HEY FAM BAM & FELLOW RD2BES!!

The past few weeks have been hectic AF as I’ve been getting acclimated to my chaotic schedule! I’ve been trying to think of a fun way to document my dietetic internship journey with you guys and a series of “D.I.aries” would be the perf way to!

I’ve heard SO MANY horror stories of the internship and was pretty terrified going into it. As an undergrad, I was always stressed about my grades, work experience, and ultimately, getting matched for the dietetic internship. But, I had no clue what to expect… I wish I could have learned more about what to expect as a dietetic intern. Now that I’m finally starting my internship, I want to share my experience with you guys so you know what to expect when you enter your internship and can steer clear of the mistakes I made!

My dietetic internship boot camp started the week of August 26th. Stress-wise, boot camp was very comparable to finals week; we had to memorize a whole medical terminology textbook in one week and were quizzed each day. My rotations started the following week. I’ve been in my internship for a few weeks, but wanted to answer some questions you guys have so far!

I’m excited to document my experience going through the internship from start to finish! This way, we can see what I learn and how my perspective may evolve!

I grabbed a few common q’s you guys had and answered them down below:

Q+A

How to land an internship? Tips for your personal statement?

I wrote a blog post (HERE) sharing where I applied, 5 tips for applying ( including tips for writing your personal statement ), and my match story! I also feature Winnie from @winniesbalance in another blog post ( HERE ).

I talk A LOT about my personal statement in the blog post. TBH, I was considering sharing my personal statement on the blog. My only concern is that if I share it, it will limit your thought process to how I wrote mine.

Personal statement Sparknotes: it’s basically about my long term goals as a dietitian: to deliver evidence-based information as a registered dietitian and refute anecdotal, unsubstantiated claims made on the internet. ( #IYKYK!! )

I was concerned that the program directors ( who are usually more old school ) wouldn’t appreciate the intersection of nutrition and social media, but I quickly learned during my internship that there are so many opportunities for dietitians online.

Public health nutrition is in high demand right now. Most dietitians are working in a hospital setting, but my goal is to keep people OUT of the hospital through primary prevention. Obstacles of primary prevention include: a lack of education on chronic disease prevention through diet, financial barriers to purchasing healthy food, and a lack of resources for consumers to learn how to eat healthy on a budget. Social media and blogs are a SUPER inexpensive way to educate the population!

What did you prepare before starting the internship?

HAH!! I wish I prepped more TBH!!

Before my internship, I had to get some vaccinations, blood tests, and certifications.

Aside from that, I didn’t really “study” prior to the internship. Before each new rotation, I email my preceptor asking where to park, if there is a safe place to store my belongings, what to bring, and if there is any material I should review so I can best prepare for my experience. I’m currently at WIC and they didn’t require that I prepare ahead of time. I’m scheduled to prepare a lesson and meal plan for Lunch Bunch at a high school for four days this semester. I have only gone to the high school once so far and found that knowing how to convert measurements, estimate calories, and prepare a creative meal on a budget were important. I learned a lot about conversion and estimating calories just by experience on AHTK and reading labels.

My first week was a dietetic internship boot camp. AKA, HELL ON EARTH! Don’t get me wrong, I loved my professor; she was hyper competent and VERY empathetic, but the class was extremely stressful. We studied and were quizzed on an entire medical terminology textbook ( prefix, suffix, root, and abbreviations ) in one week. We had four fill in the blank quizzes and were required to get at least an 80% on each quiz ( or else we were required to retake it ) and an 84% average to pass the class. We had class from 9:30-1:00 and would have orientation at a rotation site afterwards ( I had two orientations that week ), then come home and study as much as we could.

I had a mental breakdown on the drive home the first day because I was so overwhelmed. Long story short, it was raining hard on my drive home and was so overwhelmed that I broke down crying and cried even harder because I couldn’t see… Literally a recipe for disaster. Then I had a couple more mental break downs when I wasn’t sure if I would achieve the 84% to pass the class. Spoiler alert: I did! 😉

Looking back, I wish I prepared and took the time to look ahead at the terms. I CAN’T RECOMMEND THIS ENOUGH !!

This q will likely have a very different answer when I start my clinical rotations next semester… #TBD

How do you overcome doubts when you’re pursuing something you’re passionate about?

I pursued the dietetic internship with the intention of gaining the knowledge and experience to become a well-rounded, competent RDN. Going into the internship, I knew that most of my rotations wouldn’t be at a setting I see myself working in long term, and that’s okay!! I find it extremely important to keep an open mind and to understand and appreciate the value of each site.

I’m in my public health semester and my rotations include: WIC, a food pantry, a high school, and a private practice. Every site has a unique experience and specialty area that is different from the rest. To become a well-rounded, competent dietitian, I believe that it’s important to have an understanding and appreciation for the infinite factors that influence food and nutrition. I’ve thought about not pursuing the internship; I could blog and work in marketing with a degree in dietetics, but I find so much value in learning how policy, socio-economic factors, socio-ecological factors, etc. impact this field.

What’s SO UNIQUE about dietetics is that there are so many opportunities in it. Not only are dietitians food and nutrition experts, but also advocated for people to have the right to eat! We speak to politicians about policies ( anything from healthcare policies to environmental policies that influence agriculture to tobacco use ).

I have a good idea of what direction I want to take my career, but I remind myself that I will never have the opportunity to experience working in a variety on unique settings.

What are you planning to do as an RD?

When it comes to my future as a RD, I can’t exactly put myself into one box. I have so may interests in this field and am very grateful that there are so many opportunities. Last summer, I interned for Jenny Westerkamp ( founder of All Access Dietetics, Bulls dietitian, and business bad a$$ ) and Dawn Jackson Blatner ( author, Cubs dietitian, Shape magazine advisor, people magazine diet consultant, TV host [*insert many more dope roles*] ) because they work in many areas of dietetics and I see myself doing so too!

My passion and purpose for pursuing dietetics is to share evidence-based information online. In high school, I noticed that many influencers make unsubstantiated, anecdotal claims online that would potentially: confuse and overwhelm the reader or put the reader at risk for nutritional deficiency or increase their risk of developing or worsening a chronic disease.

As noted earlier, social media and the internet are inexpensive resources for nutrition information, but these platforms often don’t contain accurate, evidence-based information. The online wellness space is very saturated with information that pulls consumers in many directions, and my goal is to educate my readers on evidence-based nutrition information so they can make an informed decision! I also strive to change the narrative about eating healthy. Eating healthy shouldn’t have to be bland or boring. I creating the name AHTK with “kale” in the name on purpose; kale doesn’t have a rep for being a palatable food, so I use this platform to illustrate how to eat healthy while enjoying food! LOVE A PLOT TWIST 😈

Long-term, I’ll continue to create content on AHTK; however, I can also see myself working in the marketing department for a food company whose mission and product I trust and believe in. Marketing has so much influence on consumers choices… Recently at WIC, I learned that shakes for babies are often used by WIC clients because they are marketed as a healthy, nutritious shake. However, these shakes are often creating a calorie surplus and causing these babies to become overweight or obese. Education is key. Marketing is such an important asset to a company and as a dietitian, it’s crucial that we be an advocate for the consumers and ensure that the product is delivering what they want so they can reach their health goals.

♡

There were a few more questions that I didn’t get to because I wanted to get some more experience in the internship to answer them! I always have a lot to say ( LOL ) and promise to get to them!;)

Let me know what you thought of this D.I.aries Q&A – do we want more?!

xx hails