It started in my first year of community college. With an undeclared major, I became inspired to use fitness to help others take charge of their health. That’s when I decided to get certified for personal training at college, while also taking general studies. Initially working as a personal trainer, a desire to help others achieve health goals in the gym evolved. I didn’t even know what a dietitian was at this point.

I was developing a greater appreciation for food and nutrition.

It was at this point that I began to understand that daily food choices impact nearly every aspect of life. What you eat not only directly influences the chances of developing deadly chronic illnesses (which kill the majority of Americans), but can also impact:

• energy
• mood
• digestive health
• overall quality of life and motivation to accomplish goals

This developing passion for nutrition and lifestyle changes helped me realize I needed to become qualified to educate others about diet. So I aspired to become a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN).

First semester at Arizona State University was also the first time I earned straight A’s.

That’s right, I never earned straight A’s any time before, growing up in school. Not until I attended university, was working harder, spending more time and hard-earned money on school, that I finally understood how important academic success was to accomplish in the future.

Fast forward a few years later and I had finished graduate school, a 10-month dietetic internship, and successfully passed the national exam to officially become an RDN.

Shortly thereafter, I became frustrated.

Following several job interviews paired with carefully-crafted, individualized cover letters and resumes, DISAPPOINTMENT. These interviews resulted in zero job offers in my hometown of Phoenix.

Tired of working in restaurants and irregular hours in the gym with unreliable income, I was ready to begin my career as an RDN. Even if that meant moving out of town.

The first position I came across outside of my hometown was in Yuma, just a few hours away. In the southwest corner of Arizona, right near the borders of Mexico and California. I applied and heard from the supervisor less than 24 hours later! So, I packed my bags and moved down to Yuma.

My first job as an RDN at Yuma Regional Medical Center (YRMC) was all and more than I could’ve asked for.

I had the opportunity to work in a variety of specialty clinics. This included cardiac rehab, cancer center, bariatric surgery, child rehab services, endocrinology, and family medicine. It wasn’t just all of these outpatient clinics and the specialized knowledge I was gaining. I also taught community nutrition classes and hosted support groups for patients before and after weight loss surgery.

This experience was perfect for me professionally. Though after nearly two years I grew quite discontented from a lack of work-life balance. Perhaps I was too focused on professional development and paying off student loan debt as fast as possible (thanks Dave Ramsey!).

Lack of self-care and not feeling close enough to friends and family wasn’t going to work for me.

This contributed to one of the lowest points in my life I’ve ever experienced regarding my mental health. I realized that if I didn’t have basic mental health needs being met – social connections and regular practice of basic self-care measures – then accomplishing all my professional dreams (as I was doing) was never going to lead to true fulfillment and joy.

So I again realized it was time for a big change and that meant leaving my job in Yuma. A job that I’d otherwise fallen in love with.

Upon my final days working in Yuma, multiple discussions with co-workers prompted me to reconsider my initial decision to move on and work with patients in a dialysis center (for people with chronic kidney disease).

After diverse experiences at YRMC in various clinics, I wanted to focus my clinical expertise. I wanted to work with one challenging specialized population. At the time, I was convinced that renal dietetics was it. This meant working with patients while on dialysis machines. That was the challenging population I was ready to focus on.

However, after conversations with several coworkers, they cautioned me about challenges I’d likely face working in a dialysis center. Although I felt 100% ready to move back to my hometown, I respected the wisdom of my colleagues. I was swayed by a pattern of comments from multiple colleagues.

Suddenly, my initial plans didn’t make as much sense as I had thought.

Next step, let’s call it serendipity.

After moving back to Phoenix, I explored employment opportunities. I came across a position for a behavioral health-led integrated healthcare company. I applied and got the job! It all started to make sense. Or, let’s call it serendipity.

I’d never thought about working in a behavioral health clinic before! This was not a specialty I learned about in traditional schooling for dietitians or graduate school.

The more I thought about this position, the more it felt a perfect fit for what I was looking for. Helping others who have mental health conditions and/or problems with substance abuse is certainly a challenging specialized population. Furthermore, there aren’t enough RDNs that get such an opportunity to make a difference in this specialized population. I was sold. A new emerging passion was born.

In my initial months as the first and only RDN in one of the largest behavioral health-led integrated healthcare companies in Arizona, my passion for this niche population grew profoundly. I was working in one of the “harder” areas of Phoenix. An area where many people face socio-economic limitations and barriers to making healthy changes. This includes helping those who are homeless or living in similarly precarious situations.

Not only did I learn that those I now served were often interested in making healthy lifestyle changes, but they were also at a pivotal and often, uniquely vulnerable time in their life.

I realized that I might not help everybody I serve at work, but I CAN and WILL make a difference in the lives of those who are ready for changes.

This is true regardless of what mental health diagnosis one has or at what point in their recovery they might currently be at. This is including those with serious mental illness.

I learned to look beyond common stigmas attributed to mental illness and to overcome some of my own preconceived notions about “this population”.

Fast forward a few years later, I still am the only RDN employed in this company of nearly 1,000 employees. I’m honored to continue striving to expand the role of an RDN in a behavioral health company. Some days are very trying and harder than others.

Sometimes I stop and wonder what difference am I really making. But I have to remind myself of the larger picture at hand. That I am here to help YOU and YOUR loved ones understand the critical role that daily food choices have on impacting physical and mental health.

As I often mention in group therapy, I’m not here to say that your food choices can cure or cause depression or anxiety. But they are, more than likely, a piece of the puzzle for improving treatment outcomes and attaining optimal mental well-being.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Get your copy of Foods for Thought today and learn more about how to get started crafting your Foods for Thought Game Plan.

– Jason