What is the difference between Health and Well-Being Coaching and Life Coaching?

A health and well-being coach’s approach considers a wider, more holistic look at the overall health and well-being of an individual than a life coach’s approach, which focuses on specific elements of a person’s life, such as finances, career development, communication skills, and relationships, though there is some overlap.

Health and well-being coaches can be viewed as members of an individual’s greater healthcare team, working alongside more traditional health and wellness professionals, like nutritionists, dietitians, nurses, physicians, therapists, and certified personal trainers. They are increasingly being hired in medical settings, such as in hospitals and doctors’ offices, as there is growing recognition that health and well-being coaches fill a much needed niche to help patients figure out how to actually implement recommendations made by their health professionals. An example would be of a health coach helping a client to strategize how to make realistic and manageable changes to lower blood pressure or lose weight as recommended by their doctor.

Is Health and Well-Being Coaching like therapy or counseling?

Health and well-being coaching is very different from therapy. Therapy is often a reflective process that attempts to address emotional well-being by examining and healing the past and a therapist will also diagnose and treat mental illness. In contrast, health and well-being coaching is very forward-focused and action-oriented and a health coach will never diagnose or treat mental illness. Though we may use one’s past to inform where one is currently, the focus is on the here and now and what one wants to accomplish. We assess where a person is now versus where they want to be and help to enhance a person’s physical and emotional well-being by supporting changes in habits related to diet, exercise, sleep, mindfulness, relationships, and meaning and purpose.

Coaching is also centered on supporting and encouraging clients through a process of motivational interviewing. In addition to helping individuals achieve goals and enhancing overall well-being, a health and wellness coach can also help to build healthy habits to minimize emotional stress, fatigue and burnout.

Is a Health Coach like a regular coach?

A health coach is different from a regular coach. Rather than telling clients what to do or providing training or directives, a health coach asks questions and guides clients in conversations to provide insight into their own behaviors. A health and well-being coach helps clients identify answers from within to decide ways to modify behaviors and habits that work within their real day-to-day lives.

Who can benefit from health coaching?