Life Coaching
Making decisions confidently without ruminating afterwards. Feeling better on a day-to-day basis. Tolerating the discomfort that comes up when we speak the truth, and someone is disappointed in us. Becoming a curious observer of ourselves when we reach for food/alcohol/porn/weed in order to numb out. Learning how to feel big emotions, without dying. Appreciating how our behavioral patterns used to serve us, but no longer do. Trying on new perspectives, to bend gently away from the rigid ways we have grown accustomed to thinking. Living according to our own sense of morality.
These are just a few of the things I work on with my clients.
I have a Bachelors Degree in psychology from BYU, and a Masters Degree in Social Work from UNC-Chapel Hill. While my university studies do shape and inform the way I understand human psychology and the way I approach my clients, my training at The Life Coach School (LCS) is the framework I use most directly for life coaching. The LCS approach overlays neatly on cognitive therapeutic approaches to mental health, and is a powerful tool for change, especially for people who tend to spend a lot of time in their heads! I also bring in some of the principles of somatic work and Internal Family Systems (IFS) to round out my coaching approach.
FAQ: What is Life Coaching? How is it different than therapy?
There are many different frameworks for both therapy and coaching, so this is using very broad brushstrokes, but the way I think about it is that therapy is for people who are having trouble functioning and need support in order to function well, and coaching is for people who are doing okay, but are looking to up-level in specific areas of their life, or who want specific help during life transitions.
Therapy tends to look more into how the past impacts the present. Coaching tends to look more towards the future, and for a lot of clients it can feel more pragmatic and tools-based than their years in therapy. Coaching also tends to be shorter term, and therapeutic relationships can last a very long time.
There is certainly some overlap between coaching and therapy, and both can dramatically uplevel your feelings of wellness. If you are struggling with serious mental health concerns, therapy is the best place to start, but if you are functioning but feel “stuck”, then consider trying life coaching!