P.S. A Note About Me

Welcome to my blog post! I am excited to share a little more about who I am, along with all things Health and Wellness.

Let me start with introducing myself! My name’s Payton and I am a 22- year old currently living in Florida working as a Medical Assistant and eagerly starting to apply to Grad School. My story doesn't start here, but instead in the small, cold, college town of Burlington Vermont. I attended The University of Vermont (UVM), to study Health Sciences, along with Nutrition & Food Sciences. I was also beyond fortunate to compete at the D1 level on the Track and Field Team as a pole-vaulter.

Life as a student-athlete was filled with both it's ups and downs. With most days consisting of a 5:30 Wake-Up call, Practice, Lift, a trip to the training room and then heading straight to classes, I had to quickly learn how to keep up with my health and wellness in the most hectic of times. I quickly recognized that not eating correctly would directly impact my energy levels during the day. I dealt with an injury for over two years that limited me from practices and meets. Not only was my body in pain, but my mental health was also taking a toll, and I had to recognize the importance of caring for both.

By my junior year, I knew I wanted to pursue a career in the medical field (I had my eye on becoming a Physician Assistant), but I was also deeply interested in learning everything I could about health and wellness. I declared a second minor in Health and Wellness Coaching and was immediately ready to learn more. My professors taught us the ins and outs of coaching—from the core process and skills to ethics and the legal side. We started practicing coaching with each other, and eventually, I gained the confidence to coach other students and faculty members.

When I declared a minor my Junior year of college, I had already decided that I wanted to go into a medical field (most likely as a PA), but was also just really interested in learning all that I could surrounding Health. I had learned and recognized the importance of exercise, nutrition, environments, and relationships on you’re overall health and well-being, but had become more determinate to learn ways to teach others about these important concepts.

Throughout my college program in Health and Wellness Coaching, my amazing professors took the time to teach us all about Health coaching ranging from the coaching process and skills to ethics and the legal side. At that point we began practicing coaching on each other, eventually gaining the skills, practice and confidence to start coaching other college students and faculty.

During my Senior year in my capstone course, I hade the most amazing opportunity to be a part of the first group of students to Health Coach college students with disabilities. This experience taught me so much about adapting coaching techniques to meet different needs and how impactful personalized health coaching can be.I also had the chance to coach fellow student-athletes, helping them navigate the tough balance between academics and athletics. These experiences were truly incredible and solidified my passion for helping others improve their health and well-being.

So, that’s a little about me and how my journey has shaped how I got here. Thank you for sticking with me through my story—I hope you stick around to learn more about both Me and Health Coaching, and maybe even learn a few tips and tricks to positively impact your life!

P.S Thanks for reading this :)