How Life Coaching Can help You With Your Health.

Coach Yourself- An Introduction To Life Coaching

I have written this for anyone who is curious about the benefits of life coaching. It is intended as an introduction to coaching to help you decide if it could help you.

(The advice given is not intended to replace any given by your doctor or therapist. )

What is Life Coaching?

I am not going to write a long description of what life coaching is. You can Google 'Life Coaching' to find many great descriptions. This is intended to be practical. You can try the exercises suggested and see if they help you.

Let's Get Started!

In the introduction to life coaching at the start of this blog, you carried out an exercise where you were asked to complete a short questionnaire to help you to identify the areas of your life that you might wish to improve. Many of us find that we would like to make changes that will help us to improve our health.

How Life Coaching Can Help You To Improve Your Health

It is important that you read the introduction before reading this blog post as the introduction has a lot of useful general advice on how to identify, set and reach goals. This goal setting can easily be applied to health goals.

This blog post is intended to help you to make positive changes in the area of health.

It does not cover every health issue and is not intended to replace any advice you have been given by a doctor or health professional.

Diet

We may decide that we wish to make changes in our diet in order to be healthier.

It is helpful to be very clear on what changes we wish to make and why.

It may be that you wish to change your diet as some elements of your existing diet are not working well for you. When making changes in diet it is important that you seek the right advice. Cutting something out of your diet can have benefits but it can also have drawbacks.

While we tend to eat too much fat in our modern diets we need some fat in our diet to help us absorb important vitamins.

Once you have decided what changes you wish to make you can create a plan with clearly set out steps to help you succeed.

Let's take fictional character Tom as an example.

Tom used to be very sporty and had an active job. This meant that although he had a big appetite he remained fit and healthy as he burned off many of the calories he was taking in.

A back injury led to him giving up his active job and his sporting interests but he kept eating the same types of food and the same portions that he had eaten when he was more active.

This led to him putting on weight and feeling very sluggish which put him off even doing gentle exercise that he was still capable of.

Tom has decided that he is fed up feeling this way so his goal is to eat a healthier diet and to take more exercise so that he stops feeling sluggish and becomes fitter.

He would benefit from checking with his doctor before starting a new exercise programme to ensure the new form of exercise wont make his back injury worse.

Tom could then decide what form of exercise he enjoys. Swimming could be a good option as the water would support his back or maybe a gentle but regular walk would benefit him.

Once he has decided on his preferred form of exercise he needs to find time for it in his day.

Maybe he could enrol a friend to join him in this activity as this is likely to motivate him to continue exercising regularly.

It is also important for him to start off gently and gradually build up the amount of exercise he takes.

If he has a bad day and does not feel like exercising, that's OK. It is important if we have a setback that we don't abandon our goal. If we have a few off days then we can start back up where we left off when we feel a bit better.

With exercise, taking one small step often leads to us feeling able to take another step and then another.

Exercise can be motivating in itself.

Walking has many benefits. It is good for our bones as well as our cardiovascular system. It boosts our circulation as well as burning calories. It is also very good at lifting our mood as walking helps reduce stress.

Swimming also has many benefits. It is excellent for muscle toning and as you are supported by the water, it is excellent exercise for many people who have injuries.

Once Tom has started his exercise regime he can revisit his goal regularly to see how he is progressing. Is he exercising too much, too little or does he think he has got it about right?

Reviewing our progress and adjusting our goals as we go can really help us to get the most out of life.

If circumstances change we can adjust our plans to suit the new situation.

It is important to reward small successes in a way that will motivate us.

Tom really likes going to London. He finds the city exciting, with lots to interest him.

Maybe after an agreed period of exercising Tom could reward himself with a trip to London?

Only we can decide what rewards will motivate us. The reward doesn't need to be big or expensive but just enough to help us to celebrate our success and help us to feel we are succeeding.

Sleep

Sleep is another area that really can affect our emotional well-being as well as our physical health.

Opinion varies on how much sleep benefits us but most of us know roughly how much sleep we need and therefore how much sleep to aim for. The amount of sleep we need varies from person to person and as we age the amount of sleep we need changes too. Most adults gain from having between 7 and a half hours to 9 hours sleep per night. Teenagers require even more!

Sleep loss takes its toll on your mood, your ability to cope with stress and your problem solving abilities. It can also affect your physical health.

While you sleep your body repairs and maintains itself. Lack of sleep can affect your ability to fight infections. A chronic lack of sleep can even lead to weight gain.

The quality of your sleep is important too. It can be helpful to keep a sleep diary where you record when you went to bed and what time you wake up so you develop a clear picture of how much sleep you are getting.

Factors that affect deep sleep include noise, drinking alcohol or smoking just before bed, drinking caffeinated drinks, night shifts and having artificial light on while you try to sleep.

Avoiding TV and computer screens just before you go to bed can help you sleep well. Keeping your room cool and quiet enough can also help.

At different stages of our lives our hormones can affect the amount of sleep we get. Women going through the Menopause can find the fluctuating hormone levels affect their ability to sleep and some experience night sweats which tend to keep them up at night.

Going to bed and getting up at the same time each day can help your body to develop a healthy sleep pattern. Reducing fatty and sugary foods can also help.

A diet rich in magnesium and calcium can aid sleep.

Relaxation techniques such as yoga and meditation can also really help.

There are also herbal remedies as well as medications that can be prescribed by your doctor where needed.

If you are having difficulty sleeping, see if you can identify ways to improve your sleep pattern. For some people going for a walk before bed can help and for others a warm caffeine free drink before bed can really help to relax them.

Find what works for you and try to ensure you get the sleep you need.

If you have a young baby or you are a carer for someone who gets up a lot at night it can be very difficult to get as much sleep as you need. If at all possible ask people to help you. Maybe other family members can babysit sometimes or help look after the person that you care for.

If you are not getting the sleep that you need to function properly then you will not be able to help anyone else.

It is important that you care for yourself as well as other people. If you weren't here then everyone else would have to find a way to cope so surely it must be possible to make some adjustments to ensure that you get a little more sleep?

As with making any changes. It is helpful to be very clear on what you are trying to achieve. It may be that you are wishing to establish a more effective sleep routine or you wish to make changes in your life to allow yourself an hour extra sleep per night.

Once you are clear on your goal you can work out small achievable steps to reaching that goal.

Once you start to succeed, reward yourself and this will motivate you to continue with your plan. Review your sleep plan regularly to see if you need to adjust it and try not to be too down on yourself at the times when things don't go exactly to plan. There are times in our lives where we all go without enough sleep and in the short term that is fine. In the long term it is important that you do establish a healthy sleep pattern to ensure you are as healthy as you can be.

Mandy is another of my fictional characters. She is a young mum who has a very young baby called Bobby. Bobby wakes up a lot at night and her husband Mark rarely hears him so Mandy is left to deal with Bobby on her own. Mandy is starting to suffer the affects of sleep deprivation. She realises that she needs to make changes. She talks to her friend Jill who suggests that she develops a better bedtime routine for Bobby. A relaxing bath and gentle music playing before bed helps him to get off to sleep a lot more quickly which is a great start. Next, Mandy asks her husband Mark for help and he agrees to get up every other time their baby wakes up. When Mandy hears their son cry she will wake Mark up if it is his turn so he can get up and settle the baby while Mandy gets some much needed sleep.

After a while, Mandy is starting to feel better. She is able to think more clearly and realises that watching TV until late at night isn't helping her own sleep routine. She decides to go to bed with a warm drink and read a book for a little while before dropping off to sleep. This really helps the quality of her sleep. Her son becomes much more settled as he feels his mother is more relaxed. He wakes up less at night which is good for Mandy and for Mark. There are nights when Bobby feels unwell or is teething when things seem to be going backwards. He can cry a lot on those occasions but Mandy knows these nights are rare and they don't last so all in all she feels a lot happier about her sleep routine.

You can see in this example that as you start to resolve your sleep issues you start to feel better and your brain starts to function better. This enables you to make further changes. Mandy was also sensible enough to ask for help. We can be tempted to soldier on alone and our family and friends can get used to this and come to expect it even. By admitting that she needed help as she didn't have all the answers, Jill and Mark were able to help Mandy. If you don't ask for help you will never know who may be prepared and able to help you.

Water

Water is essential for our good health. It increases energy, promotes weight loss, and boosts our immune systems amongst other things. We should drink 6-8 glasses of fluid a day. Fruit juice and milk can be included in this total and if you don't like plain water you can try squeezing lemon or lime juice into it.

If you have not been drinking enough water why not challenge yourself to drink the correct amount of water for a month and see how much better you feel? If you have not been drinking enough water your body is likely to be experiencing one or more of the following symptoms:

joint aches, chills,dull and dry skin, headache, sugar cravings , dizziness and poor concentration.

If you are not used to drinking this amount of water try drinking a little more water each day until you build up to the required 2 litres or 6-8 glasses of water.

Like with any goal, be kind to yourself. There may be days when you slip up and don't drink the agreed amount of water. Simply get on track again the next day.

Reward yourself once you have completed your month long challenge. Why not do something you enjoy and reflect on how much better you feel now you are drinking the amount of water that your body needs.

Exercise

Getting enough exercise is essential to good health. Some people love exercising and go jogging or play a sport. Some people like to go to the gym but other people really find it hard to find exercise that they enjoy enough to keep up regularly. There are many different forms of exercise and it can be fun trying out different forms of exercise before settling on something that works for you. Some people like dancing, others try yoga and walking has enormous benefits. It strengthens your bones, lifts your mood and improve your balance and coordination.

If you have not exercised for a long time and are not very fit it would be a good idea to consult your doctor to check that you are able to exercise safely.

When you start at a gym you are given an induction to introduce you to the equipment and you are taught how to use it safely.

With any exercise it is important to warm your body up before exercising and then you carry out an effective 'cool down' after exercise. This helps you to ensure that you don't pull muscles or injure yourself by leaping into intense exercise without this step.

Find a good time in the week that you can set aside to exercise regularly. You may be able to join some friends for a jog or you could meet up with a friend and you can walk your dogs together.

Exercising with people can be motivating for some people.

Be careful though because some people seem enthusiastic about joining you at first and then they become less enthusiastic and drop out. This can be demotivating for you.

If you start off by doing a little bit of exercise, you can gradually build up the amount of exercise that you do.

The wonderful thing about exercise is that once you start to feel fitter you are more motivated to exercise and it gets easier and more enjoyable.

Drug and Alcohol Addiction

Many people struggle with dependency on alcohol or drugs. Some drugs are prescribed, some are legal and some are illegal.

Drugs and alcohol alter our mood which can be very compelling for many people . If you drink alcohol at a party you may feel less shy and more uninhibited. This can be very appealing but it is easy to allow drinking to become a habit and it has some unpleasant side effects.

This can include liver problems, high blood pressure and infertility.

If you think that you might have a problems with alcohol or drug consumption there is help available to you.

Around 2 million people in UK are currently struggling with addictions. The NHS has a useful website that gives help and advice so that you know where to turn to for help. http://www.nhs.uk/livewell/addiction/Pages/addictionhome.aspx

Most countries have their own treatment and services.

The important thing is to recognise that you have a problem. It is then that you will be able to take steps to get the help and support that you need.

If you are clear on your goals you will be able to work out realistic steps for success.

People become dependent on substances for a multitude of reasons and understanding your reasons will help you with your recovery.

This blog is not intended to go into detail. There are many specialist agencies that can help you to recover from your addictions but as this area affects so many people and their families I definitely wanted to include some information here.

As with working towards achieving any goal it is important to accept that there will be difficult days and you may relapse. The key is to realise when things have taken a step backwards, be gentle with yourself and get back on track as soon s you can. Reward small successes and given time you are likely to see improvements.

Getting Older

People's attitude to growing older varies tremendously. Some people embrace it but others dread getting older. For some people old age can bring significant health problems while others experience financial hardship. These difficulties do not apply to everyone but despite this many people say that they dread ageing.

If you have a good support network of friends and family then getting older is less likely to be a worry but many people live alone and some experience loneliness.

Society can judge older people. So much is decided by appearance these days so if you are going grey and are getting a few wrinkles you can feel obliged to dye your hair and get a 'face lift.'

While Cosmetic Surgery is an option, it should not be taken lightly and no-one should feel pressured into changing their appearance in any way.

I find getting older has its joys. I have stopped dying my hair and have no intention of having any cosmetic surgery. I find people appreciate me for the person I am and not what I look like.

We can take steps to keep ourselves as fit and healthy as possible. We can ensure we have a healthy diet and get enough exercise. This should decrease our chances of becoming ill.

You don't need to get involved in extreme sports if you are not interested as brisk walking has enormous health benefits.

Many people report that they appreciate having grandchildren at least as much as having children . When we have children we are completely responsible for their care but when we have grandchildren we can help with their care but tend to have less overall responsibility.

Of course some older people find themselves becoming responsible for the care of their grandchildren. This can be for a variety of reasons, including their child becoming ill and unable to care for their children.

If we remember that getting older is a life stage that has many positives as well as negatives, we are less likely to dread ageing.

There are organisations such as Age UK who can offer advice and support.

http://www.ageuk.org.uk/

I believe that as we age we also get wiser as we learn from our many life experiences. We learn to appreciate the small things and realise that when we experience setbacks these are unlikely to last as such things soon pass.

Getting older gives us some perspective. Many people have the opportunity to travel or take up a new hobby when they retire. This can enhance their lives enormously.

Some people choose to downsize in order to free up some capital to spend on travel or on their family, for example. 

Whatever age we are we are still capable of learning new skills. In the past it was widely believed that once we got older our ability to learn cease but this is far from the case.

Life is a gift and we have many more wonderful life experience ahead of us as we age.