Women In Wellness: Nicole Starbuck On The Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support People’s Journey Towards Better Wellbeing
An Interview With Candice Georgiadis
Take a break from social media. Like the news, social media is rife with negativity. A social media detox will allow your mind to reset, not to mention allow you to spend more time on other things instead. If you can’t avoid using social media (for example, if it’s an essential part of your business), turn off your notifications and limit the amount of time you spend checking your channels. I personally only use social media for my business and restrict the amount of time I spend on it, which helps keep me sane.
As a part of my series about the women in wellness, I had the pleasure of interviewing Nicole Starbuck.
Nicole Starbuck is a quantum energy healer, spiritual mentor, and life coach empowering entrepreneurs to become the best version of themselves. She’s also the host of the Chronically Conscious podcast and author of Stress Size: How My Hunger for Control Almost Killed Me. Having overcome anxiety, depression, and chronic illness, Nicole is passionate about showing people how to shift from anxious to aligned so they too can stress less and achieve more.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to “get to know you” better. Can you share your “backstory” with us?
At the age of nine, I first discovered my intuitive abilities, but it took hitting rock bottom in my 20’s to step into my power and own my worth. Go to school, get good grades, have a job with great pay and excellent benefits, and everything will be fine, or so I thought. When I graduated from university and immediately secured a prestigious position as an assistant store manager at a retail store, I thought I was on my way to the top of the corporate ladder. Instead, I quickly hit rock bottom. Anxious, stressed out, and overworked, I started controlling every aspect of my life, from each calorie I consumed to every penny I spent. But as my dress size shrank, my stress size grew. I didn’t realize that the more tightly I tried to hold onto control, the more it spiraled away from me. It took waking up in an emergency room after a massive panic attack to realize how I’d allowed my desire for control to consume me.
Enough was enough, and I started tuning into my intuition, honoring my needs, and taking better care of myself. Embracing my spirituality empowered me to ditch my 9-to-5 after spending more than 15 years in traditional marketing and sales roles. In the process, I learned how to empower women to become successful leaders without sacrificing their self-care or their sanity. Today, I’m showing women worldwide how to tap into their intuition to create a life they love.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? What were the main lessons or takeaways from that story?
After quitting my job as an assistant store manager, I started working from home as a virtual assistant for Silicon Valley startups. The pay was decent, and it was convenient working from home, but I wanted something more. I remember driving home from the store one day, wishing something new would come along. The next day, I received an email from a previous colleague asking me to work for her. It was the Law of Attraction in action, and, ironically, she was a law of attraction coach! This opportunity enabled me to quit my other job and earn more money working fewer hours. The partnership also provided me with the training, tools, and resources I needed to later go into business for myself.
Can you share a story about the biggest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
When I started my business, I was terrified to go on camera, so I made a New Year’s resolution to start doing live videos on social media to overcome my fear. I’m a recovering perfectionist, and one of the first Facebook lives I did was about overcoming perfectionism. Ironically, I streamed the entire video in the wrong direction, so I appeared sideways the whole time! I didn’t realize my mistake until after the livestream. At first, I felt mortified, but then I laughed about it. It was funny the video about being perfect was imperfect. The experience taught me it’s okay to make mistakes and laugh at myself. After all, I’m only human.
Let’s jump to our main focus. When it comes to health and wellness, how is the work you are doing helping to make a bigger impact in the world?
Energy work has a powerful ripple effect. It transforms my clients and those around them. What makes quantum energy healing so powerful is the sheer speed at which changes can take effect. I’m a solution seeker, and as a coach and healer, I don’t simply point out the problems, but I help my clients identify the solutions. We uncover and treat the root cause, often a deeply buried childhood memory. Through guided meditation, I can help my clients peel back the layers of their subconscious minds and release their hidden emotions. As a result, my clients emerge from our sessions more closely aligned with their higher self, the best possible version of themselves. They then go out and shine their light and positively impact the world.
Can you share your top five “lifestyle tweaks” that you believe will help support people’s journey towards better wellbeing? Please give an example or story for each.
1. Don’t watch the news. What you focus on grows, and most media channels focus on what’s going wrong in the world. All of this negativity exacerbates or even causes stress and anxiety. For example, my parents and in-laws watch the news every day, and all they ever seem to talk about is what’s wrong with the world. If watching TV brings you down, then don’t watch it. You don’t have to listen to the news to be informed. If you feel the need to stay tuned into what’s happening, read the highlights, or set a time limit for how much media you consume each day or week. I don’t have cable TV and never watch the news, and I’m doing great.
2. Take a break from social media. Like the news, social media is rife with negativity. A social media detox will allow your mind to reset, not to mention allow you to spend more time on other things instead. If you can’t avoid using social media (for example, if it’s an essential part of your business), turn off your notifications and limit the amount of time you spend checking your channels. I personally only use social media for my business and restrict the amount of time I spend on it, which helps keep me sane.
3. Purge negative people. Unfriend, unfollow, or block anyone on social media who frequently complains or makes you feel bad about yourself. Likewise, distance yourself from anyone who isn’t encouraging, supportive, or motivating to you. If you can’t cut someone from your life altogether, establish healthy boundaries and spend less time with them. You become who you surround yourself with, so spend more time with people who inspire you. I only spend time with people who add value to my life, including my husband, mom, and a few close friends who are positive and uplifting.
4. Do grounding meditations and deep breathing exercises. Spend at least five minutes a day in “quiet time.” Get comfortable, close your eyes, and take deep breaths to calm your anxious mind and body. Visualize yourself connecting to the earth. Feel the positive energy entering your body with each inhalation and negative energy leaving your body with each exhalation. If you can’t seem to sit still to meditate, try stepping outside for a few minutes. Soak up the sun and walk barefoot in the grass for the same effect.
5. Get back in touch with nature. Spend at least 10–15 minutes a day outside. Go for a walk or hike, or do an activity outdoors. Bonus point if you can catch some rays, since sunlight promotes vitamin D production in the body, and vitamin D deficiency can mimic symptoms of depression. If the weather or your schedule makes getting outside a challenge, pet your dog or cat for a few minutes each day. If you don’t have any pets, show your neighbor’s pets some love. Petting animals can reduce stress and anxiety, plus it’s fun to do. I have two Pembroke Welsh Corgis who help keep me calm.
If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of wellness to the most amount of people, what would that be?
I want to raise the consciousness of the world. The more people learn how to tap into and trust their intuition, the more they align with their higher self (the best version of themselves), and the more peace, joy, and happiness they will experience. When you fill up your cup, you can pour into others.
What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why?
1. It’s okay to cry. I accidentally made my first coaching client cry during our first session. I knew coaching would be life-changing for my clients, but I didn’t expect these intense emotions, especially during the first session. I panicked. However, I’ve since realized crying is common in coaching sessions and can be such a cathartic release. It’s okay for coaches to cry, too! Sometimes the shifts are so powerful I find myself in tears.
2. You don’t have to have it all figured out. When I started my business, I felt overwhelmed by other coaches claiming to have the secret to success, and I fell for all sorts of marketing gimmicks. I can’t tell you how much money I wasted on courses and programs that didn’t work. But I kept buying into the pressure to perform because I thought if I didn’t complete the purchase, I wouldn’t have the answers I needed. The truth was I already had all of the information I needed. All I needed to do was tune into my intuition to access it.
3. Not everyone is going to agree with you. After several years, my family still doesn’t understand what I do, and they disagree with my use of spiritual tools like pendulums and tarot cards. However, I learned not to dim my light to make other people happy. I have to be who I am regardless of what other people think.
4. It’s not easy. Building a business takes time and energy. But, you can attract your soulmate clients with energy and excitement without burning yourself out. Doing what brings you joy is the purest form of success.
5. But it’s worth it. My mission in life is to become the best version of myself to empower others to do the same. Watching my clients step into their power and own their worth is unbelievably satisfying. It gives meaning to my life and makes all of the time and effort I’ve put into building my practice worth it.
Sustainability, veganism, mental health and environmental changes are big topics at the moment. Which one of these causes is dearest to you, and why?
Mental health is the cause closest to my heart because I know what it’s like to feel anxious and depressed. There were times when I wanted to end my life, but deep down, I believed my pain had a purpose. I knew I needed to keep going to help others overcome the same struggles. That’s why I became a quantum energy healer and spiritual mentor to empower people discover their soul’s purpose, shift from anxious to aligned, manifest their desires, and make their dreams come true.
What is the best way our readers can follow you online?
Website: https://www.nicolestarbuck.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicole.starbuck
Thank you for these fantastic insights!
Women In Wellness: Nicole Starbuck On The Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support People’s… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.