In October 2019, I graduated from uni, and it was a beautiful sunny day that made me thankful to have come so far and to be where I am. It was a day that made me very happy, and excited for the future. As you might know, I have done six and a half years of study, so I was very excited to graduate. It has been a long journey, and as with any journey through life there are ups and downs.
If we go back 10 years to when I was 15, this is where my own personal dietetics journey began.
To spare you the explanation of what, how and why, I will get to the point…
I was diagnosed with an eating disorder, one that is most aligned with anorexia nervosa.
I had a mum that was very on top of things, and a GP that was very involved. I won’t get into numbers because really – they don’t matter, but I was below the healthy weight range.
As a part of my ‘treatment’ I had joint appointments with a dietitian and psychologist over a few months through the butterfly foundation. I was young, obedient and a perfectionist (all sounding like common traits) so I was able to stop seeing them after not too long, with few follow up appointments. It was after this that I fell in love with food as medicine, a way to nourish your body and improve your health. I was lucky that something positive came out of such an experience. However, people can be cruel and even though my mum had told some of my close friends to keep an eye on me with my lunch at school, there were friends turned enemies who would make comments in corridors;
“she’s not even skinny, how does she have an eating disorder?” juxtaposed with
“Oh That’s so stupid. Go eat a Big Mac. Everyone has body image issues”
Amongst many other high school challenges and obstacles that all people face for resilience and character building, I learnt the lesson then, that you cannot please anyone, so stuff them and focus on pleasing yourself (the truth is I am still learning this lesson).
Everyone deals with stress in different ways, some like to comfort themselves with lollies and chocolate, some like salty snacks, or some retreat from food and interaction all together. When I am stressed, or feeling down, I have what is called a ‘flare up’ (a term I made up myself) – which is where I begin to focus on everything I am eating, my body and how it looks. I am hyper-aware of all these things and this is also the case when I am unhappy with certain areas of my life.
Through my six and a half years of uni, I submitted countless assignments, and sat exams. In my personal life, I had three break ups (At least I’m good at being dumped?). I faced deaths of multiple important people in my life, dealt with changes in friendships including friendship breakdowns, changed jobs and moved house. These are all things that are a part of life, and I know that many people have faced all of these things, but they are events that could induce stress, or lead to one feeling not so great about themselves.
For me this means I retreat into myself, listen to The Smiths or other 2000’s “emo” music *shout out to all my fellow emo music lovers out there* but on a serious note – I generally begin falling back into old habits.
The reason for this is simple – it is a way of controlling SOMETHING that is going on in my life. A twisted purpose if you will. Now – don’t get me wrong I am OKAY, I have a supportive family that is still eagle eyed and they keep me on track. I do think that everyone recovers differently though, and maybe I NEVER would have discovered my passion for dietetics, so in a way it was all meant to be.
What about nutrition for mental health?
A brisk change of pace now, apart from sharing my little story, I wanted to cover foods that are good for your mental health, as I thought maybe there should be something a little educational about this post. In my research, I came across something pretty interesting. There is some solid evidence that diet does have an effect on the development of depression, and those who were diagnosed with clinical depression have a poor quality diet. A classic riddle of whether the egg or the chicken came first! Now, as with any research and nutritional recommendations; there is NO one size fits all. I will continue to reference the “recommendations” but I am a strong believer in person-centred care, which includes an individualised and holistic approach
As for thoughts around the “best” diet to “boost” your mental health (some real buzz words there – like honestly “boost” your mental health? What is that?)
I found that the same recommendations that are given for optimal physical health (e.g. five serves of vegetables, two serves of fruit, high wholegrain consumption, lean meats and fish) are also recommended for optimal mental health! This is exciting, because there is one set of recommendations that covers a person HOLISTICALLY. This includes the recommendation that saturated fats, sugars and processed foods should also be avoided, given the effect on gut microbiota and therefore mental health. Fibre is also increasingly important for physical and mental health, given the new evidence for the gut microbiota (touching on a VERY hot topic right now – the gut brain link).
Some of the main nutrients of note, that can contribute to improving mental health are:
Zinc
– Commonly found in meat, legumes, nuts, eggs and dairy
Omega 3’s
– Mackerel, salmon, sardines, soybeans and walnuts
B-Group Vitamins
– Legumes, almonds, broccoli, spinach, citrus fruits, and avocado
It is okay to have down days, and the days where you’re not sure what you’re doing. Make sure you are kind to yourself and you celebrate yourself. Keep celebrating the small victories. This post was extremely difficult for me to share, because it’s personal and it is not something I talk about in length with people. It is definitely not something that I find shameful, but there is always a somewhat stigma associated with any mental illness, and even eating disorders are still widely misunderstood by some health professionals. I thought by sharing a brief story about myself, you (my total of two readers and fans) could get to know a bit more about me!
If you have made it this far reading – Good on you for sticking with me and big love to you.
As you may have gathered from the title, this post will be the first in a series of personal posts that intend to go through all the things that lead me to dietetics and some things that happened along the way which attracted me to certain areas.
Until next time,
Big Sis x
Just a brief afterword:
If you were interested in reading more about your food and your mood:
https://foodandmoodcentre.com.au/2016/07/diet-and-mental-health/
Or if this blog triggered any unwanted feelings, or concerns please visit:
https://www.lifeline.org.au/ or call 13 11 14
https://thebutterflyfoundation.org.au/ or call 1800 33 4673
