When it comes to your healing journey, there isn’t one single method that will aid you in your journey. Health is about establishing wellness brick by brick and including different methods and modalities in the process.
Holistic modalities are one piece of that puzzle and include a variety of methods that can be used in conjunction with other forms of healing. Alison Cohen is a holistic practitioner who helps her patients restore optimal health and prevent chronic illness. You can learn more about Alison and her work here:
About Alison and her work:
I am a certified Holistic Nutritionist as well as an Intuitive Life Coach. I did not begin my professional career in the health and wellness space, though I always had a feeling that I would end up here. I graduated from the University of Michigan with a major in Economics and a Food and Environment minor. I also got certified as a Holistic Nutritionist in college. After college, I landed a job in wealth management in New York City, working with some of the World’s wealthiest and most successful people.
I created a unique professional foundation and network there but felt out of alignment. Most of the people around me were unhappy no matter how much money they were making, how many nights they went out a week, etc. This largely unaddressed issue of seemingly successful people being unfulfilled led me to develop my coaching method. I was able to pinpoint the root cause of unfulfillment among this population: the attachment to external reward and validation. I then created a unique coaching method designed to help my clients detach from the forms of external validation and reward that they are using to supplement unmet emotional needs.
How she got into the field:
My health and spiritual journey brought me into health and wellness. After my freshman year of college, I developed IBS and experienced the true restriction that illness can have on your ability to live life to the fullest. After trying several traditional solutions, I turned to a functional medicine doctor who helped me heal my gut. However, because I felt so out of control of my body, the pain, and the bloating, I turned to control my body the only way I knew how – restrictive eating.
As I entered my junior year of college, I had an eating disorder, was stressed about finding an internship in Finance, and struggled with several other personal issues. The pandemic was the last straw for me, and I hit rock bottom mentally. By this time, I had some interest in spirituality from exposure to it on social media and from friends and family. I found an Intuitive and Spiritual Therapist who I began working with on a very frequent basis. She helped me rediscover my worth and develop self-love and an abundance mindset.
Once I had shifted my mindset and began healing the limiting beliefs and fears that were running my life, I not only noticed a massive shift in my energy, but I saw my gut issues improve, my eating disorder dissolve, and my relationships improve in ways I could never have imagined. It became clear to me then that my true passion lay in the personal development space and that I wanted to help others learn how to heal themselves from the inside out. In the spring of my senior year of college, I got certified as a Holistic Nutritionist, knowing that my path would eventually lead me back to the health and wellness space.
My favorite aspect of this work is witnessing firsthand a breakthrough for a client. There is nothing more energizing to me than witnessing a subconscious limiting belief or fear surface for a client. I always say that the first step to healing is being able to identify the issue.So many people live with fears and beliefs that subconsciously control them in such negative ways. Witnessing a client bring a subconscious belief to the surface and watching them come to understand why they feel or act a certain way is genuinely magical. In these moments, I know that the work I am doing is so important and impactful.
About holistic healing:
Holistic healing is an approach to healing that acknowledges the body and mind as one. A holistic healing session aims to heal the body from the inside out. This typically means getting to the root of our problems – stored negative emotions. One main contributor to our population’s mental and physical issues is the need for external rewards and validation. This need is stemmed from beliefs such as “I am not safe,” “I am not worthy,” and “I am not enough.” Instead of training ourselves on how to provide love, safety, and validation to ourselves, we have attempted to fill these voids by consuming things that make us ill and chasing external rewards. The negative emotions we bandage with external sources of comfort remain in the body and can significantly disrupt our ability to function optimally.
A typical session with a client depends significantly on their particular goals and how much work they have already done. That being said, my coaching method uses the forms of external validation and reward that my clients are attached to as markers for areas in their life where they still hold limiting beliefs and fears. A session can look like my client and I am analyzing a specific area of their life where some external factor controls their emotional well-being, whether that be money, a relationship, career, fitness, etc. I work with the client to understand what underlying limiting belief, or fear is causing them to be emotionally attached to this external thing. Once the underlying belief or fear has been identified, I then work with the client to reprogram their beliefs and help them learn how to emotionally provide for themselves so that they no longer need to lean on that specific external form of validation and reward to feel happy or safe.
How holistic healing can benefit you:
Holistic modalities can be effective for almost any health challenge because emotions and the physical body’s state are interconnected. Not all health challenges may be completely healed through emotional healing; however, it is an essential part of the process. Many times, clients will continue to suffer from physical symptoms until they learn to emotionally detach from their health issue or the root cause of it. Improving overall wellness is also essential to the prevention of many chronic illnesses. Maintaining a healthy mind and lifestyle has the potential to keep people out of the hospital in their later years.
Holistic health is all about creating the healthiest environment for your cells. This means feeding them the right foods, moving their body frequently, and maintaining a healthy mind. In our modern world, we are exposed to many stimuli that negatively impact our cells. This is why health and wellness are so important. We must have a good relationship with ourselves to feel worthy and capable of doing what is best for us.
It is also essential to have a solid connection to ourselves so that we can understand what is best for us, both mentally and physically. What is so unique about holistic wellness is that once you develop this deep connection to your mind and body, things such as eating healthy, moving your body, meditating, and journaling can help your body rebalance and heal. It is all about being willing to be consistent in the best practices and lifestyle choices for you.
How Alison uses holistic healing for her patients:
Developing a strong connection with the self is imperative to creating your desired mindset and life. When you have a strong relationship with yourself, you are able to tap into your body and mind and ask what it needs, what feels good, and what is best for you in each moment. It is also the foundation for emotionally providing for yourself and living an intentional and fulfilling life. I find that journaling is a great practice to help people create a deep connection and healthy relationship with themselves. Having a regular journaling practice holds you accountable for checking in with yourself and your emotions.
The holistic approach to healing is beautiful because it does not simply provide a quick fix or a bandaid for a patient. Instead, it is a commitment from the patient to step into a higher version of themselves. A lot of times, people are forced into a holistic approach when more traditional approaches don’t work. However, by the time they begin healing, they have become so much more fulfilled by being forced to slow down, connect with themselves, eat and move in healthier ways and witness their own growth that they choose to continue to live a healthier, more intentional life going forward.
Patients considering a holistic approach to healing must prepare themselves not for a healed version of their current self but a new and evolved version of themselves. Holistic healing is truly a practice as opposed to treatment; the quicker a patient can embrace this, the faster and more profound their healing and growth will be.
For the skeptics:
I don’t believe I can change someone’s mind about what treatments will work for them. A key aspect of holistic healing is accepting and embracing the process. Someone unwilling to do so will likely not experience the profound healing that has the potential to take place. When the time is right for someone to embark on a holistic healing journey, they will know. For the time being, I love providing content and resources for those interested in learning more or contemplating leaping. I think it is such a critical practice to make your knowledge and resources accessible to help those that want to be helped, but do not force it upon anyone. True healing can only come from within, and it needs to be a conscious decision from the patient to begin this process.
Alison’s health and well-being tips and resources:
One universal wellness tip I am sure people have heard is: to stop eating processed foods. Eating a whole foods diet is truly one of the best things you can do for your health. Processed foods are affecting not only our bodies but our mental health. Food truly is medicine. The foundation for having a healthy mind and body is fueling it with the proper foods.
The first advice I would give to someone struggling is: Befriend your body and mind. So many times, when we suffer from physical or mental health issues, we blame our bodies/minds. We feel like we are at war with the body/mind because it isn’t listening to us. It isn’t getting better for us. But I have found with myself and my clients that once you can forgive your body and see the mind and body as one, you can indeed start healing. The most healing thing you can give your body isn’t a supplement or a pill but love, compassion, and a willingness to listen to it. It is crazy how often our bodies try to tell us what is wrong, but we don’t take the time to slow down and listen to it.
Podcasts:
Almost 30 Podcast
On purpose by Jay Shetty
Books:
Becoming Supernatural by Joe Dispenza
Dopamine Nation by Anna Lembke
Letting Go by Daivd Hawkins
Healing Through Words by Rupi Kaur
Websites:
Thebalancedblonde.com
Abraham-hicks.com
Drjoedispenza.com
Zachbushmd.com
The physical body and emotional state are interconnected; one affects the other. Addressing your mental and emotional health will directly relate to how your physical health flourishes. Using holistic healing modalities in your journey will allow you to identify and address the underlying causes of a multitude of issues, including chronic illness.
Alison Cohen uses holistic health to help her patients reach their best health and wellness. You can learn more about her and her work here:
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