Hi! I'm Sandy.
And this is the story (the very short version) of my journey toward becoming a Holistic Life and Leadership Coach.
My path to this work wasn't a straight line. A health crisis in my thirties (an autoimmune diagnosis that took years to name) forced me inward in ways I hadn't expected.
The physical healing was one thing, but what followed was something deeper: realizing how much of myself I'd been leaving out in order to belong, to be liked, or to keep the peace.
I began to see that healing wasn't about becoming someone different. It was about understanding the patterns, beliefs, and survival strategies that had quietly shaped my life for years.
There were parts of myself I had protected, ignored, or simply didn't trust. Learning to see them clearly changed the way I lived, communicated, and related to the people around me.
It taught me that transformation rarely comes from trying harder or becoming someone new.
It comes from understanding yourself well enough to stop editing your own experience and start trusting your own voice.
Looking back, I wouldn't have chosen that path. But it gave me the compassion, perspective, and curiosity that shape the way I coach today. A kind of coming home to myself.
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I call myself a holistic coach because I don't believe you can separate your thoughts from your emotions, your body from your relationships, or your experiences from the stories you tell yourself. We work with all of it.
I lead with curiosity over judgment, humor over perfection, and the belief that every behavior makes sense once you understand what’s underneath it.
And this is where the Enneagram comes in.
I find that this beautiful and complex system can help us see ourselves more clearly. The Enneagram doesn't tell you who you are or put you in a box. It helps you peel back layers that you've mistaken for who you are.
This is the work I get to do every day: helping people see themselves more clearly, understand the patterns that keep them stuck, and trust themselves enough to choose a different way forward.
My role isn't to fix you.
It's to help you see yourself more clearly and trust yourself more deeply.
Because the goal isn't to become someone else.
It's to come home to who you already are.
- Sandy Swanson, PCC, NBC-HWC, A-CFHC
Training and Credentials/Certifications
- International Coach Federation Professional Certified Coach (PCC)
- International Coach Federation PCC Marker Assessor Training (for mentor coaching)
- National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC)
- Kresser Institute - ADAPT Certified Functional Medicine Health Coach (A-CFHC)
- Genco Method Neurolinguistic Programming and Polyvagal Theory Applications to Coaching L1
- Holistic Coach Training Institute Level 2 Advanced PCC Certification
- Body Mind Spirit Coaching - Introduction to Body-Centered Coaching
- The Enneagram in Business - Coaching with the Enneagram 1.0
- Narrative Enneagram - Instincts and Subtypes Training
- Deep Coaching Institute - Object Relations and the Enneagram Part One
- Deep Coaching Institute - Astrology and the Enneagram
- CP Enneagram - Expert Typing Methods (Enneagram Solutions Workshop)
- CP Enneagram - Overcoming Client Challenges (Enneagram Solutions Workshop)
When not coaching, you might find me riding around on my Triumph 800XC motorcycle, raising monarch butterflies, playing with my orange cats Bonzo and Baker, or listening to opera.
I have a love-hate relationship with chocolate, technology, and exercise.
Ready to get started?
Curious to learn more about what it's like to work with me? Check out the link below for info (and a video of me explaining how I work).
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