The AC Podcast

In this episode of our Day in the Life podcast series, we meet Françoise Olivier, a life coach who specialises in supporting adult children of alcoholics (ACOAs). Françoise brings both professional expertise and lived experience to her work, having grown up with a father who was alcohol dependent, she understands firsthand the deep and often invisible marks that a parent's addiction can leave. With warmth and honesty, she shares her personal journey alongside practical insights, creating a conversation that is moving and informative.
 
Françoise explores the lasting traits many ACOAs carry into adulthood — hypervigilance, low self-worth, shame, and a disconnection from their own needs — and how these patterns, once understood, can become the foundation for profound transformation. She speaks candidly about the ongoing, daily nature of healing: learning to ask what she actually wants, unpicking long-held beliefs, and choosing to own her story with pride rather than embarrassment. She also highlights the vital distinction between coaching and therapy, and the importance of trauma awareness in holding a truly supportive space for clients. Crucially, Françoise celebrates the superpowers that so many ACOAs develop: the resilience, empathy, and strength that emerge from navigating such complex childhoods.
 
Françoise also reminds us, community is everything. Discovering organisations like NACOA (the National Association for Children of Alcoholics) was a turning point for her where she recognised that she was not alone and had nothing to be ashamed of. It's a message she now carries into her coaching practice every day, helping clients move from pain to purpose, and from silence to self-compassion. An inspiring conversation from a coach walking her talk with courage and care.
 
You will learn:
·       Healing starts with owning your story. For many ACOAs, shame and secrecy are heavy burdens carried for years. Françoise's own turning point came when she chose to step into her story with pride.
·       Some of the traits developed in survival can become our superpowers.
·       The unique power of working with a coach who shares a similar background where the story doesn't always need to be told from the beginning, because the coach simply gets it.
 
'I want to make sure that when I am working with other ACOAs that, not only are we acknowledging what's happened in the past, but celebrating all the brilliant, wonderful things, and the superpowers that we've developed as well.'
 
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For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit: 
https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel_day-in-the-life-of-coaches-adult-children-of-alcoholics-trauma-aware

In this final episode of the Coaching for Health and Wellbeing podcast series, hosts Christian van Nieuwerburgh and Ana Paula Nacif look back across the conversations they've had to draw out the themes that have shaped the series. From the relationship between coaching for wellbeing and coaching for health, to the ethical responsibilities coaches carry into every session, they reflect on what it truly means to practise with intention and integrity. Central to their discussion is the idea that specialist knowledge matters - not as a replacement for core coaching skills, but as a complement to them. Ana and Christian also reiterate how professional humility is just as important as expertise. As Anna puts it, "There are questions we need to ask and there are limitations to what we can do."
 
The conversation turns to coaches themselves, with both hosts emphasising that wellbeing cannot be something coaches champion only for their clients. Self-care, reflective practice, and staying curious about emerging research are not optional extras — they are professional responsibilities. Christian and Ana also explore the broader power of community, celebrating the role organisations like the Association for Coaching play in creating spaces where coaches can share knowledge, support one another, and keep growing, as well as the responsibilities of supervisors in checking in with their clients general wellbeing.
 
The episode closes on a forward-looking and hopeful note, grounded in the belief that intentionality in how we care for ourselves can be simple, practical, and genuinely transformative. Ana and Christian leave listeners with a call to action: stay curious, look after yourself, hold space for genuine human connection, and keep asking the questions that matter. Wellbeing, they remind us, should be for everyone — not just those who can afford it.
You will learn:
·       Wellbeing is a part of coaching practice – for clients and coaches. Bringing intentionality, ethical consideration and specialist knowledge to your practice is an act of care for both.
·       Ongoing learning and reflective practice are non-negotiable and staying humble and curious to that is what creates truly impactful coaching
·       Community matters and leaning into communities of practice, sharing knowledge and supporting fellow coaches are ways to sustain both your wellbeing and the quality of the work.
 
"Specialist knowledge and professional humility for me is really important; there are questions we need to ask and there are limitations to what we can do."
 
Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.
 
For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit: 
https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-coaching-for-health-and-wellbeing-selfcare-community-practice

In episode 6 of our Coaching for Health and Wellbeing podcast series, hosts Ana Paula Nacif and Christian van Nieuwerburgh are joined by GP and positive psychology coach, Dr Amrita Sen Mukherjee, who supports healthcare professionals and coaches to prioritise their own wellbeing. Drawing on her personal journey through grief and health struggles, Amrita offers a candid and deeply human perspective on why those who dedicate their lives to caring for others so often neglect themselves. The conversation explores the cultural norms within helping professions, including coaches, that have historically placed the needs of others above the practitioner's own, and why this is both unsustainable and ethically problematic.
 
A central thread throughout the episode is the power of reflective practice and self-compassion. Amrita discusses how metacognitive awareness — the ability to observe and examine your own thinking and emotional responses — can uncover blind spots and unconscious patterns that affect both personal wellbeing and professional effectiveness. She challenges the stigma that many healthcare professionals feel around seeking help, reminding us that professional identity should never become a barrier to accessing support.
 
The hosts also explore the role of emotional literacy, meaningful connection, and the importance of understanding that wellbeing naturally fluctuates over time.
The episode rounds out with a rich discussion on the ethical dimensions of coaching, including the ongoing debate around regulation of the profession. Amrita emphasises that transparency, ongoing reflection, and creating intentional space to reconnect with your personal identity are not luxuries, but necessities for anyone in a caring role.
   
 You will learn:
·       You cannot pour from an empty cup. Sustainable, empathetic care for others is only possible when practitioners actively tend to their own wellbeing.
·       Reflective practice and self-compassion are essential core skills.
·       Why professional identity can be a barrier to getting help.
 
"I just felt that there was something in my medical practice that didn't allow me to really and truly connect with people and understand them in a way that I can now."
 
Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.
 
For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit: 
https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-coaching-for-health-and-wellbeing-self-compassion-reflective-practice

In episode 5 of our Coaching for Health and Wellbeing series, co-hosts Christian van Nieuwerburgh and Ana Paula Nacif, are joined by Lizana Oberholzer, a coaching psychologist with specialist expertise in education, to explore how coaching psychology can become a powerful part of an individual's wellbeing toolkit. Together, they unpack the distinctions between coaching for health and coaching for wellbeing, and how a psychologically informed coaching approach can help people navigate life's challenges - from managing chronic health conditions to coping with the pressures of a demanding professional role. Lizana brings a rich perspective on how coaching creates a structured, reflective space for individuals to find their own solutions and reconnect with what truly matters to them.
 
A significant focus of the conversation is the transformative role coaching and coaching psychology plays within educational settings. Lizana challenges the common misconception that coaching is a remedial tool reserved for those who are struggling, making the case instead that it should be a proactive, developmental resource that allows educators to move beyond performance to allow creativity into their practice. The discussion highlights how coaching support educators in managing workload and emotional labour, building resilience, and preventing burnout, while also fostering the kind of self-awareness and autonomy that allows people to truly flourish in their roles.
 
Lizana shares strategies for coaches to engage in wellbeing initiatives within education and explores the wider ripple effects of embedding a coaching culture within schools and organisations. When coaching principles are integrated into school communities, the benefits extend far beyond the individual: improving communication, strengthening relationships, and nurturing environments where everyone can thrive. Lizana shares her own personal wellbeing practices and offers practical guidance for coaches looking to make an impact in health and education contexts, reminding us that coaching, at its heart, is about enabling others to drive their own journey and is of itself a wellbeing tool.
You will learn:
·       How coaching psychology can become part of everyone's wellbeing toolkit, and offer a non-directive, client-centred approach that empowers individuals to find their own solutions and build lasting resilience
·       The profound difference coaching can make to educational settings, acting as a developmental intervention for educators, teachers and students to manage stress and develop self-awareness
·       The transformational ripple effects for everyone when coaching is embedded into educational establishments
 
"Coaching and coaching psychology need to play a profound role in education, business, and health, because they can influence, impact, and enable people across a wide spectrum."
 
Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.
 
For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit: 
https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-coaching-for-health-and-wellbeing-coaching-psychology-education

In episode 4 of our Coaching for Health and Wellbeing series, hosts Ana Paula Nacif and Christian van Nieuwerburgh are joined by Professor Aaron Jarden and Dr. Robert Biswas-Diener for a rich, provocative conversation on what it truly means to practice ethically as a health and wellbeing coach. Rather than treating ethics as a set of rules to follow, the guests invite coaches to think of ethics as a set of principles that infuse every part of their practice — a way of being rooted in the character of the coach and a genuine commitment to doing right by clients. They challenge coaches to move beyond compliance and toward a deeper question: what kind of practitioner do you want to be?
 
A recurring theme is the tension between respecting client autonomy and the coach's responsibility to promote wellbeing. The panel explores the ethical considerations of sharing information, challenging unhelpful patterns, and holding a duty of care whilst staying in a coaching role. Importantly, the discussion pushes coaches to take their positive duty seriously, including having the courage to reflect on their inaction as well as take action. The conversation also touches on justice and fairness in how coaching services are structured and accessed, the critical role of transparent contracting that explicitly includes wellbeing as part of the discussion, and why a coach's own self-care may be a professional and ethical imperative.
 
The episode closes with a call for ongoing reflective practice and intellectual humility. Ethical perfection, the guests remind us, is a myth: most situations coaches face are grey areas.  Ethics in health and wellbeing coaching is about showing up every day with integrity, humility, and a commitment to both your clients' and your own wellbeing. By moving beyond checklists and embracing a reflective, virtue-based approach, coaches can navigate the complex realities of practice with confidence and care.
 
You will learn:
 
·       Ethics is a principled way of being, not a checklist: ethical coaching is about cultivating the character and values you bring to every client interaction.
 
·       Autonomy and beneficence must be held in balance. Honouring a client's right to choose while actively doing good is one of the most nuanced challenges in health and wellbeing coaching.
 
·       Coach self-care is an ethical responsibility. Your own physical and mental wellbeing it directly shapes your ability to show up with integrity for your clients.
 
 
 
"A better approach would be thinking about the virtues I want to instil in my practice and the way of being I want to approach things with."
 
Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave us a review! Your feedback helps us bring you more valuable content.
 
For the episode resources and guest bio, please visit: 
https://www.associationforcoaching.com/page/dl-hub_podcast-channel-coaching-for-health-and-wellbeing-ethics-contracting