Why You Need a Health Coach
Most of us already know what we “should” be doing to better our health. Whether it’s taking our vitamins daily, making sleep a priority or getting in that exercise. Most of the time, our well-intended “shoulds” often end up at the bottom of our never ending to-do list. Not only can it be exhausting to remember all of those “shoulds” but, it can also be pretty defeating when we aren’t feeling our best and know there are things we need to change. Sometimes, it can feel overwhelming and difficult to know where to even start. Or maybe, when you do start making changes, you realize that after just a couple of weeks, you are back to square one trying to figure out how to remind yourself to drink enough water.
Interestingly, researchers believe that it can take a person anywhere from 18 to 254 days to form a new habit and an average of 66 days for that new habit to become automatic. As a naturopathic doctor specializing in women’s health and hormones, this is something I remind my patients all the time. Taking a medication or even a supplement is easy, especially in comparison, to creating and implementing new habits.
So, how do we shift our mindset and, most importantly, how do we get past this vicious cycle and finally change the trajectory of our health? At NMD Wellness of Scottsdale, we have found that implementing a personalized health coach is where the magic really happens. It is also the reason that as part of your NMD Wellness membership, we include an equal number of visits with me as your doctor as well as our certified health coach. Our health coach allows our patients to implement the personalized health plan we have created for them and ensure that the habits we create will soon become automatic.
Your health coach is truly a key player in your healthcare team and an essential part of our clinic at NMD Wellness of Scottsdale. By providing you support in areas including mindset, nutrition, sleep hygiene, movement, stress management and detox support, our patients are able to see significant improvements in their health that aren’t simply a “quick fix” but a new way of life. We know that changing our mindset, our diet and our habits can be difficult, but having the right support allows you to make the necessary changes you need in an actionable step-by-step process that allows you to feel your best every day.
Many of our patients come to us because they have been suffering from hormonal issues including irregular cycles, PMS, endometriosis, PCOS or difficulty getting pregnant and feel as though they have seen countless specialists with limited strategies for getting to the root cause of their symptoms. At NMD Wellness of Scottsdale, we believe in taking a comprehensive whole body approach to your care with comprehensive functional testing, personalized nutrition plans and the right support to put words into action so that you can finally get back to living your best life. Isn’t it time to get off the merry-go-round and finally get back into the driver’s seat of your own health?
What is a health coach?
Think of a health coach as your personalized health cheerleader. They help you implement lifestyle changes to improve your mental, physical and spiritual health. At NMD Wellness of Scottsdale, our amazing health coach is an accredited functional medicine health coach. Functional medicine health coaches are unique in that they understand that there is more to a healthy lifestyle than fad diets and unsustainable exercise regimens. They understand that there is a gap between what you know you NEED to do to be healthy and the intrinsic motivation required to actually make and, most importantly, sustain those changes.
Benefits of health coaching
Having your personalized health cheerleader helps you stay accountable and helps you face obstacles that you will undoubtedly face during your health journey. I wish everyone’s health journey was linear but the reality is, it often is not. Not only have we seen the power of health coaching clinically, but researchers also agree. In fact, a recent study found that people who completed even just a three month health coaching program saw significant improvement in blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose control, weight management and cardiovascular fitness. Health coaching is truly powerful and something we strongly believe in here at NMD Wellness of Scottsdale.
For many of our patients struggling from hormonal issues, severe acne, gut issues, anxiety, mood swings, irregular cycles and even difficulty getting pregnant, health coaches allow our patients to implement the new formed behavior that, will not only resolve their symptoms, but most importantly create new neural pathways to maintain effective change.
Our functional medicine health coach will help:
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Guide our patients through mindset trainings, optimize sleep hygiene, and support diet, exercise and lifestyle protocols created by Dr. Zen
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Offer tools and accountability while patients implement new lifestyle changes
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Motivate patients using positive psychology techniques
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Celebrate success and encourage progress throughout their health journey.
About the Author: Meet Dr. Zen
Alissia Zenhausern- Pfeiffer, NMD, FABNE, (commonly known by her patients as Dr. Zen), is a licensed naturopathic doctor board certified in naturopathic endocrinology and the founder of NMD Wellness of Scottsdale, a premier naturopathic medical practice that focuses on helping women to take a proactive approach to their hormone and fertility health. Dr. Zen has been featured as a lead expert in Forbes, Shape Magazine, and Instyle and is deeply passionate about bridging the gap between traditional and natural medicine in the world of fertility. She works with a variety of hormone related issues including PCOS, endometriosis and unexplained infertility. Her goal is to help more women get back into the driver’s seat of their own health to make lasting transformational changes to their health to bring more cute and adorable babies into this world. Read More About Dr. Zen...
