“I didn’t want to leave nursing. I wanted to expand on it.”

For several years, Skye Filtz, RN, BSN, IHP2, helped patients recover after surgery. Today, Skye continues working as a PACU nurse while operating her own private integrative health coaching practice. She treated acute pain, eased anxiety, and offered reassurance during vulnerable moments. Yet many patients remained on her mind after they left the recovery room. Their stories led her to consider health coaching for nurses and the possibility of supporting people earlier in their wellness journeys. In this blog, discover how Skye used her IHPI education to build upon her nursing foundation, serve clients in a new way, and create a deeper sense of purpose.

Caring for Patients When They Needed Her Most

Patients may enter the recovery room frightened, disoriented, or physically uncomfortable. A post-anesthesia care unit nurse must respond with clinical judgment, focused attention, and compassion.

For Skye, those first moments after surgery carried a responsibility she never took lightly. As she explained, “Surgery day is often one of the biggest days of someone's life, and I always loved being the person who could make them feel safe, comfortable, and cared for while they woke up.”

She valued relieving immediate discomfort, monitoring recovery, and providing reassurance when uncertainty felt overwhelming.

However, the procedures were not always what stayed with her.

Skye cared for patients after gastrointestinal procedures, hysterectomies, endometriosis surgeries, gallbladder removals, bowel resections, and other operations. Many described years of discomfort, frustration, and unanswered questions before reaching the operating room.

Some continued searching for answers after their procedures. Others had been told their results appeared normal despite ongoing concerns.

Skye began wondering what had happened before those patients reached surgery. She wanted to understand which patterns may have developed over time and whether additional support could have helped sooner.

Her respect for nursing never changed. Instead, those questions revealed another way she hoped to serve.

The Questions That Followed Her Beyond the PACU

Conventional medicine plays a critical role in emergencies, diagnosis, surgery, and acute care. Skye witnessed that value every day.

She also saw how little time fast-paced healthcare settings could leave for exploring the years leading up to a procedure. “It made me realize that while conventional medicine is amazing at diagnosing emergencies and treating acute conditions, it often doesn't have the time or framework to ask why those symptoms developed in the first place,” she said. “I wanted to understand that missing piece.”

Her search for that missing piece soon became personal.

Skye had experienced ovarian cysts and painful menstrual cramps. When birth control did not agree with her body, she began looking for other ways to support her health. At the same time, she and her husband were trying to conceive.

Her search led her to Dr. Stephen Cabral’s podcast, at-home functional lab testing, and a new understanding of how nutrition, stress, digestion, hormones, and lifestyle can influence one another. Instead of feeling that her body was working against her, Skye began exploring how she could better support it.

Based on what she learned, she began a gut rebalancing protocol designed to support digestion and address the imbalances revealed through testing.

After eight months of trying to conceive, she learned that she was pregnant with her daughter.

The news carried the joy and relief of a moment she and her husband had been hoping for. It also arrived as Skye was beginning to view her body with greater understanding, trust, and possibility.

“I can't say for certain that the protocol is the reason I became pregnant, but I truly believe that beginning to support my body and address those underlying imbalances gave it the environment it needed to function the way it was designed to,” she shared.

That experience changed the direction of her life. Her search for personal answers became a passion for helping others find answers and hope when they felt they had run out of both.

Why Health Coaching for Nurses Can Feel Like a Natural Next Step

Skye’s growing interest in integrative health did not weaken her connection to nursing. It showed her how much value her existing experience could bring to another form of support.

“Becoming an Integrative Health Practitioner allowed me to combine the clinical knowledge I already had with a root-cause approach so I could help people before they reached the point of needing more medications or surgery whenever appropriate,” she said.

Her nursing career had taught her how to remain calm, communicate clearly, and establish trust quickly. She understood physiology, laboratory terminology, patient concerns, and clinical environments.

She also wanted to understand how daily habits, environmental influences, and long-term patterns could shape how someone feels.

For Skye, the Integrative Health Practitioner Institute became the bridge between her nursing education and the broader perspective she wanted to develop.

Why Skye Chose IHPI

Skye evaluated her options through the lens of someone accustomed to applying knowledge in real situations. She needed an educational pathway that could connect deeper wellness concepts with practical client support.

“I wanted an education that was practical and evidence-informed, not just theory,” she explained.

Through the IHP Level 1 Health Coaching Certification, students learn foundational wellness principles using Dr. Cabral’s DESTRESS Protocol™. The framework covers diet, exercise, stress reduction, toxin removal, rest, emotional balance, supplementation, and success mindset.

Students also develop skills for educating, guiding, and supporting clients within the scope of an IHP Health Coach.

Skye continued into the IHP Level 2 Health Coaching Certification, where she expanded her knowledge of at-home functional lab testing, common wellness imbalances, and personalized wellness protocols.

Her clinical education and IHPI training soon began answering different parts of the same question. Skye describes the distinction clearly: “Nursing taught me how the body works. IHPI taught me why it stops working optimally.”

That shift changed more than her professional knowledge. It changed how she listened.

Learning to Slow Down and See the Larger Pattern

The PACU requires nurses to act quickly. They monitor vital signs, assess pain, respond to complications, and help patients recover safely.

Health coaching gave Skye room to examine the history surrounding the immediate concern. She described “the biggest shift” as “learning to slow down and listen differently.”

She began considering when a concern started, what had changed around that time, and how nutrition, stress, sleep, digestion, movement, or environmental factors might connect.

This approach did not replace medical care. It gave Skye another blueprint for client education and wellness support.

Her questions now extended beyond what was happening that day. “Integrative health taught me to zoom out,” she said. “Instead of asking, ‘How do we manage this symptom today?’ I'm asking, ‘What patterns have been building over the last five or ten years that brought you here?’”

Nurses often hear details that may not appear in a diagnosis or discharge summary. They learn what patients fear, what they have already tried, and how their concerns affect everyday life.

Integrative health education helped Skye organize those observations within a whole-person wellness framework.

Symptoms Became the Beginning of the Conversation

Years of acute-care nursing had trained Skye to recognize symptoms and respond when someone needed immediate help. Her IHPI education introduced another question: What might those symptoms be communicating?

For Skye, “one of the biggest mindset shifts was realizing that symptoms aren't the enemy. They're information.”

Symptoms can signal that medical evaluation is needed. They can also encourage someone to notice patterns, ask informed questions, and seek qualified support.

As an IHP Health Coach, Skye began approaching wellness concerns with curiosity. She saw the body as a connected system rather than a collection of unrelated parts.

Her additional education also influenced some of her PACU conversations. When appropriate, she could share simple information about protein intake, nutrition, and foundational recovery habits.

Patients often appreciated learning how everyday choices could support the recovery process.

From Several Hours of Care to Several Months of Support

A PACU relationship may last only a few hours, even when the experience leaves a lasting impression on both the nurse and patient.

Health coaching allowed Skye to remain beside someone through a much longer process. “I still love being a nurse, but now I also have the opportunity to walk alongside people for months instead of caring for them for just a few hours,” she said.

That extended time allows a coach to help clients notice patterns, practice new habits, and become more confident in their wellness decisions.

Skye can explain foundational concepts, help clients remain consistent with their wellness protocols, and provide accountability as their needs evolve.

One client came to her after years of digestive discomfort. Meals often led to stomach pain, and the client had already visited several providers without finding lasting support. Skye used at-home functional lab testing and her IHPI methodology to develop a personalized wellness plan. The plan focused on nutrition, stress support, targeted supplementation, and gut-focused wellness practices.

Over time, the client reported better digestion, increased energy, and greater confidence around food. She also felt that someone had considered her full experience rather than isolating one symptom. The client’s progress reaffirmed what Skye values most about her work. As she explained, “Helping people understand why they're experiencing symptoms, rather than simply helping them manage those symptoms, is the most rewarding part of what I do.”

Health Coaching for Nurses Can Create New Career Possibilities

Not every nurse who completes IHPI training will follow the same path.

Some may use the education to support themselves or their families. Others may bring broader wellness conversations into an existing role. Some nurses may choose to build private health coaching practices.

Skye began by helping friends and family, sharing educational content online, and working with one client at a time. As her private practice grew, Skye developed structured coaching programs centered around at-home functional lab testing and personalized wellness plans.

Building a business introduced challenges that her clinical background had not prepared her to solve.

Skye became stuck while trying to create the perfect website and coaching packages. She also needed systems for payment processing, email automations, client notes, and program reminders.

PracticeBuilt, an all-in-one business-building platform for IHP Health Coaches, helped her organize those areas and move forward. “Instead of spending my time figuring out technology, I get to spend it serving clients,” she said. “It gave me the momentum I needed to actually start my business.”

A practice can start with one client, one educational post, or one meaningful conversation. Experience can strengthen confidence, clarify services, and reveal which clients a practitioner feels most called to support.

Skye’s practice grew because she chose to begin before every detail felt perfect.

What Skye Wants Other Nurses to Know

Healthcare professionals may feel drawn toward integrative health while remaining uncertain about taking the next step.

Some worry that pursuing another certification could mean turning away from their original profession. Skye’s experience showed her that the two paths could strengthen each other.

“I'd tell them that becoming an Integrative Health Practitioner doesn't mean walking away from nursing,” she said. “It means adding another layer to your toolbox.”

Nurses already know how to listen carefully, explain complex information, and help people feel safe. They also understand how health concerns can affect families, careers, confidence, and quality of life.

IHPI can help them use those strengths within a structured integrative wellness framework.

Skye believes nurses may already possess more of the foundation than they realize. “Your nursing experience is incredibly valuable,” she said. “IHPI simply helps you ask different questions and see connections you may not have been taught before.”

Even nurses who never open private practices may view health differently after completing the certifications. They may better understand how foundational habits work together and make more informed choices for themselves and their families.

They may also reconnect with the purpose that first led them into healthcare.

Your Experience Can Become Part of What Sets You Apart

Skye did not become an IHP Health Coach by erasing the nurse she had been.

She carried her clinical knowledge, compassion, and ability to comfort people into a new form of client support. IHPI gave her a framework for foundational wellness and the opportunity to walk beside clients over a longer period.

Today, she can support someone through the first hours after surgery. She can also guide a client through months of wellness education, habit change, and accountability.

A practitioner may bring nursing, fitness, education, caregiving, business, or a personal wellness journey into their work. Those experiences can shape how they communicate, whom they serve, and why clients feel understood.

A new direction does not require abandoning everything that came before it. Sometimes, it gives earlier experiences a deeper purpose.

When Skye reflects on her own journey, she returns to the curiosity that first led her to search beyond the answers she had received. “Looking back, I wish someone had told me to stay curious because the answers were out there,” she said.

That curiosity changed her health, her career, and the way she serves others.

Schedule a call with an Enrollment Advisor to explore how the Health Coaching Certifications at the Integrative Health Practitioner Institute can help you build upon your nursing experience and expand your impact.

You can also connect with Skye on Instagram at @healthwithskye to follow her work, learn from her wellness education, and see how she continues combining nursing with integrative health.

Then, continue exploring the approach that changed how Skye viewed health. Read Root-Cause Health Coaching: How IHPI Trains Practitioners to Look Deeper to discover how IHPI helps students connect lifestyle patterns, ask more meaningful questions, and support the whole person.