Serve Magazine from Concordia Plan Services Winter 2017 | Page 11

Back to my story with my health coach:
At the beginning, we talked about
every three weeks. The beginning steps
involved me sharing honestly with her
my struggles with food and evaluating
my overall health. I read the literature
she sent me and started measuring my
body and weighing myself only once a
month — the day before my next phone
call. I didn’t want to obsess about my
weight. My goal was to be healthy.
She encouraged me to set one goal to
start off my program. My first goal was
committing to walking for 30 minutes
daily — except for Sundays. The next
phone call, I committed to make an
appointment with a nutritionist. The third
phone call was a commitment to go to
my appointment with my nutritionist.
At this time, I also scheduled in morn-
ing and evening Bible readings to get
support from God in my daily struggles. I have continued that for the past year
and a half now and can’t imagine a day
going by without reading God’s Word.
“Everyone has
a story,” said
Yomarie Olsen
(pictured), a
nutritionist with
the Concordia
Total Health Team
(CTHT). “I love
to listen to their
stories, and I love to help them break
down the walls that are keeping them
from getting where they want to be.” behavioral specialists, health educators,
exercise specialists and counselors — all
supported by doctors and pharmacists.
The service is free and confidential.
For more than a year, Olsen has
coached the woman whose story
you just read. A wellness coach with
more than 25 years of experience,
she works with Concordia Health Plan
(CHP) members who are struggling
with nutritional issues and has formed
relationships with pastors, teachers, lay
workers, spouses and others.
When a CHP member calls the
CTHT, the first conversation is with a
personal advocate who will find the
right coach to help the member with
personal needs and goals. The team
includes nutritionists, registered nurses,
The nutritionist was very helpful. I
recorded what I was eating for one
week before my appointment. She
helped me fine-tune my eating plan and
recommended that I drink half my body
weight in fluid ounces of water. This
really surprised me, because I thought
I was drinking plenty of water. This took
me about three weeks to adjust, but my
body got used to drinking that much
water. The progress has been slow
but sure as I became more willing to
try something new each month. Many
months I was successful with my goal,
but if I was unsuccessful, it was very
helpful to talk with my health coach and
to figure out a new plan to meet that
goal. My overall progress has certainly
“We usually start out by getting to know
the members a little bit better and find-
ing out what their overall goals are and
what barriers are preventing them from
meeting those goals,” said Olsen, who
has a degree in nutrition and dietetics.
“From there, we start working toward
the goal in baby steps. We identify
something they’re willing to do and be
accountable for, and we make that the
goal until the next time we talk.”
Olsen connects about every three
weeks with the members she coaches,
but that schedule can change depend-
ing on need. Weight is the challenge
for many who seek out a nutritionist
like her, and the ideas she provides
vary depending on the person. “We
talk about handling emotional strug-
gl