My Life as an Eating Psychology Coach: Meredith Newell

What made you want to become an Eating Psychology Coach?

Working in the field of nutrition and owning a catering business that focuses on whole, local foods, I couldn’t shake the feeling that pieces were missing. I spend my days talking about food and preparing food, but my clients seemed to need more. I met a woman who had just completed the training, and while she told me about it, goosebumps crept up my arms. The more I learned, the brighter the neon sign in my head flashed, “This is it!” People are more than the sum of their diet and exercise program. They are many-sided and in order to inspire real change, those various aspects need to be addressed. As an Eating Psychology Coach, I now have the tools to explore those areas and to help clients find the root of their challenges.

What do you love about being an Eating Psychology Coach?

Each day, with each client, I am humbled by their willingness to share their stories with me. I live for the opportunity to connect with those around me and participate in their journey and growth. In my practice, I gain more than I give. At the end of the day, I feel full and satisfied. There are few professions that could leave me feeling that way. As an Eating Psychology Coach, I feel like I have answered a calling.

What does your practice look like?

I am blessed to work in a functional medicine clinic, Advantage Integrative Medicine, where Dr. Rollins strives to treat the whole person, not just their symptoms. In functional medicine, nutrition and gut health are the foundation of the practice. Patients are treated as individuals and encouraged to heal themselves through healthy eating, stress relief, supplementation and preventative measures. I specialize in working with patients of all ages to determine what their body needs in terms of diet, movement and relaxation. While not every patient is scheduled specifically for an “Eating Psychology Visit”, I treat each patient using the tools I learned in the course. For example, a patient will be referred to me for delayed food allergy testing, and as we review their results, I mention the importance of slow, relaxed eating for proper digestion. We meet in person and over the phone, depending on the patient’s schedule and location. I have chosen not to structure my visits into packages or programs, because I find that each patient needs something different. Instead, I meet with them and let them determine what amount of support they need. Some patients meet with me once a month, while others like the accountability that comes with weekly visits.

How did your education at the Institute prepare you to work successfully with clients?

I couldn’t imagine a more comprehensive program in that we are taught the material, we immediately implement it in our lives and with our peers and are given a direct line of questioning to guide our clients into self-awareness. Nothing is left unanswered. When I began to see clients, my session was structured and I simply followed the guidelines laid out in the course. After I gained a level of comfort with the material, I pulled away from the structure in favor of a more fluid interpretation of the course. In this way, I make it my own.

What was your favorite aspect of the Training?

At no point in my training did I find it lacking in any way. Working full-time and running a business on the side, I was worried that I wouldn’t have the time to commit to the course. I was pleasantly surprised when I began the program and realized the flexibility it allowed. I loved having the audio files so that I could download them and listen while I cooked. Having the video allowed me to cement the information visually and to take notes. That one-two punch implanted the material in my brain without requiring formal studying. However, the case studies offered me the most riches. Marc’s application of the principles with his clients provided real world examples of cause and effect, completing the picture for me.

How has being an Eating Psychology Coach impacted your professional life/financial well-being?

Before taking this course, I was employed in the same way that I am now. Financially, my life hasn’t changed much—but I didn’t need it to. The training has impacted me more professionally. As I mentioned earlier, I feel content, complete in my position at the clinic. While I will always seek to know more, my knowledge is well-rounded and balanced. I finally have the words to express inklings and impressions that I have had with me for most of my life. I am a better practitioner, and my and my client’s lives are richer for it.

How has being an Eating Psychology Coach impacted you personally?

The gift in any accrued knowledge is the opportunity to grow from it. Like many counselors, I was drawn to this profession after struggling with my own eating issues. I have said to family and friends that the money I invested in this course would have been well spent if all I gained from it was my personal growth. Taking this course invited me to get real with myself. And while I am not completely free from the shackles of my challenges around food, I am equipped with the ability to love myself in spite of them, or maybe even because of them. As I turned up the volume on self-love, other areas of my life followed suit. I have experienced a deeper connection to my husband, family, friends and clients, because knowing myself better allows me to better know others. Loving myself more, increases my love for others. Being more compassionate with myself, makes me more compassionate to others.

What do you see for yourself in your future as an Eating Psychology Coach – where is your work evolving towards?

The future has seemed less interesting to me since completing this course. I am so enraptured with the right now. For most of my adult life, I have been working toward the next big thing. Assuring myself that, once I reached whatever goal I laid out, I would be content. For the last six months, I have found that my yearning for change has ceased. I am finally comfortable in my own skin and in the life that I have created. I am completely open to whatever comes next, because I know whatever it is, it will be good.

Why Would You Recommend the Training to Others?

This training offers more than just a new career; it offers you a relationship with yourself. The material applies to everybody, everywhere, which makes your potential for clientele infinite. Saying “yes” to this course means saying “yes” to a fuller life, not only for you, but for anyone who has the pleasure of knowing you.

NAME: Meredith Newell
BUSINESS: Taproot

BIO: As a graduate of the Institute for the Psychology of Eating, the world’s
leading school in nutritional psychology, Meredith is at the forefront of a
powerful, new, holistic nutritional healing movement that’s changing the
way we understand food, weight, body image, holistic nutrition, and health.

Teaching “mind-body nutrition” Meredith looks at the psychophysiology of
how digestion, assimilation, calorie burning and all the nutritive
functions of the body are impacted by stress, relaxation, thought, emotion,
pleasure, our personal story, eating rhythm, eating speed, awareness, and
so much more. WHAT we eat is half the story of good nutrition. The other
half of the story is WHO we are as eaters.

Practicing “dynamic eating psychology” she encourages a positive approach
that sees all of our eating concerns as an opportunity for growth and
transformation, exploring how our food challenges are here to teach us,
rather than enemies to be attacked, and looking to uncover the connections
between our personal world and our unwanted eating habits.

Meredith is skilled in teaching nutrition principles for general health,
weight loss, delayed food allergies, and disease specific diets such as for
diabetes or kidney disease. She is an expert in treating intestinal
disorders such as “leaky gut”, dysbiosis and even autoimmune conditions
such as Crohn’s disease.

Meredith’s work at the IMC is complemented by her boutique catering
company, Taproot, which focuses on providing healthy, locally sourced
meals. She shares her passion for food through cooking classes, recipes,
meal plans, grocery store tours and weekly meals for our patients.