Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Cunningham.
Hi Sarah, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My path has never been a straight line, but looking back, there has always been a common thread: helping people find their way back to themselves.
I began my career nearly twenty years ago as a psychotherapist in Chicago, working primarily with children, teens, and families. Over time, I found myself increasingly drawn to the ways emotional well-being, physical health, relationships, and lifestyle all intersect. Around the same time, I deepened my own yoga practice and eventually became a certified yoga instructor, which opened an entirely new dimension in my understanding of healing and personal growth.
Several years ago, I made the decision to leave Chicago and return to Northern Michigan, where I grew up. Like many major life transitions, it was both exciting and uncertain. I rebuilt my practice from the ground up and began creating a model of care that reflected what I had learned over the years, that people rarely struggle in just one area of life. Our mental, physical, emotional, and relational health are deeply connected.
Today, through my practice, Whole Life Wellness, I work primarily with adults, young adults, and professionals navigating stress, burnout, life transitions, relationship challenges, and questions of identity and purpose. My approach blends traditional psychotherapy with mindfulness, nervous system regulation, breathwork, and mind-body awareness. In addition to individual therapy, I teach yoga and wellness classes, lead community workshops, create online educational programs, and provide training for organizations and first responders.
What continues to inspire me most is witnessing people reconnect with parts of themselves they may have lost touch with along the way. So many of us spend years caring for others, meeting expectations, or simply surviving difficult seasons. My work is about helping people pause, listen inward, and build lives that feel more aligned, intentional, and sustainable.
Like most entrepreneurs, I’ve faced my share of challenges; starting over in a new community, growing a business, navigating uncertainty, and balancing multiple passions. But each challenge has reinforced the same lesson: meaningful growth rarely happens in our comfort zones.
Today, I feel incredibly grateful to do work that allows me to support others while remaining deeply connected to my own values of wellness, community, authenticity, and lifelong learning. I still see my work as evolving, and that’s part of what makes the journey so rewarding.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Definitely not. Like most people who build something meaningful, I’ve experienced plenty of setbacks, uncertainty, and moments when I questioned whether I was on the right path.
One of the biggest challenges was leaving behind an established professional network and successful practice in Chicago to start over in Northern Michigan. While returning home was the right decision, rebuilding a business and reputation in a new chapter of life required patience, humility, and a willingness to trust the process when results weren’t immediate.
As a business owner, I’ve also learned that being skilled at your profession and running a business are two very different things. There have been seasons of learning how to market myself, create sustainable systems, navigate financial uncertainty, and step outside of my comfort zone to share my work more publicly.
More recently, I’ve experienced a series of personal challenges that reinforced many of the lessons I teach. Within a relatively short period of time, I navigated a significant health diagnosis, the end of an important relationship, extensive flooding in my home, and several other unexpected life stressors. While I certainly wouldn’t have chosen those experiences, they reminded me that resilience isn’t about avoiding difficulty, it’s about learning how to meet difficulty without losing yourself.
Those experiences deepened my understanding of what so many of my clients face every day. Life rarely unfolds according to plan. We all encounter seasons of grief, uncertainty, change, and disappointment. The challenge isn’t eliminating those experiences; it’s learning how to stay connected to ourselves while moving through them.
Looking back, I can honestly say that many of the struggles I resisted most became some of my greatest teachers. They shaped not only who I am as a person, but also the way I show up in my work. Today, I bring a deeper level of empathy, perspective, and authenticity because I’ve had to practice many of the same tools and principles I share with others.
As you know, we’re big fans of Whole Life Wellness. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Whole Life Wellness was built on a simple belief: people are more than a diagnosis, a symptom, or a problem to be solved.
As a licensed clinical social worker, holistic psychotherapist, and yoga instructor, I help people navigate stress, anxiety, life transitions, relationship challenges, burnout, grief, and the many seasons of change that are part of being human. While traditional psychotherapy is the foundation of my work, my approach extends beyond talk therapy alone. I integrate mindfulness, nervous system regulation, breathwork, mind-body awareness, and practical tools that help clients create meaningful change in their daily lives.
I work primarily with adults and young adults who are often highly capable, caring, and successful on the outside, but internally feel overwhelmed, disconnected from themselves, or unsure how to move forward. Many of my clients have spent years taking care of others, meeting expectations, and pushing through difficult circumstances. Together, we work to strengthen self-awareness, build resilience, improve communication and boundaries, and reconnect with what matters most to them.
What sets Whole Life Wellness apart is the integration of mental, physical, emotional, and relational well-being. Rather than focusing on a single symptom or challenge, I help people understand the larger patterns influencing their lives. My goal is not simply to help someone feel better temporarily, but to help them build a deeper relationship with themselves that supports lasting well-being.
In addition to individual psychotherapy, I offer wellness workshops, corporate trainings, community classes, speaking engagements, online educational programs, and group experiences focused on topics such as nervous system regulation, stress management, relationships, communication, and personal growth.
The aspect of the brand I am most proud of is that it has remained deeply aligned with my values. In a world that often encourages people to move faster, do more, and push harder, Whole Life Wellness creates space for reflection, self-awareness, and intentional living. Whether someone attends a yoga class, participates in a workshop, enrolls in a course, or sits across from me in a therapy session, my hope is that they leave feeling more connected to themselves and more equipped to navigate life’s challenges with clarity and confidence.
If there is one thing I would want readers to know, it’s that wellness is not about perfection. It’s about learning to listen to yourself, trust yourself, and return to yourself again and again, especially during life’s most challenging moments.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
I’m a lifelong learner, so I regularly find myself reading, listening, or exploring something that helps me grow personally and professionally.
A few voices I return to often are Mel Robbins, Jay Shetty, Tim Ferriss, and Dan Harris. While each approaches personal growth from a different perspective, they all share a common theme that resonates with me: becoming more intentional about how we live, think, and show up in the world. I appreciate resources that blend practical tools with deeper self-reflection, which is very much aligned with the work I do with clients.
Books have also been an important part of my journey. I tend to gravitate toward topics related to psychology, mindfulness, human behavior, relationships, resilience, and personal growth. I’m particularly drawn to authors who bridge science and lived experience in a way that is both accessible and meaningful.
Beyond books and podcasts, some of my most valuable resources aren’t digital at all. Time in nature, movement, yoga, meaningful conversations, and periods of quiet reflection often provide the greatest clarity and inspiration. In many ways, those practices help me stay grounded so I can show up fully for both my clients and myself.
Pricing:
- Online sessions: $225
- In-person sessions: $250
- Courses: Range $50 – $400
- Yoga classes: $25
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sarahcwellness.com
- Instagram: sarahcwellness
- Facebook: Sarah Cunningham
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-cunningham-lcsw-cyt-27a38214
