PHONE COACHING: I have known Dr. Bonnie Howell since March of 2014, when I began working with her as a long-distance life coach. I have struggled with depression for most of my life and have seen countless counselors and therapists. I have made innumerable office visits. After working with another textbook counselor locally who offered the same tired advice I had heard a thousand times before, I reached out to Dr. Howell, hoping for something different.

I had never been counseled over the phone before. I absolutely adored it. In the privacy of my own home, I felt much more relaxed than in an office setting. I felt I could finally just talk, as I didn’t see a judgmental figure sitting opposite me, pen and paper in hand. I often put my phone on speaker so I could take notes from our sessions. No need to sit in a waiting room, worried about who might see me in the lobby. No need to waste time shuttling back and forth to an office. After a session, I am usually exhausted, mentally and physically, and I didn’t have to worry about driving back to work or rushing home. I could hang up the phone at the end of a session and marinate on the ideas we had discussed.

And the ideas we discussed were incredibly helpful. Dr. Howell is much more than just a sounding board, as most counselors and therapists tend to be. I turned to her when I was completely out of ideas on how to deal with my depression. Knowing this, she recommended several techniques to help me cope. She listened to my fears, frustrations, and worries that I had carried for years. She got to know me, how I thought and operated, what techniques I had tried and what had worked or not worked in the past. Using this data - and never having seen my face - she successfully coached me on how to put several bad experiences behind me. I have never had this kind of success in a clinical setting.

The next step in our partnership was re-building my sense of self. I had no idea where to begin, but Dr. Howell was full of energy, kindness, and caring, and pitched several ideas, possible plans, and ventures. I never felt pressured to make a decision: she had genuinely excellent ideas from a vast range of experiences. Not every idea we tried came to fruition, but I felt we were a team working in tandem. When there were setbacks, she was there to guide me through. When times were rough, she asked that I check in, to be sure I was safe. Again, I have never developed such a relationship before with someone who was helping me with so private a matter.

In closing, I would strongly recommend Dr. Howell as a life-coach, and sincerely endorse her counseling by phone. Using the phone as our main point of contact stripped away all the hassles of an office visit (scheduling, travel time, waiting room time, etc) and let every session be filled with real work. When you need to work on yourself, every minute counts.

J.D. Coached by Phone