Are essential oils effective for boosting mood and managing cravings?

Photo by Remi Antunes on Unsplash

Essential oils have been used for hundreds of years in natural healing. The efficacy of these oils is being studied more often now to really quantify the use and provide data to serve as a guide, which is very exciting.

Here are a few simple ways to use essential oils to boost your mood and stop cravings. I have long been fascinated with essential oils and I am now taking some time to really learn about their healing properties and functional use on a daily basis.

Listening to a podcast from the Dr. Taz Show peaked my curiosity so I looked further into the research. There are studies out there that look very promising but as usual more research is indicated to determine what truly works. Check out this study if you want some hard core information on lavender, one of oils we will talk about for mood. Many promising applications for essential lavender oil were noted including: mood, sleep, pain, memory… the key is finding a pure, clean product to use. I am no expert on this but Young Living essential oils have a great reputation and several functional medicine physician’s I trust and respect use them exclusively.

Our next essential oil is peppermint. This has been shown to help with sugar cravings!! Who doesn’t have that in our sugar laden society (there is even sugar added to tea’s these days without our knowing it).

Dr. Alan Hirsch, a neurologist, tells us that our sense of smell and appetite are closely related. “More than 90% of taste is smell,” he says. If you love the smell of hot coffee in the morning, or start to salivate when you walk past a restaurant the connection is obvious.

He conducted a study involving 3,193 overweight volunteers. Each participant was given an inhalant containing various herb and fruit scents. They were told to inhale three times into each nostril when they felt hungry. Hirsch explains, “The more people used the device, the more weight they lost.”

Over a six-month period, the participants didn’t diet. They ate 2-4 meals per day and lost an average of almost five pounds each month. Some participants lost up to 18 pounds per month. The research needs to be more specific, controlled and peer reviewed than this but here is some food for thought…read this study from the NIH (National Institute of Health). Particularly when the scent was “fresh” rather than “sweet” the cravings were mitigated.

The bottom line is maybe these essential oils can help with cravings and mood, it’s worth a try. Keep in mind that you will be doing this in moderation, it won’t work for everyone and certainly if you have an allergy or sensitivity to any of these scents it might not be the trick for you. It is essentially important to find high quality oils that are organic without added chemicals, not all oils are the same.

It is also important to point out that artificial scents in things like candles and room sprays are likely not as safe and should be avoided. Here is an article that gives more information and highlights some safer alternatives.

Here are a few examples of the types of products to be more diligent about checking ingredients:

Candles and scented melting wax

• Carpet and furniture deodorizers

• Room deodorizers and sprays

• Detergents, soaps, and scrubbing products

• Cleaning and polishing products

• Perfumes, colognes, and body sprays

• Dryer sheets and scented laundry products

• Shampoos, conditioners and hair products

• Lotions, skin care, and beauty products

• Nail polish, remover, and artificial nail products

• Paints, solvents, lacquers, refinishing products

• Herbicides/Pesticides, plant sprays, plant powders 

Stay tuned for an upcoming post on personal care products and household products.

But now…here are the combinations that you can try to boost your mood and manage food and sugar cravings!

You can purchase little glass ball roller containers to add your oils to so they are portable and can be with you daily.

Mood booster - 2-3 drops of lavender, 2-3 drops bergamot essential oil in either a diffuser or roller (for portability) with almond oil or coconut oil 1-2 Tb. Use the roller to apply to your wrist or hand and take a few sniffs. Most importantly with any essential oil is that it needs to be diluted with the carrier oil. It can be too strong to put directly onto your skin so be aware. Read this article for more information on safety

Sugar Craving oil blend: 10 drops peppermint oil, 10 drops grapefruit oil, 5 drops lemon oil and 3-4 Tb almond or coconut oil . The lemon and grapefruit also boost energy and clear brain fog so it’s a three for one!

Here’s another tidbit that is important to know… the average craving lasts about 3 minutes. If you can do something to redirect yourself from the craving, such as essential oil blend or another task you will be more successful.

As with all information here on my website it should not be a substitute for medical care, these are not recommendations for any illness that should be treated by a physician. Within functional medicine we look for root cause, these are nice little hacks but if you are having a consistent weight problem or mood changes that are concerning your first option should be to find a functional medicine physician to look deeper into the root cause.

Otherwise have fun trying these essential oil blends. I personally feel like the peppermint trick has helped me!

Want more energy? Better sleep? Drop a few pounds? Shift your mindset...

So now it’s almost April right? How are those New Years Healthy starts coming along? 2019 resolutions still kicking? I love the energy around healthy living in the start of the year yet I know somewhere around March or April these things start to slide (me included…no perfection here!)

Rather than getting on the band wagon for the New Year I’ve decided that my contribution is to help make those January commitments long-lasting, sustainable lifestyle changes.

How do you do that you ask? By shifting your mindset around who you are, what you are capable of and who you believe yourself to be. Sounds simple right? It actually isn’t as hard as you think.

On a daily basis I work with clients on the small daily tweaks that shift mindset slowly and surely to reach goals they never thought they could achieve.

Most of us don’t even realize how much the dialogue in our mind drives feelings, behaviors and habits that turn into low energy, sleeplessness, weight gain, inactivity, binge eating, stress and even forms of depression. How often have you reached for a cookie or a piece of chocolate, told yourself you deserve it, then had another and before you know it you’ve eaten 4 or 5 and then say to yourself “well, I’ve ruined it, now I might as well have the whole bag”. Then proceed to beat yourself up about it for hours afterward and sabotage the whole day with poor choices. You might be telling yourself “this is typical, I can’t ever stick with eating healthy” or “I just have no self-control”.

The same thing can happen with exercise. We want to get out and go for a walk or run or get to the gym regularly but there is always something else that needs to be done. Or…”I didn’t get much sleep last night, I’m too tired to go work out” or… “I don’t have the time to fit this in today, I’m just too busy”. The weight doesn’t come off and you don’t feel any better but you just can’t get “motivated” to start. The irony of this dialogue you have with yourself is that none of it is true and everyone does it.

If you have no energy, actually getting some movement into your day will GIVE you energy! If you think you have no time, when you take just 10-20 minutes to toss in some exercise you actually are more efficient. You get more done with the energy you created with exercise.

The dialogue in your head typically isn’t the truth and YOU DON’T HAVE TO LISTEN TO IT! You can choose to tell yourself something different. What if you decided get up every morning and just do a 10 minute walk outside or on the treadmill in the basement that you’ve been using for a clothing rack? What would happen?

What if you just woke up, did your morning routine, grabbed a cup of tea or warm water with lemon (sneaking in a morning energy and gut healing tip) and then headed out for JUST 10 minutes? Just tell yourself “i’m only going to go for 10 minutes and then I can do whatever else I think I need to do”. That’s it, just 10 minutes.

Chances are that after only 10 minutes you would start to feel more energetic and you would likely go for longer. Even if you didn’t go longer, 10 minutes is a fabulous start to a new morning routine if you haven’t been doing any exercise at all. A 10 minute walk, a 10 minute run, a 10 minute body weight exercise or weight training.

Often clients will say to me “but 10 minutes? Isn’t that just a waste? doesn’t it have to be at least 30 minutes to be worth it?” My response is “how much are you doing now?” and of course they say “nothing”.

My point exactly.

If you are doing nothing now then 10 minutes is definitely worth it and it’s the start of being consistent with a new habit. Anyone can do 10 minutes of anything. If you tell yourself you HAVE to do 30 you are more likely to never get started. Just get consistent with a very small goal and once you have done this consistently for 3-5 days a week then increase the time and then the intensity. Mindset shifts….

How do I start a healthy eating habit? How do I find some “self-control or motivation”? Again…its about what you are telling yourself when you start to make a choice that isn’t part of that vision of who you believe yourself to be or envision yourself to be. Shifting your mindset around nutrition and food is about starting with small choices. Maybe you just start by eating a healthy breakfast, start the day off right. Maybe you just say “no” to that one cookie knowing it will lead to another and another. Maybe you just eat more vegetables.

Each time you are compelled to make a food choice that isn’t in your best healthy interest, stop…and ask yourself one question “is this choice going to get me where I want to go with my health?”. Conjure up a vision of your healthiest self and honestly answer that question before you make your choice. Mindset shift….

Here’s the best secret of all… give yourself at least two weeks with any nutrition change. Your gut microbiome shifts in as little as 5 days when you eat whole, real and healthy foods. When you change your microbiome and populate with healthy bacteria they start craving healthy foods instead of the unhealthy ones. That’s a huge part of where your cravings or lack of self control come from.

On top of that, your taste buds change every two weeks! At that point you will be craving a whole different set of foods if you are eating lots of plant based meals, cutting sugar and limiting gluten. Stick with it for two weeks and you will be over the hump. Shift your mindset around what you know you are capable of doing, who you want to be and what your vision is of yourself.

One more key thing to establishing new habits is to pay attention during the day to what feels better or different on the days that you make better choices. How do you feel throughout the day when you choose to exercise in the morning? How do you react or not react to stress when you have incorporated a mindfulness meditation practice into your day? Noticing these small subtle shifts in the course of your day will help you to connect the power of healthy habits to living a better life on a daily basis.

Here are a few key points to keep in mind as a guideline for healthy habits in 2019

1. Pay attention to what that dialogue in your head is telling you, shift to the positive and use it as a tool. “I love healthy food”. “I make excellent choices toward my health”. “I love to walk, it gives me energy”

2. If you’ve made a good healthy choice for yourself…give yourself a pat on the back and really hold onto that feeling of gratitude for your health. It’s a way of shifting your neurological pathways toward positivity.

3. If you make a choice that isn’t the healthiest, DO NOT beat yourself up about it. Chalk it up to life and move on. Every moment, every action is an opportunity to move closer to the person you believe yourself to be, healthy and strong

4. Start a new habit by starting small. 10 minutes of movement, 5 minutes of mindfulness or meditation, eating a healthy breakfast or just drinking more water! Whatever the first goal is that comes to mind, cut it in half by 50%. “I want to run 5 days a week”. start with 2 or 3.

5. When changing your nutrition give yourself two weeks! It will happen I promise!

6. When making choices about what to eat ask yourself “Is this choice going to get me where I want to go with my health?”

7. Celebrate success!

8. Don’t beat yourself up when you stray, let it go and get back on track. Forgiveness is key.

9. Pay attention daily when you make healthy choices, how do you feel? What is better about your day?

10. Seek gratitude for the things that are good in life. Life is incredibly short and living with gratitude can make all the difference.

    For more information on implementing these shifts visit karenbush.com and schedule a complimentary 30 minute discovery call.

Just released: EWG's 2019 list of pesticide levels in fruits and vegetables

Such important news to be aware of! The Environmental Working Group (EWG) just released two lists for 2019, The Dirty Dozen and the Clean Fifteen. These lists should be part of your grocery list every week (you can get a cool printed copy on their website). They are updated every year to reflect recent changes so you can be assured you have up to date information because it does change believe me.

“Overall, the USDA found 225 different pesticides and pesticide breakdown products on popular fruits and vegetables Americans eat every day. Before testing, all produce was washed and peeled, just as people would prepare food for themselves, which shows that simple washing does not remove all pesticides.” per report from www.ewg.org.

Move over conventional Kale, you are not making it into my cart. This same report cites “The most surprising news from the USDA tests reveals that the popular health food kale is among the most contaminated fruits and vegetables. More than 92 percent of kale samples had two or more pesticide residues detected, and a single sample could contain up to 18 different residues. The most frequently detected pesticide, found on nearly 60 percent of kale samples, was Dacthal, or DCPA – classified by the Environmental Protection Agency since 1995 as a possible human carcinogen, and prohibited for use in Europe since 2009.”

When you are shopping and considering the choice between organic and conventional these lists will help you decide. There are many places to shop with lower prices on organic produce such as Aldi’s or Costco. It can be done. The Clean Fifteen list helps with cost by letting you know which fruits and vegetables are ok from conventional sources.

Head over to EWG now and while you’re at it you can download the app’s “healthy living” and “food scores” powered by EWG to easily check how safe your food or personal care products are.

A great resource that can be easily accessed anytime. Here’s to cleaner, safer living!

5 Natural ways to gain more energy in your day

I hear so many people talking about being tired, having no energy, being exhausted at the end of their work day. By the way, this spans the age groups too, 20 somethings to 50 and over. What’s up with this?

I also experienced something quite eye opening the other day when I actually went into the gas station (I never do that) to purchase some wiper fluid. To my utter amazement I noticed an incredible amount of “energy” supplements or drinks just lining the counter at the gas station. Capsules that claim to give you energy, drinks, supplements, candy. If gaining energy is your problem they want to solve it artificially.

The market is saturated with energy supplements, everyone is talking about being exhausted and having no energy yet we reach for something outside of ourselves, a bandaid to give us more energy rather than considering that there might be something that we are doing or not doing that is contributing to this low energy symptom. Which is exactly what it is….a symptom of something deeper.

Do you find yourself needing an energy supplement when waking up or can’t live without coffee, low energy after lunch or the 3:00 slump, need an energy supplement to have your best workout? These things are masking a need for something else in your body. Vitamin or mineral deficiency, non-restorative sleep, stress, overcommitment, poor absorption of nutrients, the list goes on. But masking them will only lead to issues later down the road. As Jack Kornfield once said “your body will hand you a bill.” It’s up to you whether you want to pay for that daily by taking care of yourself or keep racking up the bill until it becomes overwhelming and you can’t manage it.

If you are ready for a more natural way of creating energy in your life try these 5 things and see what happens! And if you discover that you really are still dragging it might be time to find a trusted functional medicine provider.

1. Slow down and stop committing to non-essential things. You know what I mean. Just say no.

2. Get a full 7 1/2 to 8 hrs of restorative sleep every night. Set yourself up for good sleep with a ritual 1-2 hrs prior to bed.

3. Eat more vegetables! Every meal (yes even breakfast) needs to have protein, plant based carbs and good healthy fats. You should feel energized after you eat not sluggish. Cut out the processed sugary foods.

4. Change the way you respond to stress in your life with a breath or meditation practice. I’m telling you, this is life changing. Are you the 3:00 in the afternoon coffee pick me up? Try a 10 minute meditation or getting outside for 10 minutes instead of coffee (miracle here)

5. Drink more water. Plain and simple if you feel tired you may be dehydrated. Drink half your body weight in water during the day. Get a 32 oz ball glass jar and just keep filing it up.

Try these and you will likely be amazed at the amount of energy you gain. If you need more guidance on how to incorporate these tips reach out…I happily offer a complimentary coaching call for anyone!

The power of a collaborative approach in Functional Medicine

"It is the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) that those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed." – Charles Darwin

An exceptional collaboration is based on unique contributions from all parties involved. Why do many professional sports teams have a group of coaches and special teams? Because it takes each persons unique contribution to create the whole package.

In functional medicine (FM) the triad of provider, dietitian and health coach is the trifecta. Critical components from each of these disciplines come together to provide comprehensive results for clients . The FM provider or practitioner is creating the timeline, looking at the core clinical imbalances as they relate to the patients lifestyle, doing lab work and developing recommendations to address the root cause. They spend a significant amount of time with the patient, usually an hour or slightly more gathering all of the information needed to create the best plan forward. The provider does not have the time to review and adjust the diet and walk the patient through that extensive process.

In walks the dietitian and the collaboration begins. Dietitians spend an amazing amount of time learning the intricacies of phytonutrients, macronutrients, balanced meals, how to connect symptoms with food intake and generally improve diet to support health in any number of ways. They are experts in helping patients achieve a workable nutrition plan that serves the patients health needs and also supports the social aspects of food and connection.

Often, in my clinical work, the dietitian will come back from meeting with a patient and say “I referred this patient to you, she really needs some coaching”. The dietitian is excellent at creating a plan for whole body nutrition but not equipped to help a patient through managing stress with hands on tools that will prevent, for example, the next SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth) event. It’s all tied together!! Stress can be the factor that throws everything off track so that it almost doesn’t matter what you are eating unless the stress is managed.

In walks the health coach. The provider and dietitian have critical roles, they have set the stage but they are not the ones to spend the time really delving into the patients daily life to see where behavior changes can be made and support patients through the changes that they are willing to address. If the patient is not quite ready to make the full changes, the health coach can expertly lead them into stages of change so they are ready and they made the decision, not someone else. At times a health coach can see a patient every week to establish new behaviors, mindset shifts and problem solve through all the areas of the providers recommendations and support. Stress management, relationships, exercise, mindset shift, sleep, personal and professional development, detox protocols, supplement regimens... All of these areas weave into a dynamic health journey for the functional medicine patient that ultimately provides an experience that both heals and allows the patient to be empowered to take care of their own health. When I have patients who are just seeing me as a health coach, we have the conversation within the first few visits about connecting with a functional medicine provider and dietitian. As a Functional Medicine Health Coach I can’t do blood work to determine nutrient deficiencies, potential heavy metal poisoning, high levels of environmental toxins or even mold or lyme infections. Yet, these may be some of the reasons a patient has energy deficits or any number of symptoms. Working with a patient for several weeks and getting them ready for the FM provider visit is a key component to getting the most out that visit and the recommendations, and then the journey progresses.

The collaborative process between these three disciplines, the provider, dietitian and health coach is a powerful and effective way to achieve the patient outcomes that move our collective society ahead toward health and prosperity.

Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much. —Helen Keller

Genetics outsmarted...my quest to avoid a heart attack.

For as long as I can remember heart disease and impending heart attacks were ever present in my family's life.  You see...my father had his first heart attack at age 36.  When I was just 4 years old.  It became deeply embedded in my mind and my body that heart disease could be my fate.  In my early 20's I started to work in healthcare and see the chronic illnesses that were linked on some level to lifestyle choices.  At that time we thought our genetic makeup had more of an influence on our physical bodies expression of health.  We now know it really only represents about 30% of what happens to us.  The world of epigenetic's helps us to understand that we have more control over what happens in our bodies that we ever thought before.  Epigenetics can simply be defined as the bodies ability to turn on or off our genes based on our lifestyle choices, what we expose ourselves to.  If you are interested in a more scholarly article about the word and history of epigentics read this article.

So… needless to say the way we live our lives and the choices we make have a significant impact on our health outcomes. In one way this is very empowering , to realize that we have more control than we once thought. On the other hand it now makes us responsible for living day to day in a way that supports our health and addressing habits they may not be in our best interest. That is not easy right? Behavior change and habit change even if we know it is in our best interest long term is THE hardest part of life.

For many years when coworkers or friends would ask me things like “do you actually like what you’re eating or are you eating it because it’s healthy?” many times my response would be “I’m just trying to avoid a heart attack”. To make light of it and not to get into a philosophical argument about my eating habits or any other habit of mine. As time went on and I became more convinced of the importance and the significant research supporting healthy habits in terms of avoiding chronic illness I would say “it’s a little bit of both in reality”. I like what I am eating and I feel good about the fact that I am doing something good for my body.

The reality is that at this point in my life after a good 25 years of focusing on healthy habits (and a few unhealthy things sprinkled into the mix as well because none of us are perfect right?) I have no evidence of heart disease. My cholesterol has always been at a good level, my cardiac calcium score (read here if you want to know more about this very important test)is “0” which means no detectable calcification in any of the three major arteries leading to my heart and BP is always at a great “lower than average” level. I’m not telling you this to brag, quite the opposite, but to provide an example of someone who could have been at risk for a cardiac event at my current age of 51, who has no evidence of heart disease. I am genetically and feature- wise very similar to my father. I look like him, my body type is more consistent with his. Now, you can argue that maybe my genetics are more similar to my mothers and she didn’t have her heart attack until she was 69. Yet, if she had a CT for her calcification score in her 50’s you would have likely started to see some plaque build up that could have led to arterial blockage that was the cause of her heart attack and subsequent bypass surgery.

Here is the message…. HEART DISEASE, DIABETES, OBESITY, NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE…I could go on…are all preventable with lifestyle changes. You don’t have to suffer with these chronic illnesses. Even more than that, many symptoms and illnesses are preventable by taking control and changing things one step at a time.

If all you do after reading this is start to get out and move a bit more, drink more water and eat more vegetables you’ve started to make a shift. Every little action on a daily basis is a vote for the person you want to be.

Who do you want to be?

It's not about the black dress

Here we are...the end of 2017.    So it happens.  Every year.  Everyone makes resolutions and goals in January and somewhere along March or April or maybe even sooner they are forgotten about or abandoned.  Why is that?  What is going on in the collective human psyche that prevents the majority of people from achieving and sustaining these goals?

Simply stated, we set goals that are unobtainable, short sighted and not in line with our values.  Many people will set goals to lose weight, go to a gym, follow a diet, run a marathon.  All of these goals are admirable to say the least but they are short sighted.  The true goal, if I even want to use the word goal, is to make small incremental changes daily that lead to true behavior change, a shift in your way of living and your mindset every day..  a lifestyle change.  I'm not saying that having something to work toward isn't helpful but these large goals often lead to failure and abandonment..

"The smarter approach is to learn to embrace the process.  Too often we approach our lives’ biggest hurdles with dread, execute them with anxiety, and leave them with regret,” says Amy Cuddy , Social Psychologist and Associate Professor at Harvard's business school, in her book, Presence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges.

“Instead, we need to nudge ourselves, moment by moment, by tweaking our body language, behaviour, and mind-set in our day-to-day lives.”

On the surface, that may seem counter-productive, like you aren't addressing the bigger picture, but Cuddy emphasizes the power of using long-term thinking for short-term planning. "You won't lose all the weight overnight, so your best option is to focus on making each day the best it can be. Look at the big goal as a string of daily or weekly goals that are easier to accomplish."

"A lot of research is showing us that we do much better when we focus on incremental change, on little bits of improvement," Cuddy say

Let's take the goal of losing weight for the purpose of our discussion.  It's the number one self-reported goal for the new year.  If you want to lose weight ask yourself "why?".  Why is losing weight so important to me?  Is it about wearing that little black dress or is it about something much deeper and inherently more important.

IT'S NOT ABOUT THE BLACK DRESS.  It may seem like that would be a good motivator but it quickly dissipates because it is not intrinsically motivated.  Losing weight to wear the black dress to your reunion or New Years Eve is about impressing others...but what is it really about?

To dig a bit deeper to the core of the issue ask yourself some of these questions:

1. What does being overweight mean to you?  

2. What do you feel like you are missing out on?  

3. How does the weight make you feel?  

4. Where does it limit you?

5. What are some words that describe the extra weight you are carrying? 

Now, ask yourself this question..."What would I feel like in 2-3 years if I actually embraced a healthier lifestyle and as a result gradually lost weight?"  and  "What would I feel like if absolutely nothing changed from today?"  

These are the questions that dig deep in order to affect lasting change in any area of life.  These questions and the conversation that it stimulates will connect you to the values that drive your behavior and thus effect behavior change and lifestyle change.

One of the first things you can do to move yourself forward on the path of true lasting lifestyle change is to expunge the word "diet" from your vocabulary, you will be better off immediately.  The negative connotations from this word start you off on the wrong path immediately.  Diet implies a short term sort of deprivation in most people's minds, instead think of it as making a choice every minute of every day to live healthier, your food choices are just part of that.  Start slowly but keep moving forward.

If we move our thoughts and actions to small changes or tweaks every day all throughout the day before we know it we've made a significant lifestyle change.   It's a mindset shift that needs to take place but it begins with small behavior changes and changing the way we talk to ourselves.

When you start by asking yourself what's important to you and why you want to lose weight or get healthy it becomes easier to be intentional with your daily behaviors.  Each day your actions need to be aligned with your overall values and if they aren't you need to ask yourself "why not?".   

So what is the real reason most people want to be healthier and lose weight?  Is it about being able to run around with your kids or grandkids?  Is it about not getting winded when you walk down the driveway to get the mail or up the stairs?  Is it about going to the doctor's and feeling confidant that you are finally taking charge of your health?  Is it about booking a flight to your next vacation without worrying about being cramped in the seat because you are too big?  Is it about finally feeling good about yourself and not hiding behind the weight? 

Connecting to your values and what's important to you makes this a lifestyle change.  Setting small achievable goals for every day and taking it one day at a time.  "Just for this morning I can make time for myself to eat a healthy breakfast and pack a snack".  This in turn affects how you deal with stress at work, you don't overeat lunch because you took the time to pack a healthy snack for 10 a.m.  

When you start taking care of yourself in one area of your health it becomes a cascade affect and celebrating these small achievements brings an internal level of satisfaction that goes a long way.

Connect to your values, nudge yourself daily, moment to moment and celebrate your success.  And lastly...find yourself a good health coach that can support and  guide you through this process.  Most people who achieve goals consistently have a coach or a mentor, it may be time for you to enlist a health coach and I know just the person...wink wink.  

How I became an Integrative Health Coach

Challenging myself is an inherent part of my make-up. I once had a friend ask me "Why do you always have to do everything differently than everyone else...do you do that on purpose?".  Yes...actually I do.  I am always seeking something new to learn and challenge my brain and body.  Anything from running races, rowing competitively, treating my speech patients in a very "outside of the box sort of way" to use an overused phrase, to really asking myself the hard question of "why am I doing this?  Is what I am doing making a difference in a positive way?".   I am easily bored but if I am challenged and have a purpose that is in alignment with my beliefs then I am happy.  So it's surprising that my chosen profession, Medical Speech Pathology, has kept me engaged for 25 years...almost. Not surprising in that it wasn't challenging or purposeful in the beginning, it certainly has been,  but 25 years??  We all change so much in 25 years...at least if you are living a life of awareness and willing to challenge your potentially long held beliefs.

As my views on healthy living evolved my involvement in traditional healthcare seemed less authentic.  I became more mindful,  More aware of what I do on a daily basis. I wasn't oblivious before but I had reached a point of mastery where I could really take more time to think about how it all fit within my values and beliefs.   A good portion of my practice as a speech pathologist has involved the treatment of swallowing disorders.  Many of my patients were unable to swallow for various reasons and required tube feedings.  My evaluation's frequently recommended non-oral feedings which were necessary to avoid aspiration pneumonia.  When I thought about the source of nutrition that I was recommending and the fact that I often told them "this is nutritionally sound and you will get all the vitamins and nutrients you need" I realized that I actually didn't believe that.  Sure...I knew that they would be avoiding pneumonia and that was paramount.  I still believe that...however, the nutrition they would be receiving from my point of view was not truly going to promote healing.  I also hadn't really incorporated the "choice" aspect of a hospitalization.  These patients had a choice to accept or decline my recommendations and I was really the only one who had the expertise to fully explain and offer that to them. That became a standard part of my practice quite a few years ago but still,  I had a crisis of consciousness.  I floundered and felt disengaged and thought where do I go from here?  It's really like jumping off a cliff to say you no longer feel in alignment with the practice you have been cultivating for over 20 years.  

Don't get me wrong...there are many aspects I have LOVED about being a speech pathologist and really felt like I've made a difference in lives all over the country. Yet I've also spent many years treating those who have the rubber stamp diagnosis of hypertension, diabetes, coronary heart disease and at times a plethora of other largely lifestyle induced diseases.  These are so common with every person who enters our healthcare system that we are more surprised when these aren't on their list of diagnosis.  It should be the other way around.   I felt complicit. 

 I was so comfortable in a hospital setting, I could evaluate and treat easily and efficiently, younger therapist's came to me for answers...but I knew something wasn't right. I felt a distinct disconnection with the way our healthcare system functioned and my personal beliefs about healthy living.  I knew I needed to be on the other end of the spectrum empowering people to take control of their health and happiness and living on purpose.  I discovered Integrative Health Coaching through Duke Universities Integrative Medicine Program and never looked back.  This was my tribe, my place.  I finally felt that I could be part of the solution.

We often live very unconsciously going from day to day not considering the routine things we do until they don't work anymore or we are just numb.  We don't have to wait until something goes wrong to start living a healthy, fulfilling and passionate life.  My personal journey of health and happiness began long ago and has evolved over the years as I learn and grow. My training at Duke Integrative Medicine made all the difference.   In my work as an Integrative Health Coach I am so energized when I bring clients to sit comfortably with the ideas of empowerment, purpose, taking small steps and living their best life.  This feels right.  

These ideas are grounded in mindful behavior on a daily basis.  It's been a daily practice for me to live more mindfully, pausing to consider my actions and behaviors before engaging for some time now.  Not perfectly but on the journey.  This is the basis of Integrative Health Coaching and my work as I see it.  It starts with a meditation practice which then filters into your daily life as more purposeful, mindful moments.  Nurturing mind-body awareness leads to long lasting sustainable change and living on purpose.  Using these principles has allowed me to live a more peaceful, balanced life.  Using my energy where it suits me best and gives back to others in a profound way.  I am charged up about bringing this way of living to more people and increasing the collective consciousness of compassionate, healthy living.  Put your oxygen mask on first before assisting others my friends.

 You only have one life...start living it the way you want to .