Hello!  I'm Michelle Porter

My path to this work began in an unexpected place: IT business analysis. For years, I helped people work better within their systems—but what I loved most was asking the questions that shifted how people saw their challenges. I noticed that when given space to share, people had incredible insights to offer. Everyone had a story, and often a few words of encouragement helped them see possibilities they'd missed. I was fascinated by patterns and connections, by the gap between what systems demanded and what people actually needed.​​

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​Alongside this work, I was navigating my own chronic back pain, exploring every healing approach I could find—from conventional medicine to holistic alternatives. Through many disappointments when hoped-for solutions didn't work, I learned something that would shape everything: each person's path is genuinely unique. What works beautifully for one person might not work for another. I experienced firsthand what it feels like to be dismissed—like when a physical therapist told me I'd just have to "deal with" never biking or gardening again, rather than exploring what might actually help. I learned to trust my own intuition while remaining open to wisdom from many sources.

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The turning point came while supporting my mother through end-of-life care. Suddenly I was scattered across fundamentally different ways of being—employee managing demanding work, healthcare advocate making critical decisions for my mother, daughter showing up for daily visits, partner trying to stay emotionally present, and person trying to maintain my own household and life. I was so fragmented I could barely remember who I actually was beneath all the roles. Each day felt like performing a series of parts, and somewhere in the switching, I'd completely lost myself. I couldn't exercise, manage stress, or eat well—all things I knew could prevent my own health crisis. And here I was, supporting my mother through hers. I realized that wellness optimization couldn't help me. I didn't need better time management or more self-care tips—I needed to be seen and heard by someone open and curious, someone willing to help me find a path forward that actually fit my life. When I couldn't find that kind of support, I realized I wanted to become the guide I wished I'd had.

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This realization led me to leave IT and earn my Master's in Integrative Health and Wellbeing Coaching from the University of Minnesota. Today, I draw on both my analytical lens and deep empathy to help others take charge of their own healing—not by following trends or being told what to do, but by discovering what actually works for them. When someone rediscovers their wholeness—when they light up with possibility they thought was lost—everything shifts. Not just for them, but for everyone they touch. That transformation, that bettering of their nature—that's what makes this work matter.​

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