How can I help?

4.3.20

School is nearly done (my certificate in Integrative Health & Wellness Coaching) and it is time to get out into the world and serve as a genuine, health coach to actual, private-pay clients! It is kinda scary (truth be told) but it is also very exhilarating! I’ve been wondering just what to say to people who might ask what I’m up to, beyond my elevator speech that sounds like this. . .

“I’m Paula, a retired RN and newly-minted Health and Wellness Coach. My business is called Co-Create 4 Life and it serves the needs of caregivers, especially family caregivers. I am a family caregiver myself, so I deeply understand the stresses, emotional turmoil and demands that anyone in a similar role naturally feels. I’m also a researcher, so I know the literature on caregiving which reminds me that one in five of us, caring for loved ones with degenerative neurologic disorders, like Alzheimer’s disease, will die before our loved one does. It is the stress that kills caregivers! Knowing this, and so much more about the challenges of the role, I’m committed to serving the needs of family caregivers and even professionals who may need my help. My business focuses on teaching self-care, in keeping with my recent book, Self-Care Strategies for Family Caregivers. I offer one-on-one sessions, group coaching and even a course that follows the key elements of the book available through on-line learning. (as I hand out my card) Know anyone who needs my services?”

What else do I do to launch? Everything imaginable! Anything visible, useful, helpful, and honest. I’m writing this blog, I’m recording Zoom presentations for several audiences, I’m seeking out other speaking engagements (for the in-person future), I’m sharing my tools on coping with COVID-19, and I’m blasting a celebration e-mail to everyone I know. I’m also unabashedly asking my friends for referrals and thanking them profusely when they send someone my way! I’m volunteering my services where the opportunity presents itself and I’m asking for help wherever friends seem to have information or ideas.

It is a special time and it is happening at a very weird slice of American experience, our stay-at-home, isolated from everyone, curious, chaotic time in our shared history. I wish my coaching launch was not concurrent with this uncomfortable time of life, but it is, which tells me it is also the PERFECT time, destined by the Universe to occur right now.

Sometimes, when the timing seems wrong, the circumstances seem stacked against you, the obstacles loom large and the “yes-buts” are plentiful, it is actually the exact time to stand up, be seen, have courage and do what the Universe has called you to do. I invite you to stand with me!

About Paula

I help other caregivers – both professionals and family caregivers – acknowledge their pain and learn to practice the many small skills of self-care that can sustain them through the challenges of wholeheartedly caring for others.

Recent Posts

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Taking Advantage of a Long, Holiday Weekend. . .

May 30, 2023 Coach Simple Self-Care Strategies

Even as Americans discuss the advantages of the four-day work-week, thanks to Representative Mark Takano, D-Calif., who introduced legislation which, if it passes, would reduce the standard workweek to 32 hours instead of 40, we’re also working more hours than ever.

The Guardian reports that compared with other countries, the American workplace record is not good. “In 2021, American employees worked 184 more hours than Japanese workers, 294 more hours than British workers, and 442 more hours than German workers. Unbelievably, in 2023 there are millions of Americans who work at jobs with no vacation time” (The Guardian).

You’ll Never Walk Alone. . .

May 25, 2023 Coach Simple Self-Care Strategies

Since its first recording, by Frank Sinatra in 1945, “You’ll Never Walk Alone” has been reinterpreted by many musicians, perhaps most recently by Josh Groban in 2015. Its lyrics are formed by a relatively short, 17-line poem, written as a song by Rogers & Hammerstein for musical Carousel.

This song reminds me so much of the nature of my work – certainly, when clients come to me they often feel VERY alone and completely overwhelmed by the caregiver roles they fill. This is true whether they are parents of a special-needs-child or the sole caregiver for a spouse with dementia. That sense of being alone is, in itself, depressing.

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Measuring Progress Can Help. . .

May 23, 2023 Coach Simple Self-Care Strategies

I’m working with a Health Coach myself (yes, even coaches need coaches!) who seems to appreciate my need to measure things. I’m one of those people who likes to see measurable improvement – to choose metrics that allow me to demonstrate progress, if not full completion, of a goal.

Sometimes, especially if we’re working on goals that feel particularly difficult, it can be important to at least see movement in the desired direction. Most of us can appreciate the fulfillment of getting to the finish line of a quick sprint, like the 100-yard-dash. But when you’re in a marathon you need benchmarks along the way to remind you that you’re actually doing it, and that the end will come, even if you can’t see it from your current spot on the route. That’s where metrics come in handy!

Through Co-Create 4 Life, you will learn a range of well-being strategies from skillfully implementing self-care to holistic approaches to well-being, rebuilding resilience, and battling burnout. Book a free consultation call today to discuss your options.