Today we’d like to introduce you to Haley Sands.
Haley, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I’ve had Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) for almost 20 years! I went through a lot of pain and suffering when I was first diagnosed in my teens, trying to go the medical path to find solutions and relief from my symptoms. None of it worked, so I started exploring holistic and lifestyle changes and I, for the most part, healed my IBS by learning how to manage my symptoms through supportive foods, exercise, and lifestyle. Once my IBS wasn’t a daily focus, I just continued to experiment and expand my knowledge of food as medicine and, in short, how to live my best life. In 2016/7, I studied and became a certified Health Coach through the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. I was driven to become a health coach and create an online wellness practice because I wish I had had knowledgeable and compassionate support when I was going through more than a decade of exploration and trial and error to heal my body. I’ve expanded my focus beyond IBS to teach the ‘wellness lifestyle,’ which I believe is rooted in the ability to cook real food! I now work with clients one-on-one to support them in achieving their health goals, whether it’s weight loss, more energy, better mental clarity, eliminating symptoms or teaching them how nutrition can support them in reaching their deepest potential. I am launching my first online program, ‘The Wellness Kitchen,’ in late summer. It will be a go-at-your-own-pace course teaching plant-based nutrition for real people living busy lives.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The struggles and challenges I’ve faced in the process of launching my company are what has given me the wisdom and know-how to teach what I teach to my clients. I emphasize the importance of choosing a lifestyle that my clients can actually stick to – one that doesn’t involve deprivation of any kind and changes over time as they reach incremental goals. No sudden shifts, no changing overnight. The shifts my clients make are sustainable, which is why, when they lose weight, for example, they keep it off! They create a lifestyle they enjoy and a mindset about food that allows for huge psychological shifts.
IBS has, of course, been one of my biggest personal challenges. On top of that, though, I have lived all over the world. Originally from Ohio, I moved to London to study for both my Bachelors in Journalism and my Masters in International Human Rights. I lived in Paris – my favorite place on earth – in between my degrees and then, in a major shift in my course, I moved to South Sudan. I spent three years in South Sudan working with child sex trafficking survivors. As you can imagine, in a developing, post-conflict country, there weren’t a lot of optimal nutrition options! I didn’t have my Vitamix or my juicer or a Whole Foods around the corner – I was lucky if a truck from Uganda delivered some bell peppers or cabbage that day. I learned to pack healthy, pantry staples back home – lentils, brown rice, spices, healthy oils, protein powder, superfoods, even powdered goat milk back then – and I used what I had. I learned in that time in my life to let go of the idea of this perfect diet or lifestyle. I had to use what I had, where I was and make the best of it. I got Malaria three times while I was living there and a host of parasites, which was the norm for most aid workers, but when I returned, I spent over a year healing my gut, going to therapy, and reclaiming my health.
Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
I work one-on-one with clients all over the world, offering å la carte coaching sessions and coaching packages. I teach plant-forward cooking and helping my clients heal their Irritable Bowel Syndrome. I also work with humanitarian aid workers who have very unique needs and lifestyles – something I understand well from my experience living and working in Africa. I’m known for a friendly style with some tough love thrown in, where needed. I help my clients experience more empowerment over their health through self-responsibility and creating a lifestyle they love.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
If I had to start over, I would have more confidence in my ability to figure it out! I wouldn’t have waited so long to start making the transition from my full-time day job as a diplomat to doing what I do now. I absolutely love what I do and only wish I started sooner.
Pricing:
- Free 30-minute discovery session for potential clients
- One-hour one-on-one å la carte $150/hour
- Three-month one-on-one wellness coaching $1,200
Contact Info:
- Website: www.haleysands.com
- Phone: 614-638-5778
- Email: connect@haleysands.com
- Instagram: @haleysandswellness
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/haleysandswellness
Image Credit:
Pablo Levinas
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