What to expect from your first session with me depends on what you need help with. So if you’re wondering if you should work with me, read on…
I offer 3 services:
- nutritional therapy
- holistic grief support
- wellbeing coaching
However, depending on your reasons for seeking my support, we may combine 2 or 3 of these. Below, I will outline what you can expect in a first session for each of them separately.
Nutritional Therapy
The initial nutritional therapy session takes 90 minutes. We’ll start off by discussing your current health concerns and I will ask detailed questions so that I can work out how best to help you. I’ll also enquire about sleep, what are your energy levels like, your mood, digestion, whether you’re prone to colds and viruses etc. For women, I ask about hormones and pregnancies, if relevant. This all helps me to form a rounded picture of what might be going on with you.
Next we will go through your history, from childhood up to the present. This may give me some clues as to how any past illnesses, operations or courses of antibiotics may have informed your current situation. I will then ask about your family history, in case there are any common family patterns such as diabetes, heart disease or cancer.
What you eat
Last, but most definitely not least (!), I ask you to tell me about your diet. I never judge but I need to know the good, the bad and the ugly so that I’m able to give you the right guidance to make positive changes to your health. I may give tweaks you can make to your current meals as well as new ideas too. I always give an explanation of why my suggestions will help. But it’s a collaborative process so I will always ask if you feel the changes are realistic for you. Finally, I will outline the reasons why I might feel some targeted supplements could make a difference to your health concerns. I might also discuss some tests if I feel they’re needed – either through your GP or possibly through a private testing company. This could be for the thyroid or adrenals, vitamin D status or iron, or to get to the bottom of a digestive issue, for example.
Once our session has finished, and having gathered all the information I need, I’ll work on your protocol and email it through with a collection of recipes, plus any relevant handouts. I’ll then arrange to see you 3-4 weeks later to check on your progress.
To read about the programmes or individual consultations I offer see here
Holistic Grief Support
Holistic grief coaching is now a major part of my practice. I bring together my original skillset as a nutritional therapist and wellbeing coach and combine these with my training as a certified grief educator and my own experience of traumatic grief. Sessions are 60 minutes and are weekly or fortnightly depending on your need. I have now supported many clients through all types of bereavement, including the loss of a child, partner, sibling or parent. Some grief is complicated by the relationship with the person who has died or due to experiencing multiple losses. Grief may be especially hard when the death was sudden or because a loved one died young.
What can you expect from your first grief coaching session? We will look at the various aspects of your life that may have been affected by grief. Many of these are typically overlooked by conventional bereavement support. But mainly in your first session, I will simply listen to you talk about the person you have lost and let you freely express how you’re feeling, in a supported space. I may also offer recommendations and practical tools to help you begin to move through your grief. My lived experience of grief means I have insights and understanding that goes beyond any bereavement training. Many clients choose to work with me specifically for this reason and because of my multi faceted approach to loss. Please read more about holistic grief coaching here
Wellbeing Coaching
It can sometimes be very helpful to combine wellbeing coaching with nutritional therapy as the two work very well together. Through this combination, we can achieve effective and long lasting results – see my optimal wellbeing and nutrition programme. But I also offer wellbeing coaching sessions in their own right. They are an hour long and are usually held fortnightly.
So, what to expect in your first session with me? I use a wellbeing wheel, which I will send to you in advance, so we would begin by looking at the various sections. These include emotional health, physical health, relationships and life purpose and looking at these areas helps you to decide what you want to focus on. Then you will begin to set your goals and break these down to see what you might need to do in order to achieve them.
Wellbeing coaching can be a wonderfully uplifting and inspirational way to address aspects of holistic wellbeing and personal growth. It can be particularly helpful if you need to work on limiting beliefs, motivation, setting boundaries, improving confidence or finding a new purpose in life.
Ready to get started?
If you’re now clearer on what to expect and you’re ready to book your first session for nutritional therapy, wellbeing coaching or holistic grief coaching, please contact me: vanessa@wellbeingandnutrition.co.uk
Vanessa May is a BANT registered Nutritional Therapist, ILM Accredited Wellbeing Coach and Certified Grief Educator and has helped hundreds of clients with her holistic approach to health, wellbeing and bereavement. She specialises in stress, fatigue, low mood, anxiety, hormonal imbalance and grief.