Nutrition For Mental Health

MoodMatters Dietetics

Bringing you the latest information and the happenings in Nutritional Psychiatry

Hi Reader!

The post-holiday period can be challenging for many clients, with lingering stress, disrupted routines, and emotional fatigue.

As practitioners, our role extends beyond nutrition advice—we can also offer practical, compassionate counseling to guide clients toward recovery and resilience.

The Dietitian’s Role in Post-Holiday Recovery

Stress often manifests in physical symptoms (fatigue, cravings) and emotional challenges (irritability, anxiety). These can all lead to worsening physical and mental health.

A strong client-practitioner relationship and thoughtful communication are crucial for addressing these concerns effectively.

Counseling Techniques for Post-Holiday Support

Normalize the Experience:

Reassure clients that post-holiday stress is common and doesn’t mean they’ve failed.

Acknowledge their feelings and emphasize that recovery is a process.

Discuss/plan how to get back into working on their goals.

Encourage Reflection Without Judgment:
Use open-ended questions to help clients identify what worked for them during the holidays and where they faced challenges. For example:

“What was one thing you did over the holidays that felt manageable and supportive for your well-being?”

Set Small, Achievable Goals:
Guide clients in creating realistic post-holiday routines. Focus on incremental changes rather than perfection.

Example: Start with a consistent bedtime or a single balanced meal per day.

Empower with Positive Framing:
To build confidence, highlight their strengths and past successes. Instead of focusing on setbacks, frame the conversation around opportunities for growth and how they've succeeded in the past

Practical Tools to Share with Clients

Journaling Prompts: Encourage clients to explore their feelings about the holidays and identify areas for self-care moving forward. Examples include:
- What is different for you this year from previous years? How do you feel about this change? Do you perceive the change as positive or negative? Write about what this change means for you in the long term.
- Often, holiday gatherings are centered around food. What is your relationship to food, and how does this relationship affect your feelings about the holidays?
Mindfulness Techniques: Apps like Nerva and Claria are great for this. Guided meditation and progressive muscle relaxation are also great and free videos are available online.
Self-Compassion Reminders: Share resources or affirmations to help clients practice kindness toward themselves.
- I am allowed to set boundaries that prioritize my well-being.
- I am a work in progress, and that's okay.
- I am deserving of love, respect, and kindness.

As dietitians, we often underuse our scope of practice. While there are clear divisions in scope between the therapist and dietitian, there is also a grey zone.

It is in your client's best interest to work together. The dietitian should learn the basics of counseling skills at the bare minimum. But we defer to the therapists for matters outside of food, nutrition, and the physical body.

We can, however, tie them together. What coping skills have they worked on with their therapists? How can they be applied to their food and nutrition goals?

Let’s Collaborate
How do you approach counseling during stressful times? I’d love to hear your favorite techniques for empowering clients post-holiday. Let’s keep learning and supporting each other as we help clients navigate this transitional period.

Warmly,
Jennifer Hanes MS, RDN, LD
Mood Matters Dietetics