Michael Barnes’ Path from Addiction to Coaching Success

In a world where many people struggle to find their purpose, Michael Barnes has pursued his passion against all odds. From battling substance abuse and crippling anxiety to becoming a confident health and life coach, Michael’s experience with Health Coach Institute has not only changed his own life but has empowered him to change the lives of others.

Finding His Way to Health Coach Institute

Michael’s path to becoming a health and life coach wasn’t straightforward. After struggling with substance abuse for years, he found himself in a cycle of gaining and losing jobs, unable to break free from his addiction.

“That last day of drinking was rough. I ended up in psychosis and spent almost two days in the hospital going through withdrawals,” he explained. “After getting out, I found this recovery community that changed everything. Being around my recovery family, people that loved me unconditionally and believed in my potential, helped me love myself again.”

This turning point sparked a journey of self-improvement that would eventually lead him to Health Coach Institute. Michael began challenging himself in ways he never thought possible – learning to swim at age 32, fixing his credit, quitting smoking, getting his motorcycle license, and completing over 700 hours of yoga classes.

“I just started picking things that I wanted to do with my life,” he says. “I just kept on learning different things, doing these different challenges.”

As Michael continued his personal development journey, he encountered someone who worked as a life coach. Intrigued by the possibility of helping others transform their lives as he had transformed his own, he began researching coaching programs.

Why Health Coach Institute Stood Out

After exploring various options, Michael was drawn to Health Coach Institute’s unique approach.

“What I loved about the Health Coach Institute was the way that they approach things… the lack of pressure in regards to how they were trying to sell their program – they let you try it for a couple days, and even when you call to check in, they don’t really ask you to buy it,” Michael explains. “It’s a testament to how good of a product it was. I wanted this bad enough that they didn’t need to sell me on it – I’d experienced enough of it.”

Michael enrolled in the Become a Health and Life Coach program in 2022 and graduated in 2023, all while continuing his full-time job as a forklift lead.

The Holistic Approach That Resonated

For Michael, the connection between physical health and mental well-being was profoundly important to his recovery and personal growth – something that aligned perfectly with Health Coach Institute’s holistic philosophy.

“I’ve seen firsthand how everything’s connected – how you feel physically, how you take care of yourself, and your ability to go after what you want,” he shares. “Like, if I’m crushing a dozen donuts, good luck getting me motivated to try something new, right? All that sugar and caffeine just cranks up my anxiety. And if I’m already nervous about talking to someone new, and then I’ve been eating garbage on top of that? I’m just making it way harder on myself.”

Michael adds, “I firmly believe in that holistic approach. I felt like if I could just study this and have this be my job – to learn the stuff that I do on my own – I could serve in a way that would make it so I could never get depleted because my curiosity, interest, and passion is around the thing that I’m spending my time working on and becoming better at.”

Transformation Through Service

Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of Michael’s story is how coaching others has become a healing practice for him as well.

“Even when I’m coaching with clients, I can feel like absolute garbage. But if I can sit down with a person for an hour, I can put all that aside and just be there in service to that other human to help them get to their potential. And as soon as I walk out, I feel amazing – it doesn’t matter what state I started in.”

Michael describes this phenomenon beautifully, explaining how coaching automatically connects him to his higher self: “It’s putting a different part of myself aside. When we go through life, there’s always these different parts – I have a low road self and a higher self, and they wax and wane. I’m never going to get rid of either one of them completely, but it automatically snaps me into my higher self when I’m coaching. It reminds me of the things I’m pursuing so that I can move closer to that and keep trying to aspire to be better.”

Building His Coaching Practice

After completing his certification with Health Coach Institute, Michael founded Transforming Tide Coaching. The name reflects his mission to help people transform themselves in ways they never thought possible.

“The best feeling that I’ve ever had was when I’ve changed myself in a way that I could do something that for the rest of my prior past I believed I couldn’t do,” Michael explains. “When I went from crying in my car because I couldn’t get myself to speak at recovery meetings, to speaking for 30 people the first time – I can’t put my finger on another better feeling than that.”

This personal experience drives his coaching philosophy: “That’s been kind of the thing for me – to have people go into this this other almost different self, where there’s these storylines and narratives they’ve been telling themselves, but when you start working with me, I’m going to show you how to change that. You walk through that door of ‘I could be whatever I want at any given moment if I so decide to do so and I’m willing to take the steps and be open and honest and humble.'”

Michael now works with clients both virtually and in-person, focusing primarily on those struggling with self-doubt and impulsivity.

“I help people that struggle with self-doubt and impulsivity reclaim their focus, energy, and peace so they can follow their intentions as opposed to their distractions,” he says, noting that this reflects his own lived experience.

The Value of Coaching

For those considering investing in coaching – whether as a client or as a future coach – Michael offers a powerful perspective:

“At first I was like, ‘How am I going to sell somebody this coaching program?’ and then it’s like, ‘How can I not?’ They could pay a whole bunch of extra money on a nice car, and they’ll feel good for like two months, they’ll brag about it, but then they’ll get used to it. Every day will be the same. As opposed to changing their entire identity, opening up to the dreams they’ve had since they were a little kid, and start moving towards those things.”

He continues, “For me to say that’s not worth it – now I see it as insane. There’s nothing better. There’s nothing I would rather spend my money on.”

Looking to the Future

Today, Michael balances his coaching business with his full-time job, boxing, motorcycling and performing improv on weekends. His vision for the future is clear:

“Right now what I’m working towards is just getting to the place where I’m only speaking and coaching full-time and I don’t do anything else. So I can just spend my time making a living doing what I truly feel I was meant to do on this Earth. There is no other way I would rather live.”

For Michael, this represents the ultimate full-circle journey – from someone who could barely speak in a small recovery meeting to someone impacting as many people as possible through coaching and speaking.

“I had a huge amount of love for helping other people, but anxiety and fear blocked me from even doing kindnesses or helping people that I felt were sad, because the fear was just too great for me to move forward. And I’m of the mind now where I’m not in that position anymore.”

Advice for Aspiring Coaches

When asked what advice he would give to others considering health and life coaching as a career path, Michael emphasizes the importance of firsthand experience:

“Find out as much as you can about it and try it on any level that you can. When I look at the things that I’ve pursued, a lot of it’s like, ‘How can I find a way to try it?’ And then I’ll know immediately in my body if it’s something that I’m supposed to go for or not.”

He also points out that the journey itself is valuable, regardless of the outcome:

“If I don’t become a health and life coach, if it’s not a profitable thing, I will still have learned a whole bunch about nutrition, creating boundaries with other people, creating better relationships, and I would have had the experience of going for what I want.”

Michael concludes with a profound insight that speaks to the heart of what makes the Health Coach Institute’s approach so transformative:

“It doesn’t matter if it’s ‘right’ for somebody. It matters that you went after what you want – that’s what your soul is going to pay attention to. It’s not going to pay attention to if you did the right thing or not. It’s going to pay attention to: when I spoke to you in that little tiny voice that said you should try this, did you listen?”

If you’re feeling inspired by Michael’s journey and want to explore how the Health Coach Institute can help you transform your own life while empowering you to transform others’, learn more about our Become a Health and Life Coach program today.