Field Notes #1
Native American Nutrition conference reflections, seasonal self-care notes in preparation for Autumnal Equinox
Over the last year, I have largely stepped away from writing about my work as a nutritionist. I’ve been noticing a shift in the way I think about nutrition, health and wellbeing, and have just been taking some time to get acquainted with those changes. It still feels like a moving target, but sometimes writing helps me think (bear with me here!).
Last week, I had the immense privilege of attending the Native American Nutrition conference, which really was a transformative experience (I do not use those words lightly). First and foremost, the line-up of speakers was incredible. We heard from researchers, food justice workers, community members…people who were on the ground examining, advocating for and implementing traditional food wisdom and changing lives. The science was awesome and I walked away ready to wax poetics about aronia berry juice and nopales…but that wasn’t actually the piece of this experience that was so moving.
My work as a nutritionist has been heavily informed by biochemistry. A client comes to me with their health concerns and I run my knowledge bank for nutrients, lifestyle habits, and dietary patterns that would help bring their body back into balance.
Prior to 2020, this was my jam. God I loved functional medicine.
When the COVID pandemic started, everything changed. Suddenly, those mechanisms in the body were overshadowed by the need to receive care. All the ways my clients tried to take care of themselves became harder as coping mechanisms, like emotional eating, comfort eating, binge drinking, and general disembodiment (doom scrolling anyone?) took over. They were isolated and homebound. Everything that was familiar changed overnight.
The impact of George Floyd’s murder and the uprising in the Twin Cities on my client’s lives and health also cannot be minimized. I’m personally still unpacking how that experience still lives inside me (gratitude to Louise Erdrich for writing about both these events in her book The Sentence which I found to be both incredibly challenging to read but also insanely cathartic. Highly recommend).
Imagine, if you will, being a nutritionist at this time. You’re talking with your clients now over video chat, because it’s suddenly not safe to be in the physical presence of other humans. And every client is expressing distress as their primary concern. Not IBS. Not pre-diabetes. Not even improving physical performance! Anxiety, depression, overwhelm, sleeplessness, brain fog, dissociation, trauma…these were the root causes of my clients’ challenges. I was thankful that I had other helpful tools I could lean on because between you and me, kale salad wasn’t going to solve that.
Over the last few years, I’ve been digesting this experience, and watching how it shapes the way I think about nutrition and how to care for my clients. I still believe - know! - that food is a powerful self-care tool. It’s true that kale can’t be the balm for chronic stress, but dietary patterns do impact resilience. Macronutrients and micronutrients, the bones of nutrition therapies, impact our ability to thrive on the other side of difficulty.
The conference last week helped me to put to words two other “nutrition factors” that are equally important: community and culture. While vitamin B12 is necessary for storing memories and accessing language, physical touch and being in relationship with others is another way we combat cognitive decline and dementia.
So, food is nutrition. Sure.
Food is also ritual and tradition.
Food is pleasure. It’s celebration and mourning.
Food is an expression of love that we can extend to ourselves and share with others.
Food has the power of connecting us with nature and reminding us of our role in the natural world.
Food reminds us who we are and where we came from.
Suddenly my job became more precious.
How things will evolve for me in this new paradigm is still developing. But what I’d like to do with this space is share my Field Notes, as I continue to examine and explore the ways that nutrition, community and culture influence our health and wellbeing. Stay tuned!
Grounding this Reflection in Now
The Autumnal Equinox is in two days, which will move us into the Metal season, a time we’re naturally called to reflect, mourn and let go. It’s our harvest season in the Midwest, the time of year when food becomes most abundant. We’re moving away from craving light, refreshing foods that sound so good when it’s hot outside and starting to look for our crockpots. Who’s already made a pot of soup?!
It’s common to feel symptoms come up in the body during seasonal transitions, so if you’re feeling “weird” in anyway, bring some compassion to your body. Remember that we’re still getting used to living indoors, wearing clothes and tapping on computer screens all day instead of running our hairy, naked bodies around arm-wrestling small beasts for food! We are part of nature, no matter how separated from it we can survive.
Here are some self-care suggestions that honor the wisdom of nutrition, community and culture in this season. Pick and choose any/all that resonate with you to practice for a week or two (or longer!) as your body settles into the new rhythm.
Eat cooked foods, especially helpful if you’re having any gas, bloating, constipation or other sign of indigestion.
Replace cold water with hot or room temperature herbal tisanes.
Fennel or ginger for indigestion
Chamomile or lavender for overwhelm or anxiety
Rose for heart sickness or grief
Spearmint or peppermint for energy and mental clarity
Cook for someone you love or simply share a meal especially if you’re having a hard time finding any desire to eat (whatever the cause).
If you find yourself missing someone you love, incorporate a food or meal they loved into your menu plan. Honor their memory at your table.
x o
Jesse