Thursday, January 2, 2014

I like even numbered years.  What can I say?  2014 sounds nicer than 2013.  I'm hoping this year that I'll have more room in my brain to write.  I'm hoping for more room in my brain to do lots of things.  Turns out transitions are hard for me.  There have only been a handful of times where I felt my brain was clear enough to see tasks and complete them.  I typically become overwhelmed and shut down.

New beginnings come.
Lovely fresh starts full of hope.
Make the most of them!

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Time of a little venting

Dear Other Dietitians -

Why are you so mean????  Why do I feel so insecure around you?  I feel like there is this competition as to who can be the most professional, quote the most recent studies and say the phrase "evidence based" the most often.  It's true that we fight against anonymity in the medical world and that very few of us are recognized by other colleagues in clinical settings, but shouldn't we help each other?  Shouldn't we build each other up and support each other and UNIFY as we convince the world of how important we are?

When I worked in the hospital, people thought I was the social worker.  I wasn't assertive enough to make sure doctors and nurses knew what I was doing all the time.  I built some relationships, but that's challenging in a clinical setting.

There seems to be a hierarchy of RDs in the world.  The most respected are the ones seem to be the ones who work in the NICU or the ICU doing parenteral and enteral feeding calculations.  WIC and other community RDs are at the bottom of the rung.  I'm sorry, I didn't like the clinical side!  I'd rather keep people healthy than treat them in the hospital.  Plus all I did was CRUNCH NUMBERS!  Please judge me and make me feel like I couldn't cut it in the "real world."  Now I'm dealing with the RDs who work with people with eating disorders.  Most of these people have recovered from or are currently dealing with their personal disordered eating and are trying to "out-empathize" each other.  Who's the most understanding?  Who can deal with and connect to the widest variety of clients?

And then there's all the "research" out there.  We claim to be the experts on food and nutrition.  We're supposed to know how food effects the body under all circumstances.  Our position is untenable.  Western medicine does not know everything about the body and it does not know everything about food.  I entered this field looking for answers and I was taught the currently accepted theories of our time.  We get more information and misinformation every day.  Our industry is very much at the mercy of the government and the food and drug industry.  Studies that seem legitimate are contradicted by other studies.  Food beliefs and practices inspire what amounts to a religious fervor.  Who do you believe in?  Are you a disciple of the ADA, the AADE, the ACS, the academy, the ABIM, (fill in your information source of choice)?

Am I the only one who is lost here?  I feel like I'm trying to help clients navigate through a world of conflicting health messages without a map.  It's us versus the industry, the current body of accepted research, other health care professionals (including RDs) and the world!

We made our own obesi-heart diseaseabetes epidemic.  We need to unify, admit that we don't know everything, commit to what we do know and START BEING NICE TO EACH OTHER!

Love,

Me, RD, LD, CDE

Monday, October 28, 2013

Sometimes I feel like the moon
A reflector of other people's sunshine
Bouncing their brilliance back to them
Hidden, at times, by their mass
But I always come back
And I know
The night sky would never be the same
Without me

Friday, October 18, 2013

Week days rushing past hectic, manic, fly right by. weekend: revive me!

Friday, August 16, 2013

Aaaaand it's the weekend!

I've got some really exciting projects in my "bwain" right now but I haven't taken the steps to make them a reality. What am I waiting for? My friend Elizabeth has made some awesome lifestyle changes. She's really inspired me to start thinking about doing the same. Talking to Shandy has helped as well. I am coming out of the "nothing I do actually works to help me lose weight" slump. I've been tracking my calories with MyFitnessPal and I went walking twice this week. Husband is being super supportive. : ) He pointed out that whenever it's his idea to go walking, I say no. Yeah. I'm pretty much lame like that. Gotta get better. Gotta not be such a punk. The fog is slowly lifting, however. I'm doing better at making food. I just hope the momentum keeps building. It's so fascinating to live the stages of change over and over in my own life as I try to help other people make changes...

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

It's pajama time

It's one of those days. One of those "stay in your PJs all day" days. And, to quote the popular song: "I don't care! I love it!" Well. I sort of care. I've been struggling with the question for a long time. How does one balance rest with work? Do I trust myself to stop resting and start working again? I will say that I love love love snuggling my little man. : ) He is so precious!

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

And then there were 3...

Our little munchkin arrived 5 weeks ago. It's been an interesting and wonderful adjustment. He was born right as my husband was finishing grading finals and starting to look for other summer jobs. It's been more hectic than it needed to be but that seems to be the way we do things. Thank goodness for wonderfully supportive friends and family!!! I'm slowly learning how to get things done AND keep a baby healthy, clean and (mostly) happy. Every day is different. It's amazing how quickly he's growing! My one goal is to enjoy every phase for what it is and to not wish to fastforward or rewind. I want to enjoy the moment.