I was born a perfectionist. Growing up, I didn’t have to be the best at everything, but I had to do the best I personally could in everything that came my way. I never gave up if I didn’t win but it made me want to work harder and better and along with that determination, came the need to ensure that anyone that crossed my path would rise along with me. That they too would be motivated and equipped with the power and knowledge to make the decisions that were right for them.
Then along came my family, adding another dimension and a whole host of challenges as they usually do. So I am still the same person but perfectionism has had to take a backseat where family is concerned. Try telling your kids that fruit and vegetables are good for their bowel movements, that drinking more water and eating their lunch at school will help prevent some of the headaches. Try telling your skinny 15 year old that protein shakes are not going to miraculously make you put on weight if you are hardly eating in the first place! Didn’t I have my finger on absolutely everything!? Wasn’t I the bomb at helping people understand the crucial importance of nutrition? Clearly in the world of family, that ship had sailed. Every so often I stealthily slip in my expertise when I can, but essentially I have resigned myself to making a few concessions to the wild and wonderful eating habits of my two sons and my hubby, aka ‘my third son’. Some battles cannot be won. So people, when you come across me in the shopping aisles and you surreptitiously look into my trolley, don’t be shocked to discover a 2 litre bottle of cola, a loaf of best of both or a packet of crisps along with the seed bread, greens and apples. Oh and some fresh cream and some butter because one of the many hats I wear, is passionate cook and chef wanna-be. Sometimes I have to fight the urge to just make fabulously rich decadent meals every day. I am not all about ‘eat your veggies and low-fat milk didn’t kill anyone, for pete’s sake’. On occasion I give in, because life is not black and white and sometimes we need to let in the grey to give it balance. And guess what? It’s okay to go off your latest diet for the day or feed your kids a takeaway. It’s really about what you do for the majority of the time that is important. Beating yourself over the head because you ate a piece of cake or gave your child some crisps, just causes such negative emotions around food, that you sabotage your own efforts of being healthy for the most part of your day or week. And this brings me to my interaction with people outside my family circle, be they friends, colleagues, clients and patients.
Recently, I ‘liked and shared” an Australian face book campaign by dietitians for dietitians. I thought it was a brilliant idea and one that our profession sorely needs around the world. And then the comments started coming in thick and fast! Wow…what support I thought…great…so the world at large does in fact value us nutrition experts! Boy was I in for a rude awakening. The greater public, obviously for the greater good, proceeded in spewing forth such vitriolic sentiments that I found myself rushing to find the nearest rock I could hide under!….and this wasn’t even South African rantings. So what does the South African public think about dietitians? I was torn between seeking out the most comfy bug-free rock I could find or continue as I have been doing…loving my profession, caring for complete strangers and making a difference in my family, in my community, in my world?
The comments were wide-ranging. However from the little I could bring myself to read, people seemed to view dietitians as archaic in knowledge, behind the times and totally useless, if they didn’t hop on the ‘latest low carb, no carb, protein and full fat is good for you’ bandwagon; that we were struggling with unemployment, underpayment and little recognition because we have nothing to offer. I knew going into the profession that I was definitely not going to be earning anything close to high figures. The reason I got into this field is so I could help others. I watched close family members suffer because they did not understand the importance and impact of nutrition in dealing with their medical conditions. So no matter how many diets, supplements and fads pop up and no matter how many people will swear by them, there will be the others that have not been helped. I will always be relevant. I will remain relevant for the person that cannot find their perfect fit and needs help. I will remain relevant to the people who find it hard to decipher the many conflicting bits of information found on the internet. I want to be there for the person that falls along the way because they cannot be 100% perfect in how they eat and manage their issues with food. I want to be able to help them up, explain to them that life isn’t perfect, so how can they be? That with understanding, perseverance and a whole load of patience they will achieve their goals.
Strive not for perfection…but peace of mind.