Marina Daldalian

I'll start by saying I'm a functional medicine certified health coach, bookworm, and big sister.As ahealth coach, I'm committed to supporting your wellness (define wellness for yourself) goals.The National Board for Health and Wellness Coachingsays it best: "health & wellness coaches partner with clients seeking to enhance their well-being through self-directed, lasting changes, aligned with their values. In the course of their work, health & wellness coaches display an unconditional positive regard for their clients and a belief in their capacity for change, honoring the fact that each client is an expert on their own life, while ensuring that all interactions are respectful and non-judgmental."Being abookworm, to me, means that I am firm believer in the magic of books and an avid reader (this includes listening to audiobooks!). I even spent two years working as an indie bookseller at a local, independently owned book shop to fully round out my bookish education. In my own life, reading has been an invaluable source of comfort, inspiration, information, and enjoyment.My bookshop.org bookshelfhas a list of my favorite reads and offers a platform for purchasing books that supports independent bookstores.I've recently started includingbig sisterin my introduction and description of myself. Being a big sister means many things. In a literal sense, I have two siblings who are younger than I am. In a broader sense, I think about "big sister energy" as a warm, supportive, nurturing, and celebratory energy that can be given to anyone, by anyone. In 2020, my sister and I startedYour Big Sister, a podcast which has really deepened my connection to this particular role.What I OfferHealth and wellness coaching starts with the foundation: Client-centered health and wellness coaching sessions. I'm bringing the sum of my life experiences, professional experience, and education to my work as a health coach. That's tough to summarize, but here are some highlights to give you an idea of what you can expect while working together:Association For Size Diversity and Health member andHealth At Every Size (HAES®)alignedMy style is gentle and practical, rooted in positive psychology and motivational interviewingGrief-literate, anti-racist, intersectional feministTrained in the functional medicine paradigm and well versed in supporting lifestyle changes within the areas of sleep & relaxation, exercise & movement, relationships, nutrition, and stressOver a decade of professional work as a public health researcher, resulting in preferences for: systems thinking, root cause identification, prevention, and evidence-based strategies/interventionsPersonal interest inStruggle CareandEating Competence. Care tasks and eating can often be viewed as “basic” or uninspiring goals, but I personally know what a big deal it is to get the laundry done AND go to the grocery store in the same week. There’s no goal or change too small to bring to a coaching session with me.Continuously educating myself to expand my ability to provide inclusive, grief-literate, trauma-informed supportNational Board Certified Health & Wellness CoachNote: Diagnosis, treatment, testing, and prescribing are outside of my scope as a health coach.Working TogetherAn important note about working together: I do not coach for intentional weight loss or restrictive eating/dieting (this includes popular diets like Whole30, Keto, Paleo, etc). I am aligned with HAES and Intuitive Eating principles and would be happy to work with you on generating weight neutral, non-diet wellness goals instead. Not sure what any of this means but feeling curious? Book a free introductory call with me and we'll chat!Health and wellness coaching might be right for you if:You already have a goal in mind.You have a treatment plan from a healthcare provider and want to implement it but don’t know where to start (or have had some false starts already and want to find a way to get your best intentions to stick).You don’t know exactly what your goal is, but you have a strong desire to make a change in a specific area of your life (examples: sleep, movement, mindfulness, eating, household tasks).How to work with me:Use the contact form on the right-hand side of this page. Be sure to include a short introduction and a general description of what you'd like to work on together.OR, head straight to my calendar (linked under Contact Information) and book a 20 minute introduction conversation.I'm looking forward to connecting with you!