There are a whole lot of terms floating around out there; life coaching, mental health coaching, behavioral health coaching, etc. It’s enough to pique your interest and befuddle you at the same time. I have an analogy that I like to use when describing Behavioral Health Coaching that seems to encapsulate all of the nuances.

Remember how every time Bugs Bunny™ went on vacation, he’d pop up from tunneling with a map and declare “I knew I shoulda taken that left turn at Albuquerque”? He takes the time to review his map and after a comical soliloquy he decides that while where he is currently isn’t exactly where he was trying to go, he’ll make the best of it and get back on track once his adventure is done.

Behavioral Health (BH) Coaching is goal-oriented and focuses on forward progression.  Think of it like this, BH Coaching is like driving to a destination, looking through your front windshield, and concentrating on getting to where you need and want to be.  Behavioral health coaching focuses on getting you from where you are to where you want to be and may have detours or pitstops along the way.  Even with those detours and pitstops, you are pressing forward toward your ultimate goal, much like our friend Bugs.  

Behavioral Health Coaching however is NOT therapy/psychotherapy. Therapy is like figuring out that you made a wrong turn somewhere and looking into your rearview mirror, turning around, backtracking a bit, and then starting towards your destination again. Therapy is a guided process that delves into your past to help you uncover the reasons for certain triggers, behaviors, unpacks past trauma, etc., with a Psychologist, Therapist, and/or Psychiatrist, that may be keeping you from reaching your final destination.  

While the human condition cannot be distilled down to a driving analogy, or a Looney Tunes™ cartoon, it’s helpful to properly differentiate between Behavioral Health Coaching and Therapy.

Blessing and Happiness

T. Nicole