I had never heard of this so I googled for my town. One (online) works with a licensed therapist, eg it sounds like they consult but anyone could claim this. Some of them are certified life coaches. I would be very careful with this whole concept, especiallly verifying their knowledge of bipolar. I went to a life/job coach and was not impressed.
I would worry that someone without the training therapists are required to have would not recognize various issues that they are trained for. Sorry Doc John, I have felt that many of my therapists have been inadequate since they tend to just sit there, not set goals. However, most of them know to avoid transference (not all of them obviously from the stories on our forums) and how to handle other tricky issues that I am very skeptical about these people knowing how to handle. I’m not saying they would all be bad, but avoiding a professional therapist for a bipolar life coach would be unwise in my o pinion. Anyone can say they are one of these and that is the biggest danger. Bipolar is one of the most complicated disorders. Lots of red flags here, so be careful. I would love to find a therapist who really specialized in bipolar instead.