What is the difference between therapy and coaching?

I get asked this question often. The best way I have heard this difference described is that therapy is uncovering and recovering and coaching is discovering.

What is coaching? Coaching is discovering. It’s moving from baseline to flourishing. Coaching helps people achieve higher goals and create their ideal life. It’s about setting your ship on the course you want to go with consciousness awareness. It is a process where you get clear about your values and build levels of self inquiry and emotional intelligence. Once those skills have been developed, we work together to identify limiting beliefs and behavioral patterns that stand in the way of success. My job as a coach is to hold you accountable to your goals and provide encouragement. Coaching is creating a life by design, not default.

What is therapy? Therapy is uncovering and recovering. Therapy is moving from suffering to baseline. I provide a non-judgmental safe space where one can be completely free to be themselves. Together we work closely to identify specific goals to work on during our time together. Examples of work I commonly do with folks in therapy are around treatment of depression, anxiety, or relationship concerns. Therapy is about processing the pain of your past and integrating that knowledge into the person you have become in the present to form a coherent narrative.

Where do you find yourself? Do we begin with the past or the present? If you are unsure, that’s no problem at all. I provide free consultations and will take the time to help you identify your starting point. I will also make sure that I have the skill set to assist you with your unique needs. There may be times when you may require a different professional. I will be honest about the limit of my skill set and knowledge, and will do my best to provide you a referral to find the best fit possible.

Amanda Ratz, LPC, is a licensed professional counselor with experience supporting a variety of social and emotional, behavioral, and mental health needs. She has a deep passion for people, specifically their emotional and mental well-being. Amanda enjoys building relationships with clients while creating a safe, respectful, and non-judgmental therapeutic environment. Her focus is on meeting the client where they are at while utilizing a strengths-based and solution-focused approach. Mental health can have a direct impact on physical health. Through your work together, Amanda will help implement evidence-based strategies, practical tools, and coping skills that support emotional regulation and can help foster a healthier lifestyle overall.

Amanda has experience supporting anxiety, depression, trauma, relationship difficulties, motherhood, chronic stress, self-esteem, and negative self-talk. Partnering with people through life transitions is very important to her work. Whether something is in your control or out of your control, processing your individual needs together can be highly therapeutic. Amanda is honored to help empower you and support you through personal challenges when life gets hard. She believes you are the expert in your circumstances. She will be there alongside you to listen, reflect, and help guide you in session in pursuit of living the most joyful, healthy, and fulfilling life. Be proud that you are prioritizing yourself and committing to your mental health! Your inner voice and dialogue are so very important for you and your overall wellness journey. Seeking therapy is not a sign of weakness, it is a sign of great strength. Amanda looks forward to working with you and creating more space for laughter and happiness.