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A Journey to Yourself That Leads You to Everyone and Everything

Dec 2, 2019


By Brenda Fagan, Senior MCS Student New Orleans, LA

I’ve been an occupational therapist for 16 years working primarily with older adults in clinical practice and managing rehabilitation professionals. Over the years my work became more and more centered around mindfulness practices and coaching both with the patients and families I served and the staff that worked for me. I found the most joy in my work when I was using these approaches and decided to look for opportunities to hone my skills. I was thrilled to find the Mindfulness Coaching School in the list of ICF-approved schools. For the past two years I’ve been taking classes, learning and growing and being supported by an incredible community. MCS is so much more than a coaching school, it’s a journey to yourself that leads you to everyone and everything.

Over the summer I took the last three classes I need for my ACC and Mindfulness, Wellness and Somatic Coach credentials: Body ElectricWhere Mind Goes, Qi Goes and The Dynamic Trio: EMDR, Positive Psychology and Somatic Coaching. I experienced these classes at a time when I was away from my home city working in a nursing home at the foot of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. I was immersed in practices of somatic awareness, energy flow and expansiveness. Through each class I got to explore with my fellow classmates the many ways there are to feel the connection to your body that is always present, how to be still and listen to the wisdom it has to offer and how to use my learned skills with clients to help lead them to themselves, their truth, their highest excitement.

I used what I was learning with the patients and staff I worked with every day at the nursing home where life seems very out of body and control. I hiked to the top of mountain peaks and the bottom of redwood groves practicing Qi Gong every day and drawing from the power of nature that surrounded me. The energy, stillness and absolute truth that exists in the silence of the woods and mountain tops combined with the coaching skills I was learning and practicing in class and with my homework partners has given me more than I could ever have imagined. Thank you to my classmates, my homework partners, Ann-Marie and the Mindfulness Coaching School for being on this incredible journey with me.

And this is just the beginning…

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Testimonials

S-T-R-E-T-C-H! pushed me in the coaching practice. I gained confidence and experience in coaching, while building strong connections with my classmates throughout the course.
Anna M. ParrillStudent CoachManchester, New Hampshire
Right Speech: So worth my time. I learned more about how I communicate with myself and others in 8 weeks than many books I’ve read in the past. Thank you!!!
Jane DixonStudent CoachRoanoke, VA
The Dynamic Trio was an excellent introduction to the EMDR protocol, giving insights to students who were new to the techniques presented, like me, and also to students familiar with EMDR from use in trauma treatment. We got to experience the power of EMDR for coaching ourselves from the instructor’s skillful examples in class with actual student situations presented. I think we were all impressed with the results.
Lori JacobsStudent CoachValley Center, CA
Someone said “coaching starts from the 1st breath” and I truly experienced it during this class (Becoming A Mindfulness & Wellness Coach: You at Your Best). Ann-Marie’s authenticity, vivid approach and dancing in the moment impressed me very much. I can sense her true love and compassion through each discourse. Her true coaching presence was not only reflected by the one-on-one coaching demonstrations, but also through each moment… A living example of a master coach.
Joy ChenICF ACC
I enrolled in Writing, Creativity and The Mindful Coach in the hopes of reigniting my writing practice. As a student, corporate employee, and average human being in a life that pulls us all in a hundred different directions, I was simply looking for a sacred space for writing. I needed the boundaries, a time and a place, and accountability. I got that in this class…and I got infinitely more. What I did not expect was that I would begin an actual practice, and that infinite possibility could arise from a simple five-minute exercise. I also did not expect to see such a clear connection and application in the coaching world so richly exemplified. Part creative class, part coaching class, part poetry reading session, this class was a truly revelatory experience for me.
Sergia FloresStudent CoachEast Brunswick, NJ
Writing, Creativity, and the Mindful Coach was so enriching and provocative! I definitely learned many ways to apply writing and creativity within a coaching practice. So many amazing practices, prompts and ideas!!!
Amy SmouchaStudent CoachHyattsville, MD
The class Right Speech took me beyond the basic coaching skills into higher-level listening and mindfulness skills I now use regularly in my coaching practice and in my life. Meg Hess is a caring and knowledgeable teacher who creates an atmosphere of trust and passion for coaching.
Victoria FontanaCoach, EducatorSpain
Body Electric gave me more confidence in the mindfulness and somatic tools I was using in my coaching as well as added a whole new dimension of tools to my toolbox. Having access to effective somatic tools has deepened and enriched the coaching experience for me and my clients.
Victoria FontanaMCS Graduate (PCC, MWSC)Grand Island, NY
I not only enjoyed this course (The Art of Engaged Mindfulness) but have personally benefitted from the techniques and behaviors that were introduced in the class which I in turn introduced in my life. I am a true beneficiary of this program.
Farooq NazirPCCPakistan
Business Alchemy made me aware that my business has an energy and essence, just as I do. In discovering this, I started to get really clear on how I want to present myself to the universe, what type of business I want to create and what tribe I want to support and engage with. I learned that there are kinder, more modern and zen-like ways of being an entrepreneur and marketing myself. Overall, this class helped me to align my heart, my vision and my business. I am so grateful to Sarah and Ann-Marie. They were both so supportive, knowledgeable and inspiring.
Emmaline KeelyRYTCottonwood, Arizona