SWIHA Blog

“I have always been an empath and someone that others sought for counsel. It was something that I pushed away for many years before attending SWIHA,” Michelle Buonincontri tells us.

As in many stories we hear from our graduates, Michelle describes her discovery of Southwest Institute of Healing Arts as “serendipitous”. She had moved from New York to Arizona and attended a Celebrate Your Life event on campus. “I immediately loved the curriculum and knew I had to do the Life Coaching program,” she says.

“I love being a Life Coach because I love helping people! Since I was a kid, people have always come up to me and just started pouring their hearts out,” Chavon Laurén of Unapologetically Me, tells us, “Over time, I accepted this as a gift and now I feel like I've come full circle.”

Before becoming a Life Coach, Chavon served in the military and worked a Personal Trainer. During training sessions, she came to realize that her clients wanted to talk about more than just exercise.

“I never stopped them because it was clear they needed to speak these thoughts out of their system as a form of stress relief, rather than try to move it out through physical fitness,” she explains, “I had an ‘ah-ha’ moment. I knew I needed to be more and do more, for my clients and myself.“

“Life Coaching for me was a bridge to another part of myself and my higher calling,” explains Holly Meyer, “I was already successful and driven in my ‘day job’ and really enjoyed my role in business.”

Holly describes herself as someone who has always been a person that others seem comfortable opening up to: “Quite honestly, having gifts of being an empath with mediumship abilities has been an instrumental part of my success and ability to connect with so many throughout my life.”

“Just before finding out about SWIHA, I was in a soul sucking job in Corporate America. I dreaded going to work,” recalls Mel Rhoden, describing a path that we often hear of those who choose to serve others in a new way, “Every day that I was there, the cubicle walls seemed to be getting taller and darker. That office was quickly becoming lifeless, and I needed to get out.”

Mel had already left Corporate America once to travel the world as a missionary and journalist. She had sworn never to go back, however, after living overseas and having to raise financial support for so long, she needed to create some stability.

“For me, it is absolute alignment. I am showing up in absolute alignment doing this work,” says Carmen Payne, who has been a practicing Life Coach since 2013, “It gives my soul so much joy to be serving others in this capacity and be a messenger.”

Carmen had spent twenty years working an IT job, and slowly found the stress of the job compounding until she had the overwhelming feeling that she needed to be doing something more in alignment with her passions. That’s when Carmen pulled out her resume and asked herself some hard questions, including the last time she felt excited and energized to come to work: “The role that literally lifted itself off the page at me was when I was training and coaching people.”

Brian Sheldon, of Brian Sheldon Wellness, is a Nature-Rooted Wellness Coach. “My goal is to help clients who are struggling with feeling lost or unsure of themselves,” he tells us, “We work together to find clarity and establish goals to live a more healthy, happy, and fulfilled life!”

“When I came down to Phoenix to visit SWIHA for the first time, I felt extremely lost and like I was on the edge of discovering something deep inside myself that I have always known and never been able to explain or unlock,” explains Brian. He describes how energy within SWIHA “just felt right”, and he signed up for the Mind-Body Wellness program immediately!

Amanda Dodd was drawn to Life Coaching when she began to feel pulled by a sense of “more”, which is an impressive call when you take in to account that she was already a holistic practitioner working with Reiki, The Emotion Code and The Body Code, as well as doing Mediumship while being a trauma-aware care giver to a special needs child.

As with many souls who are drawn to SWIHA, Brigette Cross found herself at a crossroads in her former field of work. During her time as an account, she describes the feeling that she had something more to contribute: “I was in search of my own spirituality. I wanted more knowledge to enhance my gift so I could share it with the world,” she recalls.

Brigette enrolled in the Mind Body Wellness Practitioner program where she developed her coaching practice, Be-Smiley. Her business’ tagline is: “Life is too precious to live unhappy!” which perfectly encapsulates the goal of Life Coaching.

“I had it in my head that spirituality was against science,” admits Mitra Malaekeh, who has 19 years of experience as a Microbiologist, “I came to understand that they are hand-in-hand for personal development and growth.”

Mitra felt called to expand her understanding of the human experience beyond the physical and biological, and let her curiosity lead her to enroll in both the Life Coaching program and Yoga Teacher Training program at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts.

"I am blessed that I have been able to successfully integrate so many aspects of my life’s personal journey and career into my business model," Brenda Bentley, Life Coach and SWIHA graduate.

As a former international banker, teacher, career consultant, hypnotherapist and facilitator, Brenda has, in her words, "wove various aspects into the tapestry of my coaching business."

"I believe that it's through our own life experiences and challenges that we are able to dig deeper, unearth those hidden treasures so we can step out, make a valuable contribution and be of service to the world during this precious time we have on earth," she affirms.