Sööma strongly believes in a multidisciplinary approach to treat various conditions and provide quality care. If we do not offer a particular service at the practice, we collaborate with professionals in the area.

Role of the Dietitian

Sööma offers virtual nutrition services to the american population depending on which state you’re located in. The role of the dietitian is to provide evidence-based nutrition counseling in order to address specific conditions. In cases where a multi disciplinary approach is needed, the dietitian will refer the individual to other professionals. Sööma strongly believes that individuals diagnosed with eating disorders or disordered eating benefit from seeing a registered dietitian and a clinical psychologist.

Role of the Clinical Psychologist

Sööma offers psychological services to the general public. The role of the clinical psychologist is to provide evidence-based psychotherapy for specific mental health diagnoses. Our psychologists will meet with you to evaluate your mental health status, determine the goals of your work in therapy and accompany you in better understanding how your emotions, thoughts and beliefs impact your life, functioning and well-being.

The treatment team for eating disorders

The role of the therapist

Psychologists are a crucial component of the treatment of eating disorders. Research shows that most individuals diagnosed with an eating disorder also have co-occurring psychological diagnoses. The therapist will use evidence-based practices, which are currently Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Family Based Treatment (FBT) or Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) (in cases of Bulimia or Binge Eating Disorder) in assisting individuals in the change process. Therapists conceptualize the role that the eating disorder plays in the clients life in addition to helping clients explore and understand maintaining factors for their illness, how the illness interferes with the type of life they want to live and assisting them in changing ineffective coping patterns and behaviors.

The role of the dietitian

Dietitians are an extremely important part of the treatment team for eating disorders. Dietitians who specialize in this field have often been described as offering food psychology as they explore how psychological beliefs impact an individual’s relationship with food.

If your physical health is impacted by your eating disorder, it is imperative that the dietitian work with you to achieve a state where your body can function appropriately. This is not exclusive to individuals who present as being below their natural body weight. Contrary to popular belief, people in large bodies can be malnourished and be physically unstable.

The dietitian will provide scientific evidence and psychoeducation to empower clients to question and challenge their behaviors as they relate to food. The dietitians may also engage in food exposures with you in addition to mindful eating exercises.

Unlike popular belief, a dietitian will not prescribe a specific diet or judge your food intake. The role of the dietitian is to provide scientific evidence and knowledge to assist you in determining how foods make you feel, how they fit into your life and what is best for YOUR body. Of course, the dietitian is trained to consider medical diagnoses or conditions that may impact which foods you can and cannot eat. However, this doesn’t mean that you cannot have a flexible and intuitive relationship with food.

The role of the family doctor

Because eating disorders can have extreme health consequences such as tachycardia, bradycadia, osteopenia, osteoporosis, electrolyte abnormalities and syncope, it is crucial that clients be followed by a medical professional. The family doctor will monitor an individual’s physical health and provide medical recommendations based on findings. Please note that we request that all clients diagnosed with an eating disorder be followed by a medical professional.

The role of the psychiatrist

Psychiatrists are medical practitioners who specialize in the treatment of mental illnesses. Medication can sometimes be necessary and effective in relieving symptoms of co-existing conditions. While there are no medications at this time that have been found to treat the specific symptoms of eating disorders, many medications have shown effectiveness in decreasing other underlying factors that maintain the illness.

The role of the dietitian in sports nutrition

Fueling adequately

At baseline, an athlete must provide their body with enough energy for it to function, perform and repair itself. Because physical activity often impacts appetite, it can sometimes be difficult to fuel adequately throughout the day. The dietitian will be able to assess your baseline energy needs and provide recommendations and strategies to meet the energy demands of your day, while also considering your training schedule, job and other obligations that may interfere with your access to food. It is important to remember that getting enough food is the most important part of nutrition for sport. You cannot tailor your intake to performance if your body is being restricted of energy.

Fueling for performance

If your body is already getting enough energy or you have worked with a dietitian to get to this point, you can tailor your intake to optimize recovery and performance. Specific macronutrient (protein, fat and carbohydrate) intake at certain times of day may be pertinent for a given sport.

Injury prevention

Chronic injuries in endurance sports such as running can be common. While a physiotherapist and coach can help address the specific injury, sometimes medical doctors and dietitians can explore how your current behaviors and lifestyle may be contributing to this. A common example is an individual with recurrent stress fractures. I cannot stress enough that stress fractures ARE NOT a normal part of training and are often representative of an underlying problem. A dietitian can help rule out or address hormonal imbalances due to inadequate intake or impaired recovery due to intake of poor quality food.

Learn more about how our dietitians can help!