Michele Weston, ACC, is the founder and CEO of MJW Navigator LLC. Along with working with private clients and weight-loss groups, I consult with medical professionals and their healthcare teams to strengthen patient-physician partnerships for delivering whole-person centered care. 

 

I consider myself an expert, and an audience member in the areas of weight-loss after losing 125  pounds a dozen years ago. I have learned that every day I get to make choices and decisions that help me keep the weight off and my health has improved immensely with my choices. This is a " learning curve" for anyone who's struggled with their weight, and it's my honor to help others reach their own goals through bariatric surgery, medically-managed weight loss, and other weight-loss programs to feel better, become healthier and feel the best in their own skin by becoming the master of your own path - one that works for you. With my former career as a Fashion Editor and Style Director, I learned the importance of developing positive self-esteem, self-love and building confidence. So coaching people to become their best selves is really important to me as a woman and I want everyone to create their own destiny, their own path, their way of "being". 

 

I ' ve been my own "guinea pig", of sorts, and know I can help others find their own path to best health and wellness when you're living with a chronic illness.  I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis twenty-one years ago and know the challenges of having a chronic neurological condition. Especially when your own symptoms place you in the eyes of others as having an "invisible illness" and learn how to let others know what you  need and what it's like to live with a chronic condition." I believe that we need to partner with our medical teams, and so, as a patient, I continue to learn about nutrition and the effects of reducing inflammation with food for my body by attending workshops, earning certifications and educating myself with numerous experts guidance on utilizing supplements and vitamins/minerals to keep me at my best with my own lifestyle shifts.

 

I deliver customized solutions for Wellness Support Coaching and Patient Advocacy that's tailored to the unique needs of each of my clients. I'm a firm believer in wellness coaching for lifestyle changes in a person's behavior. For me, how a person brings about change is a collaborative one. That's why it is so important that the coach and coachee work together as a team. The same theory goes for Patient Advocacy, and to me that means educating my clients to become patients that know how to advocate for themselves. But I'm always available and here to support and help my clients with any forms of advocacy that you, a family member or caregiver may need within the complicated landscape of healthcare we are all challenged with today.

 

I'm a "connector", and with the myriads of experts I have established relationships with over the years, I can point clients towards a nutritionist, acupuncturist, stress management expert, social worker, psychologist, Pilates or yoga therapy instructor (or perhaps a specific course, or group for physical activity). As well as find a homeopathic guru, and even connect a client with psychological experts for chronic eating disorders. For people living with chronic neurological illnesses -  I'm here to empower people to take control and direct their path and own the way you can see your future.

 

I have completed several Professional Graduate Level Certification Programs in Bioethics/Health Policy and Public Health from Loyola University-Chicago in 2017, as well as holding a Mental Health Mediation Certificate from John Jay School of Criminal Justice, NYC. I earned my M.A. in Health & Wellness Coaching from Maryland University of Integrative Health in 2020.  

 

I am a member of the National Association of Healthcare Advocacy Consultants (NAHAC), a Fellow with the Institute of Coaching McLean, Affiliate of Harvard Medical School (IOC),  a member of the Alliance of Professional Health Advocates (APHA), hold a International Coaching Federation (ICF) as an Associates Coaching Certification, and am a member of the American Society for Bioethics + Humanities (ASBH)  

 

I have  been a mentor for Public Education Needs Civic Involvement in Learning (PENCIL) and sat on the first Advisory Board of Dress for Success - New York in the 1990s. I currently volunteer as a member of the Mentor/Mentee Support Committee to help match mentors with mentees for patient and healthcare advocates with the National Association of Healthcare Advocacy (NAHAC).