Member story
Amanda's story
Amanda shares how regular check-ins with her health coach helped her trust her own progress and keep going after years of starting over.
About this story
Amanda grew up with comments about her weight from people close to her, and food became a way of coping. For years she went up and down, and every new start ended feeling defeated.
When she asked her primary care physician whether she should try something new, Embla was suggested as an option.
Learning to trust her own progress
Amanda works with her health coach, Kelly. Having someone to coach her along and check in regularly has made a real difference. But one of the most important things Kelly has helped with is something Amanda hadn't expected: believing in her own progress.
"I don't trust doing good. I don't trust when I'm doing things successfully, 'cause I feel like if I acknowledge it, I'll stop."
Kelly would pause with her and name it: you are doing great, and it's okay to feel that. Over time, Amanda started to say it to herself.
A life with very little room for her
Amanda works, takes care of her child and studies. She knows those things matter, but she's candid that most of her days used to have nothing in them just for her. Mornings came with a sense of dread about everything that needed doing.
Two months that feel long
Amanda knows two months might sound short to others. For her, it's a long time to keep something going, when in the past she struggled to last a week.
"I can't believe I am this person that I didn't think I could be, someone who just actively makes better choices."
What stood out
- Regular check-ins with one coach kept her going.
- Her coach helped her acknowledge her progress instead of fearing it.
- She is building consistency that once felt out of reach.
Transcript
I experienced a lot of adversities growing up that led me to using food as a coping skill. You know, I had family say, "Oh, you need to lose weight," or, "Why aren't you as thin as we are?" And so it would lead me to doing things like starving myself, restricting, and I have always experienced yo-yoing, like going up and down, up and down, and feeling very defeated about it.
VCU takes such good care of their employees. VCU actually has a program for their employees. It's called VCU Gold [?], and it's a care team for their employees so that they can get to primary care physicians. So I asked my primary care physician for some ideas. I said, "Should I try, like, a weight loss drug, or what do you think?" And she said, "Well, we have this new program called Embla, and why don't we try it out?"
I have Kelly. Kelly is my health coach. Having someone literally be there to coach me along and to check in with me has been amazing. I don't trust doing good. I don't trust when I'm doing things successfully, 'cause I feel like if I acknowledge it, I'll stop. So Kelly just literally stopping with me and saying, "No, you are doing great. It's okay to feel that," made me like, "Yeah, I am doing good. It's been a month and I'm still doing this. I'm doing great."
I used to dread waking up because there's so much to do. Just the anxiety of getting up and realizing that my day is nothing for me. I go to work, I take care of my child, I do these studies. I know these things are for me, but none of that involves me playing video games or reading or taking walks or going to a winery with my friends. All of this is just to keep us afloat.
But I can't believe I'm doing it. I know two months maybe sounds short for others, but two months successfully for me is so long, where I couldn't keep up something for a week. I can't believe I am this person that I didn't think I could be, someone who just actively makes better choices, honestly.
Individual results vary. Results depend on many factors, including engagement with the program.
Testimonials reflect the individual experiences of Embla members, shared with their permission and edited for length. Individual results vary. Medication is prescribed only by an independent licensed clinician when determined appropriate. Not all participants will qualify.