Xenia is a Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach and Autoimmune Paleo (AIP) Coach in the making. Having been faced with multiple autoimmune conditions in her mid-20s, Xenia took the radical decision to turn her back on a successful and promising career in Finance, to fully focus her time on recovery. Unsatisfied with conventional medical treatment that relies on medication as the sole tool to treat these complex diseases, she has since dedicated her life to helping women with autoimmune conditions heal their bodies through a natural and holistic Functional Medicine approach. She is the founder of Xenia Brandstetter Health Coaching, where she offers transformational coaching programs and online support to others on their healing journey, so they can start feeling like themselves again and lead the life they want.
Xenia Brandstetter, Autoimmune Health Coach
Introduce yourself! Please tell us about you and your life, so we can get to know you better.
Hi! My name is Xenia Brandstetter. I am a Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach and soon-to-be Autoimmune Paleo (AIP) Certified Coach.
When I was diagnosed with multiple autoimmune conditions in my mid-twenties, my life fell apart and it took me years to find my way back to myself and to health. I needed time to grieve for the life I always thought I would have, but that suddenly felt out of reach. I was terrified because I thought everything would change, and it did – but for the better. Now, my goal is to make this journey easier for everyone who is going through the same.
Less than five years later, I now feel as good as I have not felt even long before I got sick. I recently moved to Cyprus, a sunny island in the Mediterranean, which allows me every day to walk by the beach, watch the sunset from my terrace, cultivate my newfound passion for pottery, and always have time for cuddles with my cat Milo. Above all, I am beyond grateful that I get to work with amazing women around the world who also want to step up and take ownership of their health. What is your business name and how do you help your clients?
At Xenia Brandstetter Health Coaching, I work with women with autoimmune conditions who are ready to take responsibility for their health, and who are prepared to do whatever it takes to heal and finally feel like themselves again. I found that many people want to be actively involved in their health instead of sitting back and letting matters unfold. Every decision we take can have an impact on our health, and being aware of this connection is very powerful.
My goal for my clients is for them to no longer feel like victims of their disease. I do not want them to become warriors because constantly fighting a part of ourselves is exhausting and unhealthy. Instead, I want to empower them to become the hero of their own story, to work with their disease instead of against it, and to always strive for a healthier future. What kind of audience do you target your business towards?
Due to my background, I love working with ambitious and career-driven women who are struggling to balance being successful at their job while at the same time prioritizing health and healing. Before making the switch to become a health coach, I used to work in a large financial corporation and I know the pressure to perform in the corporate world all too well. This working environment is especially challenging for women, who often feel that they cannot show weakness and must work twice as hard to be taken seriously. Naturally, struggling with an autoimmune condition can lead to a career crisis of some sort because on the one hand, we do not want to let our co-workers down and on the other hand, we want to make the best decision when it comes to our health.
I also love working with women who have dealt with disordered eating in the past and who seem to have been forgotten in the established diet recommendations for people with autoimmune conditions. For many of us, losing weight while following a restrictive diet to support our immune system is not a desired outcome and may even be a dangerous risk. This is especially true for conditions that are directly related to food, such as celiac disease or diabetes, but also those impacting the gastrointestinal systems, such as Crohn’s or ulcerative colitis. This is a matter very close to my heart because it has been one of my biggest struggles in the past, and I am very grateful that I get to support others in similar situations so they do not have to do it alone. What are your current goals for your business?
I am currently putting together a structured private coaching program I am very excited about which will launch later this year. In Healing Heroes, clients will have the opportunity to work with me along the core pillars of health: body, mind, and spirit. The program will provide them with a guided and fully supported approach to healing, and they will receive all the tools they need to finally start feeling like themselves again. My goal for them is to feel empowered because they understand that their diagnosis does not sentence them to a lifetime of feeling like the best part of their life is already behind them. Instead, they will take the first steps towards a healthier future by starting to implement big lifestyle changes. At the end of the program, they will feel excited about the future because they are clear on their goal of putting themselves and their health first and gaining back control over their life. Who inspires you to be the best that you can be?
I draw inspiration from the many women and men who came before me and paved the way to healing autoimmune diseases with their extensive research. Surrounding myself with stories from people who have already achieved what I am striving for always helps me when I feel demotivated. There is so much literature available and immersing myself in books on healing has completely shifted my belief from “it’s not possible” to “it is 100% possible” and it is what always keeps me going when I hit a roadblock. The vast majority of people with autoimmune diseases do not get better and heal which is extremely discouraging, so we have to look for the exceptions to the rule and make those our new norm. Tell us about your greatest career achievement so far.
My greatest career achievement so far was giving up the career I had worked for all my life to find out what my purpose was. It was the hardest decision I ever had to take and I have not regretted it once. I am convinced that it is possible for people to perform better than ever at their job after being diagnosed if that is their choice, but it was not mine. I spent a lot of time after my diagnosis rethinking my life, and I discovered that my priorities were not in alignment with my true values. For me, this changed everything starting from the place where I live, to the job I have, to the people that are in my life. Tell us about a pivotal moment in your life that brought you to where you are today.
When I was first diagnosed with an autoimmune condition, my most important question to the doctor was: “What can I do to support my body in healing?” It did not make sense to me that my body was suddenly broken, randomly attacked itself, and would never be able to heal again. I was told that the only thing I can do is take my pills.
Conventional medical treatment has done a lot for me and I am grateful to have access to all the medication I need, but if I had listened to my doctor and believed that my health was out of my hands from this point forward, I would not be where I am today. Just because there is no cure for autoimmune disease does not mean we cannot heal. I made it my mission to understand how our diseases can be put in remission, to do whatever it takes to heal and to share everything I know with anyone asking for help.
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