necessary change, and from this information, sets specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely goals to begin that change, with accountability to yourself created in our sessions.
I’ve never heard of Wellness Coaching before. Do you do strange stuff that might make me feel uncomfortable or go against my beliefs? Are you going to sell me stuff?
No, not at all. A Propempo Wellness Coaching session is about digging deeper with where you are at in your life, with an empathetic listener reflecting back observations and honing in on what you would really like to talk about. The client is always in complete charge of where the session is going, and there is no use of any sort of machines, tools, or objects, just two people talking in a way that helps you find out how to initiate and maintain goals in your life.
Propempo Wellness is one of 2 legs to my company, Liquid Body Life Co., and usually those legs stay mutually exclusive. I do have another leg involving the sale of products, which I am purposely not mentioning here. I am ethically bound to inform you if I will benefit in any way if you purchase products from me. Honestly, since you are the expert on yourself and you are sitting in the driver’s seat for our coaching sessions, we will likely never even discuss that side of my business. This way, you know each session is about me really listening to what you are saying and not looking for ways to sell you anything.
Are you going to tell me what to eat and how to exercise?
This is what has passed for “Wellness Coaching” in the past. An educator and expert superimposes a diet or exercise plan on a client and then walks out that plan with the client, sometimes focusing on how the client succeeds, but mostly concentrating on avoiding failure. It starts with “deficit thinking” as a filter, which is actually harmful to self, motivation, and progress toward goals. Propempo Wellness Coaching is not about this. We start from the belief that you are already whole and want to access your interests, passions and abilities to get healthier, not that you lack motivation, education, or tools and need to have an expert train you. There is a place in the sessions–with permission–for education, pointing to resources, and suggesting, but a properly trained health and wellness coach is helping the client meet his/her goals keeping him/her in the driver’s seat. It’s about creating a sustainable partnership based on leveraging what you are already doing and what new things you are interested in trying (including programs or diets or something else), not an expert-to-client relationship. In fact, proper Wellness Coaching from an independent, certifying agency has been shown to increase success in clients changing their behaviors by 20% over someone who is involved with traditional deficit-based starting points which require conforming yourself to a diet or exercise program you hate. Further, recidivism (meaning going back to old behaviors) is far less likely for someone who has instigated change in their own life using a certified Wellness Coach over a standard program, meaning the changes actually become a part of the person’s lifestyle.
Do you take insurance?
At this time, because Wellness Coaching is an emerging field, it is not covered by most insurance plans. Our sessions require payment at the time of service by cash or credit card. You might want to check with your human resources department to see if they have an arrangement with insurance companies regarding Wellness Education programs, because this might qualify under that category.
I do not follow your faith. Is this going to be all Christian-y?
No. Since you are in the driver’s seat for our whole time together, this time is about you. I will be responding to where you take the conversation, and unless you desire to mention and relate to me concerning Biblical things, we aren’t going there.
Related Note:
Over the years, I have worked with people of all faiths (and no faith). Since my approach is about meeting you where you are at in your life at this point in time, it has never been a problem. I found after several years of prospective clients calling me if they saw something religious from me that it saves time to tell my clients up front what I believe, my credentials, and what my approach to health is, so there is no confusion if I end up in an educational window of our session together–only after you have given permission for that education to be offered, though!–and I am sharing something you might not believe in your own life. Therefore, please know the following:
- I offer information using concepts from the Christian Bible. I do not require my clients to be Christians, nor convert to my belief system, and I don’t quote verses to you.
- I believe in addressing the source of problems, not the symptoms of problems. Sometimes, we will need to have a session completely devoted to sorting through symptoms together before getting to further action, but there will always be a goal set up at the end of our time together to keep momentum growing.
- In addition to my National Board Certification through the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBC-HWC), my Mayo Clinic College of Medicine certification (CWC) and belonging to the International Coach Foundation, I am a Diplomaed Nutritionist (meaning I have completed coursework and testing in this area, and not that I am self-taught), I am an athlete who has competed in public events throughout my life, I hold an active education license with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, I am a respected member of my local business community and belong to my town’s Chamber of Commerce and SCORE Roundtable, and I have designed a Life Wellness curriculum which has been used in educational venues for several years.
- I believe if your body’s cells get what they need, they have an enormous capacity to reverse their condition and the body will heal itself, because that’s what our bodies were created to do. There are many variables which impact how well our bodies can reverse course, including: how long they have been in their condition, what their environment has been, what genetic hand you have been dealt.
- I am a mother and wife, first and foremost, and while I am emotionally supported and encouraged in my active business by my family, appointments are scheduled during typical business hours, with minimal evenings available.
- I believe medicine is necessary for the treatment of some ailments, and sometimes for life. If you come to a conclusion about a needed change involving medications you are on and I believe your life is in danger, or permanent damage to your body will occur if you do not take a medication (including antibiotics, prescriptions for chronic conditions, and certain vaccinations), I will tell you that.
If you do not feel you can work with me because of these statements and we have already scheduled an appointment, please contact me ASAP.
How do I know if I need Wellness Coaching?
Most people who come to me are in a physical challenge. They have had a wake-up call with a health condition, they are enduring a chronic disease, they need to lose weight, they are in pain, they have yo-yo dieted for decades, they have an unhealthy relationship with food or their bodies, or they are unsure of how to let food and exercise–as well as other disciplines–improve their quality of life. Usually, they are emotionally tired. It has been a long time, and they just don’t know what to do anymore. Coaching is a perfect way to get the results you want within these challenges.
However, sometimes my clients see the need for change in their lives in other areas and just simply don’t know what specifics are needed and/or how to begin the change process. This, too, makes you an excellent candidate for coaching.
How long will this take?
It depends on why you are coming to me in the first place, and what change you are trying to initiate and maintain in your life so it becomes permanent. I have clients who have been once-and-done, clients who have spent just a few weeks with me, clients who have gone through a 12-week cycle, clients who have been with me for a season and returned for tweaks and accountability here and there, and clients who have been with me for several years, usually because they are working hard to create a drastic life change (e.g., lose 100+ pounds, overcome permanent environmental hardships) or they achieve a permanent lifestyle change, but that change creates a need for other changes they wish to have me walk through with them. But most clients find great satisfaction and empowerment to change permanently within 6-12 weeks.
How do I know my privacy will be maintained?
Even though I am not a medical practitioner, I am a healthcare professional and obligated to follow all HIPPA rules, and my office is set up with those safeguards in place. Your personal information is safe with me.
What areas does Propempo Wellness serve?
I serve all the United States and Canada! As Covid continued to impact the nation, I decided to close my office and do strictly secure videoconferencing or telephone calls. I have now found most of my clients do not miss as many appointments and feel MORE comfortable speaking with me in their own safe space, and so I do not anticipate reopening a physical office in the future.