I am no stranger to poor mental health. I have grappled with anxiety, depression, and poor self-esteem for most of my life and experienced postpartum anxiety and depression (PPA and PPD) following the birth of my daughter.

 

More recently, I was diagnosed with ADHD(c).

 

Over the years, I've taken medication, gone to therapy, and adopted strategies to manage/mask my anxiety and depression. However, something still didn't feel quite right. I felt different and overwhelmed by everyday tasks; what worked for others didn’t always work for me, making me insecure about my potential and abilities. It wasn't until I officially received my ADHD diagnosis that I felt like I found the missing piece of my mental health puzzle and my world started to make more sense.

 

Interestingly, I learned from my psychologist that the strategies I have adopted over the years to manage my mental health were my subconscious ways of coping with my undiagnosed ADHD... AND that my undiagnosed ADHD may be the culprit for the poor mental health I've experienced all these years (insert mind-blown emoji here). That was a lot to unpack, but that is a story for another day - I digress.

 

Whatever coping mechanisms I developed must have paid off, because they propelled me through university and graduate school where I studied human nutrition. I've always loved science, but it was here that I developed a deep fascination with the ways food interacts with our body, including the brain. I began looking into this area further and became particularly interested in the emerging evidence on the bi-directional relationship between the food we eat and our mental health. During grad school, I also became furiously passionate about the Health At Every Size (HAES) movement and completed my thesis research project on the topic of weight bias among dietetic students.  

 

During the pandemic, I first learned about the term neurodiversity and immediately needed to know more. Since then I have consumed books, blogs, and journal articles, podcasts, and attended several workshops and trainings to gain a deeper understanding of the feeding challenges and differences of individuals who identify as neurodivergent and become adamant about offering neurodiversity-affirming care in my day-to-day practice.

 

Inspired by my own mental health journey, passion for inclusive care, and extensive educational background, I decided to pursue a career in the critical, yet often overlooked, area of nutrition for mental health.

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I created The Daily Grind Nutrition to provide an inclusive space for adults living with anxiety, depression, and ADHD who are ready to navigate their feeding differences and overcome barriers to nourishing their body and mind so that they can thrive in their 'daily grind' with confidence.