Health & Wellness Coaching to support the Needs and Goals of Post-COVID Patients

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Oct 10, 2021 | Hannah Schlotthauer | @schlohan | Comments (4)

Article by: Abd Moain Abu Dabrh, MBBCh, MS, NBC-HWC
Integrative Medicine and Health, Division of General Internal Medicine
Mayo Clinic Florida

When I meet with my patients and I mention to them that I am also a board-certified Health & Wellness Coach, I am often asked, “what is Health & Wellness Coaching?”

Health & Wellness Coaching or HWC is defined as a person-centered partnership between a coach and a coached person. Coaches use evidence-based approaches to engage in conversations and create connections that foster behavioral and process changes through motivation and sense of ownership. The aim is to promote a person’s ability to make changes and to nurture personal accountability. Ultimately coaches help empower the coached person to make a commitment to their well-being and living their best envisioned life.

While HWC derives from constructs of positive psychology, it is neither therapy, nor counseling. It is an approach that centers on motivating people to become the leading drivers, critical thinkers, and choice makers to fulfill their vision for their health and well-being. HWC is considered part of the Integrative Medicine approach to support healthcare goals and plans. At Mayo Clinic, coaches work closely and collaboratively with your care team to ensure they are providing comprehensive and thoughtful care that supports your wellness goals.

Physicians, mental health professionals, and other non-physician healthcare providers generally partner with their patients and use more directive/directing approaches to provide specific treatment or guidelines to follow. HWC does not involve diagnosing or treating individuals. Instead, coaches partner with individuals to help them envision and explore what living their best life looks like. Coaches help individuals explore the best approaches to identify, determine, self-enact, and find supportive resources to move closer towards that vision and fit it within the context of their life. HWC includes progress, setbacks, and success—it is indeed a journey.

As individuals who are experiencing one or more of the symptoms or conditions associated with Post-COVID 
Syndrome, your stories vary…You may be Lisa— the nurse in a memory care unit who is also living with insomnia and a chronic cough while continuing to manage personal and professional life stresses; You may be Hugo— the dentist who now struggles with palpitations and anxiety after living all his life feeling fully healthy; Yang— the schoolteacher and mother of three who wants to find occasional selfcare time and respite from the continuous caregiving duties of ailing parents while experiencing chronic fatigue; or Jamal— the war veteran who is coping with PTSD and is trying to lose the pandemic weight and rediscover his old passion to become a landscaping business owner. We all know that these are not farfetched stories.

Many of us continue to wonder “who could help me explore options to support my health and well-being?” “I need guidance.” Health & Wellness Coaching can help!

No matter what, when, how, and where you explore consulting with a coach, remember: HWC is about the person, not the condition or symptom. So, whether you are looking to uncover, discover, or to recover any aspect(s) of your health and wellness, discuss with your care team and consider exploring and receiving Health & Wellness Coaching consultation to support your well-being journey.

Learn more about the most recent developments with post-COVID syndrome by following the Newsfeed and discuss your experience in the Post-COVID Recovery discussion group.