Welcome! My name is Desiree. So glad you made it here
I grew up with a mom who was giving me my daily morning vitamins, sneaking spinach into my scrambled eggs, adding ground flaxseed to my yogurt (ew what is that?) and only buying organic milk and products when she could. I came to learn that she grew up with a mom who didn’t really allow processed or sugary foods in their house during her childhood. Her sister, my aunt, would always cook us nutritious, delicious foods from organic ingredients and I remember always being inspired and drawn to that. My mom was always very active and health-conscious, which probably inspired me to live an active lifestyle and health-aware lifestyle. I am not trying to paint the picture of a ‘perfect-health’ upbringing, I definitely had my fair share of cookies, brownies, pizza, Krispy Kreme donuts, fast-food (especially in high school) and honey nut cheerios.
When I got to my sophomore year of college, I became more well-informed and ‘serious’ about fitness. I started the Bikini Body Guide (BBG) and noticed that I was feeling this great sense of energy, seeing results and sleeping much better. I became an avid gym-goer and was actually lifting weights instead of just staying on the elliptical for an hour then leaving. This then led to me reading ‘health blogs’ that talked about the best diet to eat to accompany my new ‘fit’ lifestyle - cue the ‘low-fat’ and ‘low-calorie’ era.
I was eating frozen ‘low-fat’ and low-calorie meals, ‘low-fat’ yogurt (thanks, Yoplait), avoiding fat (because fat makes you fat, right?), coffee with sugar-filled creamer, avoiding red meat because it is ‘bad’ for you, and feeling overall intimidated by actually being in the kitchen and cooking. How did these nutrition patterns make me feel? Absolutely AMAZING! I was thriving, sleeping great, had great, clear skin, had no blood sugar regulation problems, felt full and satisfied after my meals and all of the meals were delicious! (I hope you can sense the sarcasm) Basically, it was all the opposite. I was struggling to stay awake during a 1-hour lecture, struggling to get good, consistent sleep through the night, having frequent break-outs on my chin and skin irritations (red bumps on my arms), feeling hungry after just eating a meal or snack, frequent bouts of digestive issues - bloating, stomach pains/aches, gas, etc. and I noticed feeling more anxious in general. At the time, I had no idea that what I was eating could be contributing to all of those various symptoms. I thought it was ‘normal’ to have digestive issues, break outs, trouble sleeping and always feeling hungry. Finally I had enough of this way of eating and feeling. I knew this wasn’t right for me, which led me down the right path.
Finally, I had an ‘ah-ha’ moment and was able to recognize what I was eating and how it was affecting me. Thank goodness for Podcasts! I started to immerse myself with all of the health and wellness podcasts, no - not the ‘diet’ or ‘low-fat’ podcasts, but more in the functional medicine realm. I learned the importance of healthy fats, benefits of consuming organic meats and produce and learning the harmful effects of added refined sugars and carbohydrates. I slowly started to change my diet to match the healthy lifestyle I was longing for. I knew I always wanted to help others feel their best, hence why I became a mental health therapist and then a functional nutritional therapy practitioner. I love getting to know others, on a deep, personal level and learning about their thoughts, patterns and current ways they may be feeling stuck.
You know when you hear about a topic and you just light up inside and become instantly passionate and interested? That is me with everything and anything health and nutrition related. I can’t describe the feeling, but I have always been somewhat of a skeptic and curious of the status-quo, so I love learning new radical ways of thinking and remedies to help others. I want to be the support of others who are trying to do it right but are confused about all of the misleading information out there regarding nutrition and healthy lifestyles. I wish I had someone helping me early on, meeting me where I was at, willing to change my nutritional guidelines I was currently following without judgement.
I help others who are struggling with digestion, blood sugar regulation, fatigue, feeling anxious, constantly thinking about food or feeling hungry, sick of counting calories and those who are just plain DONE and confused on where to start with their nutrition.
I also would love to work with those who are trying to conceive and start a family of their own whether in the near-future, or distant future!
Professional Training:
Bachelors Degree in Psychology from UMD ‘15
Master’s Degree in Counseling Psychology ‘17
Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor ‘19
Functional Nutritional Therapy Practitioner through the Nutritional Therapy Association ‘19