True wellness is supported by health-promoting behaviors
Learn to make peace with your body and peacefully work toward your wellness goals through nutrition therapy and body image coaching.
Meet your dietitian
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Hi, I’m Shelby
At an early age, navigating a chronic medical condition that demanded a lot of focus on my food and body, and a culture ridden with diet messaging, my relationship with my food, body, and health became painfully distorted and wounded.
For years, I struggled in isolation as I wrestled with what makes a body "good", where I could find or earn my worth, and how my health and food behaviors might play a role in it all.
My story is probably like yours…
As a lifelong Catholic Christian, I knew intellectually that God loved me as I was.
And yet, in my heart, there was a disconnect that made it hard to truly believe that my body was inherently good....regardless of its size, shape, appearance, or even health status.
Finding my purpose
I hid my struggles from my loved ones, and when I went away to college, the beliefs I had been harboring led to a lot of mentally, physically, and emotionally unhealthy behaviors.
On a whim, I changed my Undergraduate Major from Health Sciences and Pre-Med, to Nutrition and Dietetics.
While this decision was motivated at the time by my unhealthy obsession with "eating healthily", it opened the door to allow me to eventually do this work that I am so passionate about now.
Eventually–and providentially–I found the resources I needed to
bring healing into my relationship with my food and body.
The difference this has made in my life is truly extraordinary and overwhelms me with gratitude.
Carrying the heart of my story with me, I went on to complete my clinical training as a Registered Dietitian with the St. Louis VA Medical Center, where I focused my study on body image, chronic illness, and peaceful and intuitive nutrition intervention.
Since then, I have dedicated my career to helping women make peace with their food, their bodies, and their health.
In 2021, Good Body Nutrition was born out of this mission.
My Mission
To help women make peace with their food, bodies, and health, so they can share their light with the world and live fully alive.
“The glory of God is man fully alive” - St. Irenause
My Values
Peace:
I believe that humans were created for peace that passes all understanding, and that, despite all of the hurt and brokenness in life, that it is possible to find peace in all circumstances.
This peace enables us to find meaning and hope and inherent joy.
Belonging:
I also believe that humans were made for relationship. We have an innate desire to be known, and seen, and accepted. To belong. This integral need for belonging motivates so much of what we do.
Understanding that we are made for belonging and inherently worthy of that belonging helps root us in peace, and challenges the human tendency to strive for acceptance at any cost.
My Philosophy
Through my worldview as a Catholic Christian, I recognize the dignity and goodness of every human life—regardless of body size, shape, or function. Given this theological understanding of bodies, my approach to nutrition and health often starkly contrasts the ‘health’ messages promoted in our culture.
This means that…
I respect the natural diversity of body shapes and sizes
I acknowledge that physical, emotional, and mental well-being are all important
I reject the distorted message that our worth is found in our appearance, weight, or even health
As a Nutrition Therapist, I specialize in intuitive eating, body acceptance, and recovery from chronic dieting and disordered eating, as well as managing chronic medical conditions from a peaceful and evidence-based approach.
My philosophy is rooted in the Health at Every Size (HAES®) approach, as I acknowledge that true wellness is supported by health-promoting behaviors, not rigid food/exercise rules or even a certain number on the scale.
What my clients are saying
A little bit about me…
In addition to helping women feel more at peace in their bodies and I love:
Listening to Penny & Sparrow
Moody thunderstorms
The Divine Mercy Chaplet
Fun-flavored lattes
Going on hikes with my College Sweetheart and 3 wildly lovely kids.
It brings me great joy to support individuals as they do the hard and important work of restoring peace and wellness within their lives; if you think that you could benefit from nutrition counseling with me, I would be honored to journey alongside you as you seek to be fully alive in your good body.
Frequently Asked Questions
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I work primarily with women 18 years and older.
Individuals may find me an especially good fit for their needs if they value being able to incorporate a Christian/Catholic worldview and approach into their counseling, and if they are open to exploring a new understanding of health and wellness that may be different from the diet-focused education so many of us received growing up.
If your main/only goal for nutrition counseling services is to lose weight, we may not be a good fit. (Here's why)
That said, I find that most of my clients who have weight loss goals also have other underlying health goals that we can identify together and intentionally work toward. You don't have to, "love the body size you are in" to work with Good Body Nutrition, you just need to be open to considering an approach that uses parameters other than weight to measure health and progress.
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Exciting news! Good Body Nutrition is in the process of becoming credentialed with some insurance providers (in select states).
If you are interested in using insurance benefits for nutrition counseling, please feel free to bring it up in your discovery call so we provide updates on our credentialing status and set expectations for coverage.
For clients that will not be covered by insurance, services are private pay.
Good Body Nutrition can provide superbills that you can use for possible reimbursement with your insurance provider.
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For the vast majority of clients, sessions will be held virtually on the HIPAA-protected platform, Healthie.
There is select availability for in-person sessions for individuals local to Saint Louis, Missouri.
There is an additional $25 fee for in-person sessions.
Virtual sessions are always an option for local clients as well.
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Absolutely! At Good Body Nutrition, we love to collaborate with your team (physicians, therapists, psychiatrists, etc.) to help provide cohesive, and effective care.
Doing so simply requires a formal Release of Information signed by you.
Want to work together?
Reach out today and let’s get started on your journey to healing.