Theresa Walsh Velendzas ~ TheresaWV
I am passionate about helping you step into joyful living — in your body, your life, your relationships, and into the future you design.
It begins with something I've believed since the earliest days of my career: that the most meaningful support anyone can receive is a genuinely personalized one, rooted in their own values.
Not a protocol.
Not a program built for someone else.
A path to untangling yourself from the toxic messages of what your life should be — and stepping into a more nourished, values-driven, empowered version of yourself.
That conviction didn't come from a textbook. It came from years of witnessing it, living it, and learning — case after case — what actually helps people transform.
Where This Work Began
I started my career in psychology in Athens, Greece, working with elderly residents — learning early what it truly means to see a person beneath their circumstances. I carried that into advocacy work in Connecticut, where I represented over 10,000 long-term care clients across all ages and stages of life.
What I kept witnessing — case after case — was that the people who thrived weren't following a protocol. They were the ones who felt genuinely heard, who reconnected with what mattered to them, and who had someone in their corner helping them navigate it with care and intention.
It was always about the person at the center — their values, their story, their pace.
That realization has guided everything I've done since.
When I Found IFS, Everything Deepened
When I discovered Internal Family Systems, it felt like finding the missing piece I'd been working around for years.
IFS doesn't just address behavior — it goes to the parts of us that drive behavior: the inner critic who never lets up, the protector who'd rather stay safe than risk being seen, the part that's exhausted but can't stop, the part that wants change but quietly fears it. When those parts are understood and integrated, real change becomes not only possible but lasting.
I trained through every level of IFS — ultimately completing Level 3 with Richard Schwartz, the model's founder — and became a Certified IFS Practitioner. Today I also serve as a Program Assistant at the IFS Institute, where I help teach the model to other professionals. It's one of the most meaningful things I do: being part of bringing this work to more people, through the people trained to deliver it.
Science Meets Art — The Whole Person Approach
I didn't stop at IFS because my clients don't live in one dimension.
Someone navigating burnout also has a body carrying that weight. Someone rebuilding after a transition needs sleep, nourishment, and movement that support the work — not undermine it. A professional who wants to lead better is also a person who's quietly stopped trusting themselves.
So I trained accordingly — in nutrition, fitness, mindfulness, and health coaching — not to collect letters after my name, but because lasting change requires the whole picture.
My approach is grounded in scientific principles with the individual at the center.
This is where science meets art: individualized, sustainable results — without the short-lived, often painful 'no pain-no gain' bully tactics that pop culture sells as the only way forward.
Coaching that connects you to your core self, your values, and your strengths offers enduring change.
That kind of change becomes the life force of your own flourishing.
That is the foundation of the Wellness Evolution Method.
Credentials & Training
• IFS Level 3 Certified Practitioner & IFS Certified Practitioner | IFS Institute
• Program Assistant | IFS Institute (IFSI)
• Board Certified Coach (BCC) | Center for Credentialing & Education
• National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC) | NBHWC
• Master Health Coach & Nutrition Specialist | Precision Nutrition
• Certified Personal Trainer & Corrective Exercise Specialist | NASM
• Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)
• Certified Breath Coach | Yogabody
• Registered Psychologist in Greece
• M.S., Healthcare Management | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
• B.S., Psychology | University of La Verne California, Athens Greece Campus
A Little More About Me
I'm a dual citizen — Greek-American — with a practice based in Connecticut (Eastern Time) and delivered globally online. I love the sea, the woods, vegetable gardening, and cooking. I'm a mom of two humans, a dog, a cat, several schools of fish, and according to my husband, too many houseplants.
I am grateful for the opportunity to share my story and to guide you on your own journey toward thriving wellness and personal success. I believe the best coaching happens when you feel genuinely seen — not managed, not optimized, not handed a program built for someone else.
My commitment is to meet you exactly where you are — with care, with depth, and with the full weight of everything I've learned along the way.
A Gift to Get You Started
As a first step, I'm offering a free Core Needs Reflection Activity — a simple IFS-inspired exercise to help you begin identifying what matters most and where you feel the most friction. It takes only a few minutes and offers you a reference point during our meeting, as you feel into whether this is a good fit for you. I look forward to connecting with you.
→ Access the free Core Needs Reflection Activity
→ Send me a message
With Love,
