Coaching (old)
As a coach, I support complicated people as they learn to recognize, understand, and love every single part of who they are.
Hurrah for all of you!
You are a community, and every part of you belongs.
Even the parts who cause you trouble.
When you learn to welcome every part of who you are, even the troublesome ones, everything changes. I know this from my own experience — and the experience of my clients. You can expect to feel more:
- Calm, clear and confident. Internal consensus among the different parts of you will give you the strength to speak clearly, think calmly, and act confidently in the world — even under pressure.
- Courageous and connected. With the united support of your whole inner community, you’ll have the courage to connect deeply with other people and the world from a place of secure integrity.
- Creative. When they feel a sense of inclusion and belonging, the diverse parts of your personality can generate astonishing solutions to difficult problems.
- Curious. Your curiosity about your own internal world will make you more curious about the complexities of other people and systems.
- Compassionate. Your love and kindness toward the most challenging parts of yourself will help you respond with compassion to the most challenging parts of other people.
If this sounds like what you’re after, then I might be a good coach for you.
My philosophy of coaching
As a trained Internal Family Systems practitioner, I believe human beings’ inner lives are social systems, made up of many different parts — independent sub-personalities or inner characters. You might know some of your own parts very well already — perhaps an “inner child” or an “inner critic.” Others parts of you might be harder to notice, or hide from your awareness entirely.
No matter how well you know them, all the different parts of you have their own abilities, temperaments, and ways of understanding the world. Most importantly, I believe every part of us wants to keep us alive, safe, and happy — but different parts of ourselves often have very different ideas about how to do that.
Sometimes, those internal disagreements lead some parts of us to oppress others, which causes us great suffering. I believe we heal by bringing every single part of us into full membership in the community of ourselves. As a coach, I support my clients as they do just that.
Reasons to try coaching
The sort of coaching I do isn’t for everybody. But it might be for you if you want …
- To feel more comfortable being your whole self. I think of mental suffering not as a symptom of mental illness, but as an invitation to internal community-building. As a coach, I’ll provide support and guidance as you explore your internal community, help hurting parts of you heal, and learn to take joy in all of who you are.
- To pursue healing outside the mental health system. If traditional therapy hasn’t worked well for you, or if the mental health system hasn’t been safe or welcoming, coaching might provide a better route to growth and healing. Here’s more about the difference between coaching with me and mental healthcare.
- A focused commitment to personal growth. If you’ve got specific goals for your own evolution as a person, coaching provides encouraging partnership and support, gentle accountability, and practical guidance — all in an efficient, limited timeframe.
- Support through transitions and challenges. If you’re going through a hard time or a period of change, coaching can help you find the internal clarity and courage you need to make it through to the other side.