What does nutrition do for mental health?

Generally speaking, nutrition for mental health works via creation of neurotransmitters like serotonin and supporting the gut-brain axis. Specific nutritional interventions have been shown to reduce anger, relieve depression and anxiety, restore balance, and lower stress.

What mental health concerns/conditions respond well to nutrition therapy?

Eating disorders, anxiety, depression, ADHD, bipolar, anger, addiction, postnatal depression, trauma and obsessive-compulsive disorder.

What GI Conditions respond well to nutrition therapy?

IBS, IBD, GERD (heartburn), constipation, and diarrhea all respond well to nutrition therapy.

I have a physical disease/condition apart from the mental health or GI condition. Will you deal with that as well?

Absolutely. It is incredibly common for mental health and GI conditions to come hand in hand with other physical conditions. One example would be of a child diagnosed with severe food allergies developing anxiety and panic attacks. Another example is high blood pressure in someone living with a lot of job stress. During the initial assessment I will take your physical and mental health into account before providing comprehensive recommendations.

Will you help me lose weight?

I have a weight-neutral practice meaning that weight is never my metric for success with clients.  I operate using a Health At Every Size® (HAES) philosophy, and support clients using Intuitive Eating practices.

Will you work with my doctor/counselor/social worker/psychologist/psychiatrist?

Absolutely. Everyone has the same goal—to get you feeling better—we just go about it in different ways. If you give me permission, I will be happy to coordinate with other practitioners.

Do I need to see a mental health professional at the same time as you?

If the client is dealing with a mental health condition, I always encourage them to be assessed by a licensed mental health practitioner and continue with them if needed. I am happy to make recommendations.

Are you against using medication for mental health needs?

No. I’m not.

And like the rest of the functional/integrative community, I have concerns about using medication in some people. Often, it is over prescribed, prescribed off label, or prescribed by a primary care practitioner without an assessment or follow up from a mental health practitioner. I also have concerns about using medication in children when other options haven’t been tried.

That being said, there are times when medication is useful and essential and saves lives. The nutrition stuff I do, and the stuff that your therapist does, takes time to get results. I’ll be the first to send you to a psychiatrist for a script if needed.

Because of the nutritional deficiencies that so many pharmaceuticals cause, I want to be aware of the medications you take, but you’ll get no judgment either way from me.

How do you figure out my nutritional needs?

There are a number of ways to figure out your needs. I always perform a nutrition-focused physical exam, which can tell me about your needs. Biochemical assessment (also known as bloodwork or lab tests) can also shed light on your nutritional needs. I’ll take a peek at how you eat, and also look at your current stress since that hugely influences nutrition.

How long should I plan on seeing you?

This entirely depends on your needs. I encourage all clients to expect between 6-12 appointments.

Some clients, especially those dealing with challenging medical or mental health conditions, may need more.

Do you take insurance?

I will provide you a superbill that you can submit to insurance using your out-of-network benefits. I am not currently in network with any providers.