Hello! Today I wanted to share a “day in the life” type post… so read on if you are interested in seeing more of what my days often look like and more of what I have been up to in my eating disorder rotation! I know I enjoy reading these types of posts and have found it helpful to read what other dietitians’ or dietetic interns’ days are generally like. I am writing this a few days in advance, so this was my day last week on Wednesday!

5am: Wakeup! I like to wake up early so I have time to do the things I like to do before starting my work day – this helps me to feel energized and ready to go for the day! When I get up, I get on my running clothes and go downstairs to have an energy bite with some almond milk for a snack as otherwise I would get way too hungry since I don’t have breakfast till a bit later.

5:10-5:30am: After my snack, I sit in my favorite spot (next to the Christmas tree) to read my Bible and pray. I am doing a Bible reading plan that would take you through the Bible in one year but I am doing it in two years so the amount of reading each day is more doable for me right now!

5:30-5:50am: I head into the kitchen to unload the dishwasher (which I run the night before) and add the water to the coffee pot (grounds were added the night before) so it is good to go and automatically brewing when I get back from my run!

5:50-7:15am: Time to get some movement in! Most days of the week (such as this day) I first spend some time inside on my yoga mat doing some exercises like backbends and handstands and then I get all bundled up to head outside for a run. It was VERY cold this particular day so I was extra layered and covered! I actually like running in the winter – I find it is just a matter of getting going, and often there are really pretty sunrises to enjoy! When I get back I spend time stretching. I always listen to a couple of podcasts while I’m exercising which I really enjoy!

7:15-7:45am: Time to dash and get ready! I take a quick shower and drink one of these blended “green drinks” along with my vitamins while I’m getting ready. I’ve found that drinking these everyday really help my digestive system and I also like to take my vitamins with them since tea/coffee inhibit the absorption of certain micronutrients.

7:45-8am: For this rotation, a lot of it has been virtual with groups starting at 8am. I’ve been eating my breakfast at my computer while I quickly check any texts/emails and get oriented for the day. Lately breakfast has been overnight steel-cut oatmeal, sesame seeds, almond butter, honey, and frozen (microwaved) strawberries and blueberries! And coffee with almond milk!

8-9am: I observed one of the body image groups. The intensive outpatient program (IOP) for eating disorders at UofM is divided into two “tracks,” one for ages 8-15 and another for ages 16-22. Each track has around 5-7 people in it at any given time. The program uses family based treatment (FBT), which is a specific treatment modality for treating anorexia nervosa in adolescents (a bit more details on that below). Each day, patients in the program have groups on various topics (such as body image, nutrition, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT)), that are led by the social workers or dietitian. These are currently held via Zoom. Other aspects of the program include processing groups for patients and parents, family sessions, and in-person medical and psychiatric appointments.

9-10:45am: After taking a quick break to clean up my dishes from breakfast, I came back to my computer to work on some individual work. I did some reading in the “Treatment Manual for for Anorexia Nervosa: A Family-Based Approach” and worked on a project for a patient group session I will be leading this week.

10:45-11:45am: Observed nutrition group.

11:45-12:15pm: Time for lunch! This week for lunch I have been enjoying this delicious salad with a tasty homemade ginger dressing! Another salad recipe I will be adding to my rotation! I also had some sea salt crackers on the side.

12:20pm: I headed over to Mott’s Children Hospital to observe “Session 2” of FBT for one of the new patients and her family. The previous Monday I got to observe Session 1, which is where the therapist gets a more detailed history of the family and the eating disorder and charges the parents with the very difficult task of restoring their child’s weight. FBT takes the approach that the parents are the people in the best position to help their child defeat this deadly illness, and that it is their role to do whatever it takes to feed them and get them back to a healthy weight. They are given general nutrition advice (such as to “feed an amount and types of food that you think are appropriate for your starving child”) and are given additional help in this area as needed. In Phase 1 of FBT the parents are in total control of meals and snacks for the child and in Phase 2 this is very gradually handed back to the child. Phase 1 is extremely challenging as the eating disorder will do whatever it can to avoid eating and to not do what the parents are desperately trying to have the child do.

1-2:30pm: Observed Session 2, “The Family Meal.” This is where the parents bring a meal to the hospital for the family to eat and the therapist observes, providing guidance as needed. The parents are instructed to bring for the child a quantity of food that they deem appropriate. The hope is that the eating disorder will “make its presence known” and that the therapist can help the parents to achieve some sort of control/victory over the eating disorder, such as getting the child to eat one more bite than she would like. For obvious confidentiality reasons, I won’t share the details of what happened during the specific family meal I observed! It was a fascinating and emotionally taxing experience as you can imagine.

2:30-3pm: I headed home and before our 3pm meeting and had a snack of honeycrisp apple, parmesan cheese, and cranberry orange bread.

3-4pm: I was able to listen in on a teaching meeting where the physician was presenting on medical complications of eating disorders. While most of it was review to me, it was a nice overview and refresher!

4-5:20pm: Household work and chores! Usually my routine is to do laundry, any cleaning (this day I vacuumed), and making lunches for the next day. I like to listen to music to help make this time more enjoyable! It is generally a nice change of pace after working all day.

5:20pm: I left to head to my counseling appointment!

6-7pm: Counseling appointment – I have been seeing this counselor for two years and she is fabulous!

7-7:35pm: Headed home from counseling, then changed into my pajamas before sitting down with Alec for a later dinner. We usually eat at more like 6:45pm unless we have counseling or something else in which case dinner ends up being a bit later.

7:40-8:30pm: Dinner of leftover salmon with sun-dried tomato pesto, quinoa, brussels sprouts, and salad. If I have something in the evening I like to make dinner the night before so that we can have leftovers the next day. Alec and I spent time chatting and then I also enjoyed some unpictured dark chocolate and almond milk!

8:30-8:45pm: Cleaned up the kitchen.

8:45-9:30pm: Got ready for bed and then spent time journaling, praying, and reading, which is what I generally like to do before bed! The more time I have for this the better in my opinion!

That’s a summary of my day! If you have any questions about FBT or what I have learned about treating eating disorders, I would love to chat more!