Today we’d like to introduce you to Mary Virginia Coffman
Hi Mary Virginia, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
One thing I’d like to reflect is that there’s plenty of time to start something completely new in midlife. My evolution shows how a passionate interest in a topic can be parlayed into a meaningful career.
I certainly didn’t start out as a scientist! In college I was an English major at Princeton, then I earned a Master of Social Work at the University of Michigan. After graduation I worked in the social work office of Children’s Hospital in New Orleans, then in the Youth-at-Risk office of the National Headquarters of the American Red Cross in Washington, D.C. After marrying and having kids, I took leadership roles as a community volunteer.
Nutrition became important to me when my children were babies. I realized that what I fed them literally would inform how their bodies grew and how their brains developed. Later one of my kids developed chronic sinus infections secondary to having H1N1. As we approached a year of monthly antibiotics, I felt strongly that there had to be another way to her recovery. I began researching, tweaked her food a bit, and found the right probiotic. Once we did that, her little body regained the ability to fight the infection itself and she no longer needed antibiotics. What a relief!
By then I had really caught the bug. I dug more deeply into the research about how nutrition can inform health. Mental health has been a long time interest of mine, and much of my study focused there. Quickly wanting more than I could find out on my own, I decided to earn a Master of Science in Nutrition and Integrative Health. Organic Chemistry, Biology, and Anatomy and Physiology really stretched me, but I truly discovered my inner scientist.! The mechanisms and influence of nutrients on the body is unceasingly fascinating to me.
After graduation I opened Coffman Integrative Nutrition to practice as a clinical integrative nutritionist. I’ve loved attending conferences and networking in my field, and my clients are the best! This healing work brings me so much joy.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Wanting to be able to keep my own schedule has meant I have chosen not to work at a group practice. I really thrive working in community, and I miss that from my prior jobs.
Running and marketing a business while keeping up with nutrition, lifestyle, and mental health research, meeting with clients, continuing education, conferences, writing, and assuring good record keeping really keeps me hopping! My days are full, and I often feel way behind. This is partially a side effect of starting a new career in midlife where I have other patterns and relationships well established. My husband and many of my friends have begun to have more flexibility with their time right as I committed myself to my profession. My mom is elderly and I help care for her. I often feel pulled in many directions because I want to give everyone my best.
All of this is made a bit harder by having the high distractibility of ADHD! Timers, mapping/scheduling my time, lists, and routine all help keep me on track. Addressing the symptoms of ADHD for clients has given me a lot of tools to use for myself!
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Coffman Integrative Nutrition?
I work with adults 18 and older with a variety of health conditions, primarily digestive health issues, anxiety, depression, ADHD, cardiovascular disease risks, and blood sugar imbalances. I offer both/either clinical nutrition or health and wellness coaching as preferred by my client.
Along with food, supplements, and medical nutrition therapy, my clinical practice includes helping clients establish stress resilience, nervous system regulation, sleep hygiene, movement, and other health promoting lifestyle practices. All of these are critical to overall success in re-establishing health and overall wellbeing. I provide nutrigenetics/nutrigenomics (3X4 Genetics) and behavior change coaching, and I am a sought after community speaker. Please read my wide-ranging and informative newsletter called Inner Workings, which can be found on my website!
I am especially proud that my clients say that they feel vastly better than they did when they were just working with doctors on their health condition. I see the whole, beautiful, capable human being, not just a set of walking symptoms. I certainly help my clients with clinical interventions and education. However, our work together allows them to identify and tap into their own values, supports, life experiences, and self-knowledge to establish their own unique path to authentic health. They feel encouraged, able, confident, and effective as they “choose toward” health instead of running away from being ill. Working with my clients is the profound honor of my life. They are so wonderful!
It’s important to understand that not all who offer nutrition services have the required depth of education or knowledge. I completed the rigorous requirements for the Certified Nutrition Specialist designation (MS in Nutrition, 1000 hours of supervised practice, and pass a national board exam). Recently I trained with Nested as a Health and Wellness Coach and plan to sit for the NBHWC board exam in the fall.
Regarding clinical nutrition, Georgia law only allows those with an MS or higher degree in nutrition to practice as a Nutritionist and use that title. I am licensed in Florida, Washington, DC, and Maryland. If I am not licensed in a state that requires one for clinical nutrition, I can still practice health and wellness coaching.
Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
Laughing so hard with my friend Lee that tears fell from my eyes and my stomach hurt! And then laughing more! Not a day passed for years that this didn’t happen. We shared and still share everything, and she is my dear friend to this day.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.coffmanintegrativenutrition.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coffmanintegrativenutrition/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CoffmanIntegrativeNutrition/
Image Credits
American Nutrition Association
Mary Virginia Coffman
Heidi Schweers
Hilary Rose
