Meet Katie Faison

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Katie Faison. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Katie below.

Hi Katie, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?
What if I told you your greatest struggle could be the best thing that ever happens to you? It could even help you find your life’s purpose. Well, guess what? That is exactly what happened to me. Struggles are an inevitable part of the human existence. We are all going to struggle with something in our lives. For me, the greatest struggle I faced was with my health.

In 2006, I began experiencing pain throughout my body. After many years of doctor appointments, I was diagnosed with two autoimmune diseases: Ankylosing Spondylitis and Chronic Iritis. What started as a fear-based journey of hopelessness ended with full healing and the belief that our struggles can be one of the greatest gifts we’ll ever receive, leading us to our purpose. It’s all about our perspective. Without my health struggle, I wouldn’t be doing what I am today which is helping others heal from autoimmunity by teaching them about the mind body connection and making the impact that I have made through coaching.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
The journey which lead to the creation of Whole Lovely Life began in 2006 when I started to struggle with my health. Years later I was diagnosed with two autoimmune diseases Ankylosing Spondylitis and Iritis. I felt scared and alone and tried to find stories of others who were diagnosed with the same condition. When I found nothing I was inspired to start my blog as a way to share my story and all of the things I was doing to overcome these diseases and heal my body. I believe one of the greatest gifts our stories can give others is the feeling of hope.

Over many years I worked effortlessly to heal my body and never gave up. I tried many healing modalities but when I discovered the Mind Body Connection my life changed forever. I met someone through Instagram who healed from Ankylosing Spondylitis and was a coach.

The Mind Body Connection was an area I had never explored before. After working with him for 3 months my life completely changed. My healing accelerated like nothing I had experienced before. I found the key I had been missing which was addressing the mind and all the stuff we are carrying with us daily. This started my passion for gaining an understanding of the brain and nervous system and how both play a role in the manifestation of disease. I realized that regardless of health status this work could help everyone.

My coach made such an impact on my life for which I will always be grateful. He inspired me to become a coach as well. Shortly after working with him, I enrolled at the Institute of Transformational Nutrition. Over the next year and a half, I earned two certifications.

It was several years later before I decided to resign from a very secure corporate job and a 20-year career in product design and development. Following my intuition that lead to healing was easy. Finally listening to my intuition and calling to leave everything I had known for the last 20 years behind was one of the hardest decisions I have ever made.

My approach to coaching and the content I create is to help people navigate the sea of information on autoimmunity. I want people to have all the information that took me 10+ years to figure out. I look at each person as unique. Not only are the reasons they are struggling with their health unique but their experience is unique as well. And, most importantly I help people have hope! Hope that they can heal and have the life and future they deserve. It takes work but it is not as hard you might think.

I use what I call a Whole Life Approach. There is more to an autoimmune condition than meets the eye. My goal is to work with clients together on a plan that will help them not only achieve a total health transformation but a total life transformation too. Health issues leading to the diagnosis of an autoimmune disease don’t just appear overnight. They take time to develop and are rooted in our history and story. They must be examined at a deeper level.

In partnership with a client, we examine health history back to childhood, diet, environment (internal and external), past traumas (which can be things as simple as losing a job or breaking up with a significant other or things more significant like the death of a close family member), the mind-body connection (this is a huge part of my work), nervous system regulation and belief systems around themselves and their ability to heal. I help them to re-write the stories that are holding them back.

The Whole Life Approach is not a cookie-cutter, one size fits all approach. It is about looking at each person and their experience as unique and examining every facet of their environment to discover the root cause of disease and imbalance in the body. It is about helping them realize their healing potential and about regaining their lives and coming out better on the other side of their autoimmune diagnosis.

My goal is to help clients discover that THINGS HAPPEN FOR US NOT TO US and that their autoimmune disease is one of the best gifts they have ever been given because it will allow them to heal not only their bodies but their entire life.

What excites me most about coaching is the fulfillment I gain from helping others and seeing people believe in themselves and get back to living the life they deserve. Many come to me after trying everything else, and it’s a relief for them to discover they don’t need to follow strict diets or overwhelming daily routines. My approach is different from other coaches, and clients not only heal from their autoimmune conditions but also experience a transformative shift in their entire lives, gaining a deeper understanding of themselves.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Mindset: This is a topic I am incredibly passionate about because once I addressed it everything changed for me. Shifting my mindset from “This is happening to me”, to This is happening for me” and asking, “What can I learn from this?” helped to move me forward in a positive direction. Another significant mindset shift was coming to the realization that I was not my diagnosis. It can be easy to lose your identity and sense of control when struggling with chronic illness; however, we have way more control over our situation than we realize, even when it feels exceptionally hopeless. Mindset is a choice, something we actively cultivate and bring into awareness every day. While it takes work, the rewards make the journey truly. (add “worth while” after truly)

Learning to Listen To My Body and Intuition: The little voice or feeling deep within is an important messenger that will guide you exactly where you need to go; all you have to do is listen. Our bodies are incredibly intelligent, and when we experience ‘symptoms,’ it’s the body’s way of communicating with us. These signals are telling us, sometimes screaming, that something is not right, that something needs to change. Symptoms are the body’s initial step towards healing. Our bodies has (change has to have) the innate ability to heal; they are designed for it. We just need to get on the same page with them and provide what they need. Tuning into my intuition allowed me to trust the journey I was on and led me down the most incredible path I’ve ever taken.

Perseverance: When struggling with chronic illness, it can be easy to feel like giving up. While there were moments when I felt that way, I persisted, staying focused on the goal of healing. I explored more healing modalities than I can count. Trying one thing after another. Yet, I never lost hope that healing was possible. In each experience and every attempt, there were small nuggets of wisdom received. Even when one approach didn’t work, I moved on to the next, never giving up.

Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
Among the many books that have been helpful on my journey, Letting Go: The Pathway of Surrender by Dr. David Hawkins stands out. This is a book I read early on in my healing journey and at a time when I was really struggling. This book made me realize that I was trapped in a cycle of striving for healing rather than surrendering to what was, trusting myself and my body. I kept searching for a quick fix or something or someone external to fix me, but this book made me realize that everything I needed to heal my body was right in front of me.

Contact Info:

Image Credits
All images were taken by me Katie Faison except for first two images that were taken by Josh Olson for a SheShe photoshoot in my office. For additional reference they are the two images with the pink wallpaper.

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