KRISTEN SHANE COACHING HELPS YOU BEGIN WITH YOU

MY STORY

Why I became a health coach

I have been working in Health Care for over 20 years, whoa can that possibly be true? When I discovered that nurses have many options and flexibility to influence the health and wellness of others, I was sold on that stable career path.  I have had an interesting and unique career from Women’s & Newborn Health, Child Psychology, Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Weight Management, Chronic Disease Coaching, and Pediatric Gastroenterology. 

On a personal level, in 2012, I watched the strongest and most important woman in my life become ill.  At the time, I felt helpless and at the mercy of Western Medicine, which was of no help for her condition.  My three sisters and I grew up watching my mom be and do all the things for us: bread winner, schedule planner, chauffer, supporter, role model (sound familiar?).  We came first and I see now that she lost herself.  She yo-yo dieted, never exercised or did much of anything for herself, she was devoid of time to feed her soul.  Because of her sacrifice, my sisters and I thrived, participated in a variety of activities, attended the University of Michigan, built careers and now families of our own.  But she isn’t here to see it.

I also had a setback in my physical and emotional health. Stress after my mom’s death led to a miscarriage at thirteen weeks in 2013.  Several knee injuries during soccer in my 30s but played at my 18-year-old competitive mindset led to knee surgery, PT and finally stem cell therapy before returning to my previous active lifestyle.  I learned to work slowly through the 2-year adversity to reestablish health and build new stress reduction skills for the long term.    

 And now I am here trying to do all the things: build a career, date my husband and raise little humans to be kind, successful adults (or at the least not a-holes) all while not going completely bonkers with stress and anxiety!  I am trying to do it differently than my mom though because I believe that to be successful at the above items, I need to first begin with me.  When we put ourselves last, we can’t truly be our best self for everyone else.  And most importantly, let’s do this without the guilt!  Secure your own mask before helping others!  

​

Here is the deeper story. 

I really didn’t want this to be a long read (but it is), nor about me (but of course, it is, see title) because it is more about the collective us/we.  The short of it, our current lifestyles have us living “busy” lives with exposure to poor nutrients in our foods, toxins in our environment, little physical activity, a never ending to do list that don’t include things that fed our souls, and an overall feeling of, is this it?  And we are often tired, anxious, unwell and generally not our best selves while being busy.  Are we looking forward to a time when we can do the things we want but that time may never come or if it does, we don’t know how to make the most of it because we have poor habits from when we just “busy”.   I want to help others find their best, healthiest self so each day they are thriving, making the best choices for their life now and for the future.

​

My personal and professional path has laid the foundation for me to enter the field of Health and Wellness Coaching.  I am excited to use my skills to help you, your families and our communities reach their fullest potential in health and wellness. But fit must Begin with You. 

Functional Medicine Health Coach and Registered Nurse specialized in Pediatric Gastroenterology