Health Coach Conversations Cathy Sykora

Today’s guest, Dr. James Cima, is a chiropractor with over 50 years of experience. He shares his journey from suffering severe back pain as a young man to becoming a chiropractor. Dr. Cima also discusses chiropractic care and its impact on overall health, how chiropractic can treat more than just physical pain, and his holistic approach to healthcare and living a long and healthy life.
 
In this episode, we talk about:
Dr. Cima’s journey from experiencing severe back pain to becoming a chiropractor
The importance of holistic healthcare and treating the person chemically, physically, mentally, and emotionally
Role of nutrition in health and the importance of listening to your body’s cravings
Why the US healthcare system focuses on sickness instead of health and wellness
Why healthcare costs are so high in the US
How to live a long and healthy life until 150 years old
Dr. Cima’s new project for veterans healthcare
 
Memorable Quotes
“Health is a composite chemically, physically, mentally, emotionally, and you have to deal with all three sides.”
“As long as you keep on taking care of the body chemically, physically and mentally emotionally, you’re gonna be the one that’s going to improve.” 
BIO: 
Born in New York City on October 10, 1948, I was one of the first wave of baby boomers. Growing up in New York City was a great challenge in many ways and prepared me well for life. I mean if you were not getting into fights, you had to use your street smarts to outsmart your enemies as well as the police. This prompted me to find another way, which was to stay in school, study hard, and become something. The truth is that I always wanted to be a doctor. As long as I can remember, that was what I wanted to be. It’s funny how things worked out because years later, my wife told me she always wanted to marry a doctor.
My early years were happy growing up in a tough, lower-middle-class ethnic mix of Italians, Irish, Germans, Polish Catholics, and Jewish people.
Talk about bullying. That was all you experienced from the moment you left the safety of your apartment. From then on, you were fair game to anyone in the neighborhood, and you either fought like there was no tomorrow or there would be no tomorrow. So I developed a lot of street sense, knowing when to hit and when to run. I always hung around with a tough group of friends, which most people would call gangs. Whatever you call them, they were our protection, and I was part of their protection—a necessary evil.
Of course growing up in Queens in the fifties through the seventies, you were always in awe of the wise guys, the Tony Soprano types. That intrigued me, but these guys played for real, and this was no TV show. One mistake and you were either dead or in jail, which was not so appealing. I am unsure how my life would have ended if it had not been for two defining moments.
Turning Lemons into Lemonade
My spinal injury and poor grades changed the destiny of my life. I suffered a severe, debilitating lower back injury in my early teens. I also had fair to mediocre grades in school. My advisor told me that I was not “college material” and recommended that I seek employment or join the armed forces during the Vietnam years or wind up in jail like some of my friends did. You could say that I was stuck between a rock and a hard place, with few, if any, options. I had no talents, and I didn’t come from money.
Somehow, my adviser asked me, “James, what do you like?” I told him I loved animals. He went over to this large file cabinet, searched through all the college files, pulled out one, and said, “Here is one school you might be able to get into if you pass an aptitude test.”
Somehow I passed the test and instantly became college material. I was now a proud student enrolled in a state college’s pre-veterinary program.
From that day forward, I knew that I wanted to become a doctor and that I would n

Today’s guest, Keith Hersey, has a different approach to chronic disease. He is a pharmacist but wants to get people off medications to cure their chronic diseases. Keith talks about how making lifestyle changes instead of solely relying on medications can help manage chronic conditions and live a more fulfilling life. He shares his personal journey with type 2 diabetes and how making healthy choices has helped him improve his health.
 
In this episode, we talk about:
Keith’s background and passion for helping people with chronic diseases
As a pharmacist, why does Keith want to get people off medications instead of putting them on more
How Keith helps people safely reduce medications and focus on a healthy lifestyle
The link between inflammation and chronic diseases
How Keith works with his clients and collaborates with healthcare providers
The challenges pharmacies face in keeping track of patient’s medications, especially when people use multiple pharmacies or buy them online
Why people should stick to the same pharmacist consistently 
Advice for people to incorporate more vegetables and water into the diet
 
Memorable Quotes
“One of the downsides of technology is that we have access to so much information... and a lot of conflicting information.”
“So much of our chronic disease is traced to inflammation, and being able to reduce that greatly alleviates those medical conditions.”
BIO: 
Keith Hersey is a licensed pharmacist in Durham, North Carolina and the owner of Hersey Pharmacy located in Durham in the Woodcroft Shopping Center. Keith was born in New York City but raised in North Carolina, and from the time he was in high school he's had a passion and desire to help people live healthy lives.
After graduating high school, he went on to receive his Batchelor of Science and his Doctorate of Pharmacy degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. For nearly twenty years he worked as a community pharmacist for Eckerd, Rite Aid, and Walgreens. In 2020, he started his own pharmacy (Hersey Pharmacy). Keith has a wealth of experience and expertise in traditional and functional medicine. As a type 2 diabetic himself, Keith’s goal is to reduce or reverse type 2 diabetes with his patients. Keith has recently started a podcast about type 2 diabetes to help increase awareness about the disease.
His podcast, “Destroying Diabetes” is available wherever you listen to podcasts, and he encourages anyone with type 2 diabetes or has someone in their family with type 2 diabetes to listen and subscribe to this podcast. Keith is married to his college sweetheart, Deborah and lives in Durham with their son Jordan and their rescue dog, Karma.
 
Mentioned In This Episode:
Keith Hersey’s ebook: https://destroydiabetes.samcart.com/products/from-chaos-to-control
Keith Hersey’s Website: https://www.drkeithspeaking.com/
 
Links to resources:
Health Coach Group Website
https://www.thehealthcoachgroup.com/

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You must have heard that one size does not fit all when it comes to health and fitness. But do you know that finding what truly works for you may include more than just diet and exercise plans? Today’s guest, Mitch Webb, helps you discover your unique path to lasting health. Mitch discusses his holistic approach beyond just diet and exercise to help his clients find their lasting health.
 
In this episode, we talk about:
How Mitch became interested in health coaching
The type of clients Mitch works with
Common issues clients experience before working with Mitch
Success story of a client who lost and gained weight multiple times in his life cause of childhood trauma 
Mitch’s experience with health issues and how it helped clients feel understood and supported
Importance of addressing unprocessed trauma and doing inner work for overall health and wellness
Do men handle stress better than women
The challenge of feeling unworthy due to comparisons to others
Details of Mitch’s FREE 30-minute consult call for listeners
 
Memorable Quotes
“Everybody can heal, but not everybody will. It takes two things: you have to believe that it’s possible, and you have to believe that you deserve it.”
“Health should be easy and effortless.”
“Comparison is the thief of joy. And so when we’re comparing ourselves to other people, it makes us feel unworthy.”
 
BIO: 
Mitch Webb is a personal health coach for men and all those needing to find their unique path to lasting health. As a certified health coach since 2016, he’s helped more than 100 people get the specific plans, personalized tools, accountability, and export support they’ve needed to change their lifestyles and their lives for good.
Once a Corporate Sales Executive, Mitch discovered his passion for wellness after many health curveballs including Lyme disease, two traumatic brain injuries, long Covid, weight loss resistance, mold toxicity, and the mental health impacts of it all. After visiting multiple doctors and not getting answers, Mitch dove into the research, found a specific lifestyle that allowed him to heal himself and get his life back, and fought his way back to better - many times over.
Now, Mitch provides his coaching clients with the deep expertise, compassion, and partnership he wished he’d had along the way – helping them find and keep walking their personal journeys to healthier, happier lives.
Based in Raleigh, NC and serving clients nationwide, Mitch can often be found nerding out about all things wellness, supporting men’s mental health via his community group, “Men on a Journey,” and walking his two pups. He’s happily married to his UNC alum wife, Katie (even though she picked the wrong shade of blue – so far as this Blue Devil fan is concerned!)
To learn more or connect with Mitch, visit mitchwebb.com.
 

Mentioned In This Episode:
Free 30 minute consult call for listeners
Mitch Webb Website: https://mitchwebb.com/contact/
Mitch Webb on IG: @kmitchwebb 
Mitch Webb on LinkedIn: Mitch Webb Health Coaching | LinkedIn
Links to resources:
Health Coach Group Website
https://www.thehealthcoachgroup.com/

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Is your plate making you and the planet sick? Dr. Shireen Kassam shares that a plant-based diet is the optimal way to improve your and the planetary health. She shares evidence that eating plant-based nutrition and avoiding animal products can significantly reduce the risk of chronic diseases. She also discusses how shifting to a more plant-heavy food system would help reduce the environmental harm caused by industrial animal agriculture. Tune in to learn the science behind plant-based nutrition and get tips for transitioning to a healthier and more sustainable way of eating!
 
In this episode, we talk about:
How Dr. Shireen became interested in plant-based nutrition
The health benefits of plant-based diets in preventing chronic diseases
Evidence that plant-based diets are better for the environment 
The NHS in the UK should provide more plant-based meals in hospitals to improve health
Common myths around plant-based diets
Is plant-based diets suitable for people of all ages
Best ways to make the transition from a standard diet to a plant-based diet
How can healthcare practitioners help provide information and support to clients interested in plant-based nutrition
 
Memorable Quotes
“A diet centered around fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, and seeds, lots of herbs and spices for flavor, and mainly water for thirst is one that has been known for decades now to be associated with lower rates of all of our common chronic conditions.”
 
“Without a healthy planet, we have no healthy people. And it’s absolutely clear that our food system is one of the key drivers of both the climate crisis and the ecological crisis.”
 
BIO: 
Dr Shireen Kassam is a Consultant Haematologist and Honorary Senior Lecturer at King’s College Hospital, London with a specialist interest in the treatment of lymphoma. She is also a Visiting-Professor at University of Winchester, Hampshire, where she has developed and facilitates the UK's first University-based course on plant-based nutrition. In 2023 she launched a course on lifestyle medicine for cancer.

Shireen is passionate about promoting plant-based nutrition for the prevention and reversal of chronic disease and for maintaining optimal health after treatment for cancer. In 2019 she became certified as a Lifestyle Medicine Physician and is also a CHIP facilitator.
Shireen founded Plant-Based Health Professionals UK in 2018, a non-profit, membership organisation whose mission is to provide evidence-based education on whole food plant-based nutrition.
Shireen qualified as a doctor in 2000. During her training, she completed a PhD, which investigated the role of selenium in sensitising cancer cells to chemotherapy. Shireen has published a number of peer-reviewed papers in the field of lymphoma. Her first book, Eating Plant-Based, Scientific Answers to Your Nutrition Questions, co-authored with her sister Zahra, was published in January 2022. She has also co-edited the textbook Plant-Based Nutrition in Clinical Practice, published in September 2022.



Mentioned In This Episode:
Eating Plant-Based Book: https://www.hammersmithbooks.co.uk/product/eating-plant-based/
Plant-Based Nutrition in Clinical Practice Book: https://www.hammersmithbooks.co.uk/product/plant-based-nutrition-in-clinical-practice/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wholefoodplantbasednutrition/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/plantbasedhealthprofessionals/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/plantbasedhpuk
Plant Based Health Professionals UK Website: https://plantbasedhealthprofessionals.com/ 
 
Links to resources:
Health Coach Group Website
https://www.thehealthcoachgroup.com/

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For far too long, women have faced disparities in healthcare that put their well-being at risk. Today’s guest, Dr. Mary O’Connor, has seen firsthand how the healthcare system often fails to meet women’s unique needs. She has dedicated her career to addressing health disparities that negatively impact women. She shares her insights on why women do not always receive the same quality of care as men and how health coaches and other wellness practitioners can support women facing health disparities.
 
In this episode, we talk about:
Health disparities faced by women, particularly women in rural areas
The role of social determinants of health and access to healthcare in creating disparities
How sex and gender impact medical conditions and access to care 
The reason why women do not receive the same health care as men
Importance of considering sex in medical research
Dr. Mary’s book Taking Care of You to empower women to address their health disparities
Role of education, social support between women, and advocacy in addressing health disparities
Actions healthcare practitioners can take to support women facing disparities
 
Memorable Quotes
“A health disparity is when a certain group of people don’t receive the same quality of health care as another group.”
“Self-love is important, and being comfortable with yourself and your body is very important. But that doesn’t mean it’s healthy for you. Being overweight and being obese is not healthy for you.”
“You need to find a doctor or nurse practitioner that you trust. And that means someone who will listen to you.”
“As women, we are painted with this umbrella, that we exaggerate our symptoms, that we’re histrionic. And so, when women talk about concerns or problems in the traditional system, they get diminished, minimized… it’s important that your doctor, nurse believe what you’re telling them.”
 
BIO: 
Mary I. O’Connor, MD, is co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of Vori Health, a nationwide virtual-first physician-led musculoskeletal medical practice offering a biopsychosocial model of care. She is Chair of the Board of Directors of Movement is Life, a nonprofit coalition committed to advancing health equity. Her recent book, “Taking Care of You: The Empowered Woman’s Guide to Better Health” (Mayo Clinic Press 2022), supports women taking charge of their own health. A recipient of the Diversity Awards of both the American Academy of Orthopaedical Surgery and the American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons as well as the Mayo Clinic Distinguished Clinician Award, she is Professor Emerita of Orthopedic Surgery at Mayo Clinic and past Professor of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation at Yale School of Medicine. Dr. O’Connor is past chair of the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Mayo Clinic in Florida and past president of numerous orthopedic societies. An Olympian (US Women’s Rowing), she is passionate in her promotion of the power of sports for girls and women and the benefits to all of physical activity.
 
Mentioned In This Episode:
The Recipe Book for WOMEN'S HEALTH: https://tcywomen.org
 
Better Healthcare for EVERY woman: https://www.1millionmorewomen.org
 
Links to resources:
Health Coach Group Website
https://www.thehealthcoachgroup.com/

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Loving yourself from the inside out could be the secret to being the healthiest version of you! Nutritionist and hypnotherapist Jiordana Saade discusses how reprogramming your mind is the key to sustainable weight loss. She shares tips for reprogramming your mind for lasting weight loss results, the real reasons behind stubborn weight loss plateaus, and reveals what many need to be talking about for holistic health.
 
In this episode, we talk about:
Jiordana’s journey with weight struggles and eating disorders which led her to specialize in food psychology
Common issues people have with their relationship to food
Impact of societal pressures on body image and eating habits and how Jiordana addresses these impacts in her therapy
Strategies to help clients have a better relationship with their food and bodies
Navigating the balance between promoting healthy eating without triggering disordered thoughts
Impact of the language we use around food and body on our mental health
Jiordana’s approach to using mindfulness and hypnotherapy when addressing food or body image concerns
 
Memorable Quotes
“Self-love is literally the antidote of self-sabotage... When you can love yourself so much, you don’t want to hurt yourself. That’s where we kind of build up that self-esteem.”
 
“It’s not about weight loss or weight gain... It’s about health, finding the healthiest version of you. When we do it from a food psychology perspective, you’re never going to be underweight or overweight... The body wants to be healthy.”
BIO: 
Jiordana is a clinical nutritionist, hypnotherapist, and an expert in eating behavior. Jiordana runs a vibrant practice that focuses on the connection between mental health and nutrition and our relationship with food. Jiordana works with women all over the world using her signature program “The Mind-Full Method ™” to help facilitate permanent changes around eating behaviors and reprogram the nervous system to end self-sabotage. Jiordana focuses on the brain-body connection and believes if the body is holding onto weight, there are imbalances in both the mental state, and the physiological body. Jiordana helps clients to recover their mental and physical health through the use of Holistic Nutrition, Functional Medicine, Hypnotherapy, and Behavioural Psychology.
 
Mentioned In This Episode:
Food Freedom Guide: https://themindfullclinic.com/#services
Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/0nrObV3iy0t2KOqULEJiYw?si=1d9d263b2bc64ef8
Links to resources:
Health Coach Group Website
https://www.thehealthcoachgroup.com/

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