COACHING

What is Coaching?

Coaching can be tricky to understand, as it’s a broad and loosely-regulated field, and defining it varies greatly depending on who the coach is. At 1A Wellness, coaching is a modality focused on action, goals, and practical skills to help align your path forward with your values and vision for your life. 

Coaching may be right for you if:

  • You’d prefer to work in a more project-oriented manner, in a limited time frame, or within a particular budget
  • You’re doing great work in regular therapy and would like to spend time shoring up practical skills to support this work
  • You’re in a new professional position or phase of life and would benefit from insight on how to best take on this new role
  • You’re interested in learning applicable skills like mindfulness, emotional vocabulary and awareness, listening skills, speaking skills, stress reduction, and management of executive functioning
  • You and/or your co-parent would like to learn more about child and adolescent development and how to parent your child more effectively

What Makes Coaching at 1A Unique?

All coaches at 1A have exemplary backgrounds in the mental health field; a crucial distinction from other coaching providers. Each 1A Wellness coach has a minimum of a masters degree in a psychology-related field, has demonstrated exceptional competence with a minimum of 5 years experience in their areas of speciality, and typically holds additional credentials exclusive to those with higher degrees in counseling. 

Another benefit of coaching at 1A is the connection our coaches have to our therapists. It is not uncommon that our therapists refer clients to coaches within the practice to enhance skills development to augment the therapy. Likewise, our coaches are able to identify when a client may benefit from therapy and make the appropriate referral. In this way, we are able to work as a team to make sure that your needs are most effectively being met.

 

 

How are Coaching and Therapy Different?

THERAPY COACH
Main Objective May diagnose, treat, or collaborate with medical providers on mental health challenges Not mental health treatment, but at 1A is mental health-informed, and often results in improved well-being 
Working Style Therapists often allow the client to reach their own conclusions in their own time Coaches may be more directive; pointing out dynamics and patterns they see in play
Length of Work Typically self-paced and open-ended in duration of treatment Can be open-ended or purposefully time-limited, creating a plan of action or budget from the start
Focus of Growth Focused on feeling better, more deeply, more presently, more authentically Focused on understanding more clearly, making purposeful choices, and communicating them effectively
Cross-referrals Therapists may refer a client to coaching to help supplement the therapy with specific skills and tools, or to be part of a group Coaches may refer a client to therapy to help explore the origins of a thought, feeling, or behavior, or for mental health diagnosis or treatment
Accreditation Tied to a masters or doctoral degree and related licensing organization(s) in each state or country Related to independent training organizations and not consistent across the field or even required. Onus is on the consumer to research a coach’s background 
Mental Health / Insurance By state and federal standards, psychotherapy is administered by healthcare professionals. In many cases, expenses are reimbursable in part or in full by health insurance providers. For 1A Wellness’s health insurance policy, visit our FAQ page.  Health insurance reimbursements are typically not available for coaching. However, many companies provide funding for coaching, especially as it relates to workplace performance. Check with your HR team to see what might be available.