Horseshit

Got one of those unsolicited “healthcare” emails from some rando lifestyle influencer/podcaster.

Erica Diamond (a “life and career coach”) tells me that life is like a box of chocolates (no, REALLY). Life is also just like her bottle of water. (I’m not shittin’ ya—the woman is NOT a gifted or imaginative wordsmith) This grifter’s ideas and marketing skills are about what I’d expect from a delusionally overconfident, unbright, unsavvy high school freshman. (I’m likely giving dear Erica way too much credit)

She says in her email:

When we understand that our lives are just like this water bottle, we become resilient, strong and optimistic.

Yes, yezzzzz, I read past this ridiculous sentence to get to her point—stay hydrated. How original! She’s got more earth shattering hot takes on how to stay healthy—just click on the link to her podcast. Or don't.

Are there education or work experiences required to be a life coach? No but Ms. Diamond makes sure to mention in every third paragraph or so that she is a CERTIFIED Life Coach. That’s nice dear but, hush now, I have some questions.

1) What is a life coach?

A life coach partners with clients as they work toward a more ideal version of their life, often focusing on areas such as the client’s daily well-being, work-life balance, or relationships. (source)

Frankly, I really could’ve used one of these when I was in my 20s. Oh wait, what I needed then was a career coach.

2) How do you become a Certified Life Coach? 

• Coaching, as an industry, is unregulated, so there are no formal requirements for a person to become a life coach. However, there are a number of coach training programs that a person may opt to take to deepen their education and learn more about the best ways to work with individuals. A person who has gone through such training programs is considered a certified life coach. (source)
  

• There are a whole mess of places who will certify you but the two main ones are the International Coaching Federation (ICF) and the National Board for Health & Wellness Coaching (NBHWC). The Certified Life Coach Institute here in Boston will have you all set to make business cards and hang out a shingle after just three days (32.5 hours) of class.
  

From where was Erica Diamond certified? Interestingly, that’s not mentioned in any of her airy-fairy promo pieces. By the by, she’s also a Certified Yoga and Meditation Teacher, (just like every other Gen Xer who's ever fallen in love with yoga). Diamond claims:

I help women completely transform their days to vibrate at a high energy frequency, and feel calm at the same time. (source)

Sure Babe. I'll bet you've a spiffy bridge in Brooklyn to sell me too.

On top of her podcast she sells her own line of essential oils and has a couple self-help books (one is just a blank book in which the buyer is to scribble down their life goals before bedtime).

In this email spam, self-promotion, Diamond plugs her buddy, Doctor Steven Radowitz. He shares the Secrets To Longevity (does anyone else hear Also sprach Zarathustra now or is that just me?). The road to longevity has something to do with psychedelic meds. Groovy man.

He’s listed as the Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of some outfit called Nushama. What’s the joint all about?

Medically supervised psychedelic treatments for sustained relief from depression, anxiety, addiction and trauma-induced mood disorders in a serene and safe environment. (source) .

Sounds cool. Sounds hip AND Dr. Steve is a fer reals doctor (he’s an internist). That he’s built up this psychedelic drug empire though, makes him seem like just another anything-for-a-buck quack like Dr. Crudité Oz only more hippy-trippy.

Wouldn’t someone who prescribes mind altering meds, particularly non-standard ones like the ketamine infusions noted on Nushama’s website, need to be a psychiatrist or, at least, possess more advanced bona fides than an internist?

Eh, what do I know? If it’s not a tumor and NOT in my brain or spine, I got nothin.'