Vanessa is a registered dietitian with a Bachelor’s degree from McGill University and is part of the Ordre des diététistes nutritionnistes du Québec (ODNQ). Vanessa has always been curious about the way food impacts health. Having been raised in an Italian family where food is at the center of every event, Vanessa has always had an interest in cooking and baking, impacting her decision of wanting to work as a dietitian.

 

Vanessa’s interest in working in the field of Eating Disorders came to be with the rise of social media. She quickly became more aware of the misconceptions around food that people are taught and became motivated to bring them to light while helping support those who are struggling. Her goals are to help her clients break down diet culture beliefs and to encourage an Intuitive Eating approach toward food, all while promoting Health-at-Every-Size®. With empathy and compassion, Vanessa offers a safe space for clients to explore their eating behaviours and thoughts surrounding food and exercise. She guides her clients to create sustainable changes throughout their journey of building a healthy relationship with food and their bodies.

 

Due to her love for recreational running, Vanessa has a strong interest in sports nutrition. Vanessa specializes in Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) as well as the impact it has on an athlete’s performance and their daily functions. She has given multiple presentations to the running teams at Dawson College and Concordia University on the topic of RED-S and nutrition for running, as well as collaborated with sports teams to provide nutrition education for their specific sports (soccer, running, hockey). Vanessa also has worked with several college and university-aged students to ensure that they are fueling adequately for the type of sport they are doing.

 

Throughout her time at Sööma, Vanessa has received specialty training to better support her clients according to their needs. She uses Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) in her nutrition interventions, along with FBT (Family Based Treatment) in order to support families of young people struggling with eating disorders. Vanessa is bilingual in English and French and provides insurance receipts.