I noticed that many people don’t know what to expect from coaching, or what topics they could bring into discussion.
That’s why, with my client permission, I share with you her feedback after a thee months coaching relationship.
Fidel to her legal background, Natasha Wauthion describes her coaching experience as a case study: how was her life at the beginning of our coaching, her discoveries and coaching experience, tools and techniques she used or noticed, the coaching results and where she is now.
I’ve added a few comments in grey, to help you understand some terms she used in this context.
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COACHING SESSIONS (with Gabriela Casineanu)
Sessions:Time frame: Nov. 2010 – Feb. 2011 Frequency: every week Session duration: ½ hour, sometimes 1 hour How: in person or by phone
The context of my life in 2010:
When I’ve met Gabriela and had the chance to be selected for coaching, I was in a very difficult situation on both personal and professional side:
– personal: Victor’s sickness (neck cancer stage 4), being bullied by his son
– work: discriminated by my boss, and no backup
My Canadian immigration was turning into a nightmare!
From Summer 2009 to Fall 2010 I lived the most dark period of my entire life…
I was going down a black whole and felt that the suicide was the only solution… no hope for the future…
Topics I chose for the coaching sessions:
- Stress
- Volcano (term used by Natasha to describe the sensation she felt often in her abdomen)
- Anxiety
- Epitaph (see bellow)
- Lack of hope
- Procrastination
- Inhibition to take action
- Victor’s sickness
- Energy Yin vs. Yang
- Looking to buy a home
- The pressure felt often in the orbits of my eyes
- Launching my own business
- How to leave my job with dignity
Tools used (as reminders to take actions; the client decides what she needs as a reminder at the end of each session)
- Magic Stick (a plastic stick she liked)
- Round and soft objects
- Image of a green plant
- Beautiful photo of Niagara Falls
- Photo-coaching Album “Meeting with Yourself” – from Gabriela
- Calligraphy of a nice round for Yin (she likes Calligraphy)
- Yellow stickers at work and home with « relax max »
- Smiley balls in my bag and close to the bed
Other techniques (used in coaching and following a coaching session)
- Abdominal Breathing
- Visualization of a tree
- Write my Epitaph
- Allow my tears
- Hand on my belly
- Getting down into the « cave »
- Taming the “ogre” from the « cave »
Epitaph
I was inspired to write my epitaph while looking at the photo-coaching album of Gabriela. It came effortlessly from the Source:
«Here lies Natasha After a first part of a tormented life She lived humbled and simply Accepting her destiny Stars dust She returned At the cosmic waltz Of the Mega Universe »
This epitaph had an immediate calming effect:
– It’s clear that there are two parts of my life, so the first one is getting over
– The second part of my life looks quieter (finally! I’m looking forward to it)
– So I will die reconciled with my life, which is a relief
– I love the idea to return there where I’m coming from, the Cosmos
The efficiency of Gabriela Casineanu’s Coaching
Even the coaching concept wasn’t really new to me; I didn’t really have practiced it on me. Part because I didn’t felt the need and opportunity, part because I didn’t have time and money for it.
I didn’t know either what kind of coaching Gabriela will use with me: professional or life coaching? Finally it was a mix of both and counseling.
I have also to add that I am pretty familiar with a lot of techniques and approaches of personal development, because I have explored them in the last twelve years in Europe, Asia and North America.
I would say that I was pretty skeptical that Gabriela could do a coaching session in only ½ hour.
From the first session, supposed to be an introduction not a real coaching session, I was strongly impressed by the efficiency of her technique.
Gabriela’s art of asking questions goes directly to the heart of the problem, because she’s extremely intuitive and expert.
She was able to bring to the surface a profound emotional state that brought me to tears from the first question, without even being prepared.
From there, she didn’t waste the time with useless talk. At the beginning I didn’t really realize why she intruded with questions in the middle of my explanations and descriptions of the evoked situations (to better understand my past). It was even annoying.
Later I understood her strategy. Her objective and constant concern was to help me relive the situation and connect to the sensations felt directly within and with my body, in that moment. It’s really the only manner to make the past more concrete and present, instead of getting lost in the mental and the description of the past. More the past becomes present and concrete, more it’s diluted and you’re able to let go… this is what finally conducts to liberation of the suffering imprisoned inside of the body cells!
Another particularity is that Gabriela does not come with a plan: she’s constantly open to what’s possible and improvise with what’s coming up in the present moment. That’s also extraordinary to see how easily and nimbly she rebounds to the new situation that occurs.
The coaching sessions were extremely efficient, with an effect on long term.
I continue to practice the tools that Gabriela gave me: surrounding myself with objects that make me feel good, practicing the breathing technique, or simply putting my hand at the bottom of my abdomen to tame the fears and anxiety felt inside the « magma ».
I’m very grateful for the opportunity to be coached by Gabriela in a moment of my life when I was in distress and desperate about my life.
~ Natasha Wauthion
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Following our coaching relationship and based on her background, Natasha decided to launch her own business:
Legal Compass Navigate the Legal & Justice System with confidence http://compassboussole.net/If coaching was effective in Natasha’s case, it could be beneficial to other people as well… even with less stressful conditions. What do you think?
Gabriela Casineanu
http://ThoughtsDesigner.com