MEET THE DIETITIAN
As a dietitian, I believe that every BODY and everybody deserves compassionate care and spaces that support them in feeling seen, heard, and enough exactly as they are.
My mission is to provide that space. In my practice, I aim to support clients in untangling from unhelpful diet culture messaging and pressures around eating, food, movement and appearance. YOU and your body are not the problem.
The constant overflow of information and opinions in our culture on how to eat, look, and move disconnects us from our own true needs, preferences, and values over time. This messaging sells that more control is the answer (you need to try harder, do better), yet I’ve seen, despite a lot of work/money/time/effort, often we feel just the opposite.
About Lisa
My clients are often experiencing feelings of guilt, shame, frustration, anxiousness and fear around their food, eating and body. They are confused about how to eat, feel disconnected from their bodies and uncertain if they or their body can be trusted (diet culture has told them NO so many times). They want to find peace with food, eating and their body but they aren’t sure how or if this is possible (and how they feel about working with a Dietitan). If this feels like you, you are not alone. I am here to help.
I provide support as an Accredited Practising Dietitian with additional training experience to help weave in nutrition science while guiding clients back into connection with their own body’s needs, their own preferences and their own values so they can heal from dieting, feel more empowered to make their own choices for their unique body’s needs and pursue living and engaging in their lives in ways that matter to them.
I love supporting my amazing clients in the clinic, but when I’m not there you can find me enjoying other things I love including hiking (being in nature in general), swimming, camping, barre, pepperoni pizza with pineapple (controversial I know), brunch (with a mimosa of course), snuggling my cats, travelling with my hubby or doing yoga among other things.
I can’t wait to meet you and walk alongside you in your journey.
Practice Purpose
To disrupt diet culture and its roots and foster healing and connection for a future where all bodies are nurtured, nourished, respected and allowed to simply be as they are. To create a culture of healing, compassion, listening, connection and nourishment where lived experience is centred and people feel more seen, more heard, more held and less alone in their unique journey no matter where they have been or where they want to go.
Practice Philosophy
You are so much more than the way you physically show up in the world. My hope is that through working together you will feel seen and heard and that you are able to experience greater freedom and peace in your relationship with food, eating and your body. I trust that you have your own invaluable wisdom within you , as we all do, which I want to encourage you to lean into so you can use it to help inform your choices. I know there are things that you want to do, places you want to go, ideas and opportunities that call to you and people you want to be fully present with.
Practice Values
- Curiosity
- Compassion
- Whole Person Care
- Honesty
- Connection
- Growth
You have a life to be lived and you deserve to have freedom from the ways diet culture works to steal your time and your headspace so you can enjoy being fully present in it.
My approach as a dietitian
I believe in a collaborative approach (I am here to navigate things alongside you, not talk at you). I respect and support client autonomy and experience. I am on your team. I know my clients are always doing the best they can, with what they have (being human is hard).
In alignment with my practice framework and philosophy, I do not provide meal plans for weight loss or weight loss interventions. However, I DO make space to talk more deeply about the desire for weight loss and feelings about weight and body size. I want to hear more about your lived experience in and with your body.
My credentials and education
- Masters in Nutrition
- Accredited Practicing Dietitian (AUS)
- Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (USA)
- Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor
- CEDC (Certified Eating Disorder Clinician)
- Completed FODMAP Training with Monash University
- Non-Diet Approach Trained
- Health At Every Size Member
Nutritionist vs Dietitian–what is the difference?
There are some important differences between these two titles you will want to have in your back pocket as you consider who and what care is the best fit for you and your concerns.
The greatest difference to consider is that dietitian is a regulated title and profession. This means that there are specific requirements for the level of education, coursework, learning experiences and competencies which must be met in order to be considered for Accredited Practicing Dietitian (APD; in Australia) or Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN; in the US) credentialing and to then have the ability to practice as a dietitian.
This regulation includes a commitment to requirements for ongoing education to ensure the clinician stays up to date with evidence based practice and guidelines.
There is additionally a code of ethics and conduct a dietitian must legally abide by and a governing body which checks that clinicians are following safe, ethical and evidenced based practice. If someone isn’t meeting these requirements, they can be reported and they may be suspended from practice or have their credentials revoked entirely.
Nutritionist is not a regulated title or profession.
So while a dietitian could refer to themselves as a nutritionist if they wanted to, a nutritionist cannot call themselves a dietitian.
Given this lack of regulation, it’s important to understand what type of training and qualifications someone has before you choose to engage working with them.
An additional consideration may be that Medicare recognizes dietitian’s as a regulated Allied Health Care Provider and may help cover costs of services under a care plan for seeing one if deemed appropriate by your doctor. Private health providers also recognize dietitian’s credentialing and qualifications and often offer rebates for services provided. Check with your doctor or private health care provider to learn more about your options for accessing services with a dietitian vs nutritionist.