Stress affects everything – shaping how you think, sleep, work, relate, and function day-to-day. When stress goes unmanaged, it often shows up as anxiety, burnout, exhaustion, chronic health symptoms, or a constant sense of being “on edge.”
I help individuals and organizations learn practical, science-based strategies to manage stress, build resilience, and create healthier habits that last.
Stress Management Coaching & Resilience Training
- Feel less overwhelmed.
- Regain control of your health and energy.
- Build resilience habits that work in real life.
Interested? Let’s chat.
Consultations are free. No pressure. Just support.
My Work
Working On Calm began as a personal exploration of stress and anxiety, evolving into a professional practice grounded in psychology, integrative health, and behavior change.
Like many of my clients, I reached a point where stress, illness, and competing demands became unsustainable. I didn’t need more wellness or self-care advice. I needed realistic strategies that worked in real life. By starting small and focusing on habit change, I rebuilt my health and sense of calm in a way that fit a busy family and professional life.
Today, I bring that same practical, grounded approach to my work with clients.
“I use my background in psychology, integrative health, and behavior change to help people who are stressed, overwhelmed, or burned out make simple, evidence-based changes that build resilience.”
Melissa Lewis-Duarte, Ph.D., NBC-HWC
Who I Work With
I work with:
- Individuals experiencing chronic stress, overwhelm, burnout, or stress-related health concerns
- Patients referred by medical providers who need support implementing stress-management strategies between visits
- Organizations and teams looking to reduce burnout risk and build practical resilience skills
Whether you’re navigating personal stress or supporting others in high-pressure environments, my work focuses on helping people move from knowing what to do to actually changing how they live.
One-on-One Coaching
Feeling stressed, burned out, or stuck?
Let’s work on it!
As a Nationally Board-Certified Health & Wellness Coach, I partner with clients to:
- Clarify priorities and values
- Set meaningful, realistic goals
- Develop stress-management strategies that fit real life
- Build habits that support long-term health and resilience
Click to book your FREE consultation!
Workshops & Retreats in Scottsdale, AZ
Stress Management & Burnout Prevention
I design and facilitate targeted workshops for organizations, healthcare teams, and community groups. Sessions are practical, interactive, and tailored to the realities of high-pressure environments.
This is skill-based stress management education with credible tools employees can use right away to build resilience in real work conditions.
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Take Five Framework
My work is grounded in Take Five, a simple, proprietary, evidence-based framework designed to help people manage stress and build resilience through small habit changes. The framework is informed by years of research, personal experience, and extensive use with coaching clients.
Rather than treating stress as a single problem to solve, Take Five recognizes that stress shows up across multiple areas of life. Sustainable change happens when these areas are addressed together, in a way that fits real people with complex responsibilities.
The Take Five framework focuses on five interconnected domains:
Physical: Regulating the stress response through breathwork, the five senses, and foundational health habits like sleep, movement, and nutrition
Cognitive: Changing unhelpful thought patterns that interfere with focus, motivation, and self-talk
Emotional: Learning to respond intentionally instead of reacting by developing awareness, self-regulation, and the ability to improve moods
Purposeful: Feeling fulfilled through connection, time in nature, and activities that bring a sense of engagement and joy
Organizational: Prioritizing what’s most important by defining personal mission and values, managing time, and changing behaviors
Each domain offers practical, five-minute strategies that can be integrated into everyday life, without overhauling your schedule or adding more to your plate.
Small Shifts, Real Impact
For most people, this isn’t a knowledge issue – it’s a habit issue. My clients need help turning insight into action. Coaching offers that level of support and accountability. Stress management and resilience are built through consistent, intentional behavior change, not perfection.
My approach emphasizes:
- Starting where you are
- Identifying what will make the biggest difference now
- Practicing small, repeatable shifts that build momentum over time
These small changes compound. Over time, they improve how you feel, how you cope with stress, and how you function at work and at home.
Click to book your FREE consultation!
FAQ
What is Health & Wellness Coaching?
Health & wellness coaching is a collaborative, goal-focused process that helps people manage stress, improve well-being, and build healthier habits through sustainable behavior change.
Rather than diagnosing or treating medical or mental health conditions, coaching focuses on the here and now – supporting clients as they clarify priorities, set realistic goals, and implement practical strategies that fit their lives.
What do you work on in coaching?
Clients often work on goals related to stress management, sleep, energy, boundaries, routines, emotional regulation, and sustaining healthy habits over time. While goals vary, the common thread is learning skills that reduce overwhelm, improve daily functioning, and support long-term resilience.
What does coaching entail?
Early coaching sessions focus on clarifying what’s driving your desire for change, identifying current sources of stress, and setting priorities and short-term, realistic goals.
Ongoing sessions typically occur every 2–4 weeks and are used to:
- Review progress and reflect on what’s working (and what isn’t)
- Strengthen awareness around stress patterns, habits, and responses
- Adjust goals and action steps as life changes
- Reinforce accountability and build confidence through small wins
Coaching is practical and forward-focused. Rather than prescribing solutions, I help you experiment with manageable strategies, learn from the process, and gradually build habits that fit your life and support long-term well-being.
How is coaching different from therapy or medical care?
Coaching focuses on the present and future, not diagnosing or treating mental health conditions. While medical providers often advise what to do, coaching supports how to implement those changes so they become habits. Coaching complements healthcare by supporting motivation, goal-setting, and behavior change between medical appointments.
Individuals experiencing active mental health crises, untreated trauma, or conditions requiring clinical care should work with an appropriate licensed healthcare provider alongside or instead of coaching.
Who should consider coaching?
My coaching clients are professionals, caregivers, leaders, or high-responsibility adults who are managing demanding lives alongside health concerns, stress symptoms, or competing responsibilities. They often appear to be doing “fine” on the outside, but feel stretched thin on the inside.
Clients are intelligent, capable, and self-aware, but overwhelmed by the complexity of their lives and frustrated by generic or surface-level advice that doesn’t stick. Coaching works best when clients are curious, open to reflection, and willing to practice small changes between sessions.
Coaching may be especially helpful if you are experiencing:
- Chronic stress or mental overload
- A sense of always being “on” with little time to recover
- Difficulty sustaining healthy habits, even when you know what to do
- Growing concern that your current pace or lifestyle isn’t sustainable
You might find yourself thinking:
- “I should be handling this better.”
- “I don’t need therapy, but I do need help.”
- “I know what to do, but I can’t make it stick.”
- “I want to feel calmer and more balanced without blowing up my life.”
- “I want skills and strategies, not just another prescription.”
Coaching is designed for people who want practical, science-based tools, structure and accountability, and sustainable change that fits real life. The focus is on reducing stress, building resilience, and developing skills without shame, extremes, or overwhelm.
Coaching is not a good fit for everyone.
This work is not designed for people who are looking for a quick fix without practice, expect someone else to “fix” them, or want motivation without making behavioral changes. It is also not a substitute for therapy or trauma processing. Coaching works best for individuals who are willing to actively engage in the process, experiment with new strategies, and take responsibility for applying what they learn between sessions.
If you’re looking for support that helps you feel calmer, more capable, and more grounded while continuing to meet the responsibilities of your life, coaching may be a good next step.
Click to book your FREE consultation!
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