What is an ADAPT Health Coach?
Yo-yo this crunchy outdoor enthusiast mama has got some news!! I’m enrolled in Chris Kresser’s Functional Medicine ADAPT Health Coaching Institute! Meaning, by June of 2020 (if all goes well) I’ll be running my own health coaching business. Woot woot!
You may be thinking, “well that’s great and all, but what in the world is an ADAPT Health Coach?”
First, let me explain why Chris Kresser launched this institute in the first place.
We are in a chronic disease epidemic and medical crisis
Here are some frightening statistics from the research of Chris Kresser institute:
1 in 3 Americans have pre-diabetes or diabetes
Chronic disease will generate 47 trillion in healthcare costs by 2030
86% of our healthcare spending goes towards chronic disease
7 out of 10 deaths are caused by chronic disease
So what does all this mean?
“Left unchecked, the tide of chronic disease will continue to rise—and destroy our quality of life, killing millions each year.
… That means the answer to the healthcare crisis isn’t just more doctors.
We need people who provide that vital (and missing) layer of support to help patients make lasting diet, lifestyle, and behavior changes, cope with stress, and provide moral and emotional support.”
An ADAPT Health Coach is designed to…
EMPOWER you to become your own wisdom and strength
SUPPORT you without judgment
HELP you create your own solution to problems
HOLD you accountable to your goals
Why did I choose the ADAPT program for my lifelong career?
If you have known me for the past 10 years you know I kind of tend to buck the medical system. I couldn’t put my finger on it before, but something about going in to see a doctor for a cold, spending 10-15 minutes with that doctor and leaving with a prescription bugged me. I’m thankful for my childhood nutrition and my Mom who has always been health conscious! Because of my genes and childhood I’ve been a healthy kid/adult my whole life with rare colds, no autoimmune disorders, no food allergies, and extremely active. But, when I went in to see doctors, I was treated the same as every patient coming in with the same symptoms. I always wondered in the back of my head how these doctors really knew that this drug was actually what I needed. Not to mention one time in high school my cold antibiotic got mixed up at the pharmacy with another girls birth control prescription. Thankfully my Dad caught the mistake when picking it up. But can you imagine if I blindly accepted that prescription?
But now, I get it. You can’t blame the doctors for doing their job.
Our highly experienced, educated, and skilled doctors are doing their job. What’s their job? Their job is to treat acute illness and emergency situations. But, when they are SWAMPED with chronic illness day in and day out, they are left with no choice but to be as fast and efficient as possible. Can you imagine if every doctor spent an hour or two talking with their patient to better understand each individuals genes, childhood trauma, grief scenarios, diet, lifestyle, activities, health goals, and the list goes on and on. They simply don’t have the capacity to treat individuals at this level of care.
What I learned after my stroke.
After I had a stroke at age 26 I learned an important lesson. NO ONE KNOWS MY BODY BETTER THAN I DO. Yep, you heard that right. Not even the PhD Neurologist with 12 years of education and 4 years of research understands ME like I do. This lesson hit me HARD when I paid $5,000 (pre-insurance) to meet with a cardiologist for 20 minutes. After asking her some HARD questions about my labs and blood work, all she could do was draw me a diagram of the heart, tell me she was on call and had a page, and leave me with all my unanswered questions and a life-long prescription for over the counter baby aspirin.
Um, no thank you.
I began my own journey of becoming my own health coach.
Nutrition, health, and fitness have always peaked my interest. For over a decade I’ve been reading books by doctors, listening to health podcasts, and researching the food I put into my body. I’d say it was a great hobby and fun way to stimulate my mind since my day job was a corporate trainer teaching about light bulbs. But, after my stroke it wasn’t just my hobby. I don’t say this lightly when I say,
“My own life was on the line with my research and application of my knowledge”
Thankfully, I also researched functional medicine doctors who came alongside me and we worked together to build a lifestyle and protocol to maintain my vascular integrity, eliminate my neuro inflammation, and rewire the damaged neurons in my brain to fire to healthy parts of my brain.
So, that’s a little bit about my story.
Back to the question. Why did I choose the ADAPT program?
I freakin’ love Chris Kresser and his Functional Medicine practice. I’ve learned SO much through his resources.
I want to better grow my coaching skills so that I can empower others to become their own self-advocate when it comes to understanding the complex world of medicine and chronic illness.
Others often ask me about resources or information I’ve learned through my journey. I want to share that as a vocation but more importantly, support YOU in your unique journey. Because no one knows your body like you do!
Here is a short FAQ!
What will a coaching session look like?
Coaching sessions will be either virtually or in-person and they look like me listening to you, supporting you, answering your questions, and providing applicable resources.
When will you begin offering your coaching services?
This fall I will offer practicum coaching sessions at a discounted rate!
How can I get more information and stay up to date on your journey?
If you have questions, want to be on a wait list for practicum coaching sessions, or want to be on my newsletter (no spam!! Just blog posts and fun photos :) ) fill out the forum below.
Photo by Emily Kuhn Photography
Thanks for reading!! Stay tuned for more information!!