Dr. Karen Lawson and Becky Gorman, PA-C are co-directors of the Health Coaching Program at the Center for Spirituality and Healing. Our guests define integrative health coaching as helping a person looking at all aspects of health and well being, in mind, body and spirit. Aspects of integrative health coaching include allopathic and complementary therapies for overall health. When we obtain medical advice, from both allopathic and holistic providers, it often is content specific, but we often need help with how to implement this guidance. Integrative health coaches help us change our behaviors around our own health and well being. Host Mary Treacy O’Keefe asked our guests for examples of how to help someone with cardiac disease who has been told that there is nothing more medically that can be done. They explained how a health coach can help people learn about how to augment diet, dealing with emotional issues, including how to deal with grief and loss, the impact of illness upon relationships, spirituality, and other aspects of their lives.
For general well being, a health coach can help someone take their health to the next level, learn ways to reduce stress, pain and relax more. Becky Gorman describes what a typical first appointment might be like, enabling her to create an assessment, then work together with the person to create a plan to meet his or her specific need. Health coaching is an umbrella over other aspects of coaching, as it encompasses all aspects of overall heath. Becky and Karen also describe how to find the right health coach with proper credentials. For more information, please visit www.csh.umn.edu