This is a guest post from Christine Sauer
(Member since 2019)
A holistic approach to overall health and wellness
You all know of financial planners, career planners, project planners, wedding planners, even funeral planners. But have you ever heard of a health planner?
As much as it is important to plan for things like career, finances and more, wouldn’t it be more important to plan for one’s health? Why are there so few? Is it because people think that health, illness and disease are things that just happen to you? That may be true in a case where you fall down a flight of steps and break your arm, but most cases of chronic illness can be prevented, much improved or even reversed with careful and comprehensive health planning.
For example; when you want to build a complex and well-functioning house, you would hire an experienced architect, who assesses your needs, then crafts a detailed blueprint for the house and guides you through the build.
We need more people planning for our “house of health” and helping us build it on our “property,” our body and mind. Good health planning involves a comprehensive assessment and multi-faceted plan, with a process that comprises of steps to build or re-build your health from the ground up and provide you with a comprehensive and transformative experience and a health maintenance plan to follow.
This type of health planning and coaching is not limited to one dimension — fitness, weight loss, stress reduction, diet, mindfulness and so on — it really involves all aspects and facets of our health and demands special knowledge and experience.
Health planning and coaching can be done completely online, confidentially and in co-operation with your past, current and future health care and wellness providers.
Health is a team effort — but a good team needs a coach. That’s where I see specially trained health and performance coaches come in and fill the void. They would be trained not only to assess and help with nutritional and lifestyle needs, but to optimize your health for ultimate performance at work and in life. They can help manage stress and sleep, co-ordinate efforts of other health and wellness providers, devise a comprehensive health, nutrition, lifestyle and supplement plan, help with meal planning, recipes, even cooking classes as well as coach you through necessary lifestyle changes, hold you accountable and — in short — always have your back!
Like a good sports coach they listen and ask the “good questions,” find out where you need to improve, craft your individual health plan around nutrition, lifestyle and health education. They also challenge and hold you accountable to reach your best physical, mental, spiritual and financial health and wellness and to continue your new habits for life.
What would it mean for your company and employees if they had a health planner and coach on their team? I believe it would drastically cut sick time, improve performance, happiness and employee retention.
Dr. Christine Sauer is a Naturopathic Doctor, an expert Health Planner and Certified Health Coach.
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