Posts tagged ‘Nutrition Education’

October 23, 2012

Massaged kale, pate, and lots of fun: Whole Foods Cooking class, Dec. 8 & 9

What do massaged kale, nut milk, dolmas, pate and lots of laughter have in common? One of The Wellspring School’s Whole Foods Cooking classes! As part of our Wholistic Nutrition Program, students are required to take two whole foods cooking weekends, where they learn how to create menus, work with real foods to address various sensitivities and dietary requirements and build the tools needed to help future clients.

And did we mention fun and lots of food? The cooking classes are open to the public, space permitting. The next cooking class is coming up on Saturday and Sunday, December 8th & 9th, from 9:00-5:00 both days. The class is led by Tressa Yellig, owner and executive chef of Portland’s Salt, Fire and Time. December’s class will include lessons on fermentation, working with ingredients on hand, adding spice to dishes, menu planning and so much more!

For more information or to register for the class, click here. Below are some photos from our last Whole Foods Cooking class. We had a blast!

Currently enrolling for our Wholistic Nutrition Program, starting in January 2013!

October 13, 2012

Get the Skinny on Blood Sugar and How to Manage It!

The media is teeming with articles warning us of the meteoric rise of Metabolic Syndrome and Diabetes in the US.  Do you have the most current information?

Do you wonder how you might best prevent blood sugar problems for yourself and/or for your clients and loved ones?  Michael Gaeta LAc, CND, will be offering a Sunday morning micro workshop on Optimizing Glycemic Control.  This class will give you a snapshot of how to deal with blood sugar issues wholistically.   You will leave better educated, and with the necessary tools to maintain healthy glycemic levels for life.

This class is open to student and health care practitioners, as well as the community.

The class is eligible for Continuing Ed credits.

I want to personally encourage you to consider taking this class with us at The Wellspring School.  I can say firsthand that Michael is an inspired and informed presenter.  I have had the pleasure of knowing and working with Michael for 22 years. We were Amma Therapy classmates, back in the day, and our professional paths continued to cross over the years. Michael used to travel to Idaho to teach our business classes and was so well liked that he still provides mentorship to a handful of practitioners who graduated from those programs.  Michael has taught for Standard Process and Mediherb all over the United States and is always well received.  We are fortunate to have the opportunity to bring him to the Wellspring.  Let’s give him a cheery Portland welcome!

The class is Sunday, Nov. 4th from 9-1pm $40.
book now

December 22, 2011

Portland Wholistic Nutriton Program – Enrollment & Classes Start in January!

We’ve been waiting a long time to be able to make this announcement! Our Portland school branch is now formally licensed by the Oregon State Department of Education and we are officially opening enrollment for our very first Wholistic Nutrition Program in Portland from January 2nd through February 15th, 2012. We will be accepting applications from students who’ve been taking individual classes with us as well as new students who are interested in pursuing program level certification for this nationally recognized program.

Check out our current schedule of classes and download a copy of the current student handbook that includes all of the required registration and application materials as well as info on pricing, payment plans, etc.

Classes for this program will run January 2012 through June 2013. The enrollment period is in tandem with new classes starting up. There are some really great discounts that we will offer to  this first group only!

The next class is Fundamentals of Chinese Medicine on January 21st & 22nd, 2012. After that we have Wholistic Nutrition I & II in February (25th & 26th) and March (17th & 18th). We still offer our classes to the community as well, so if there’s a topic that’s of interest to you, we welcome you to take the class. Check out the classes page on our website for more information on all of these classes.

The program incorporates Eastern (Traditional Chinese Medicine Theory) and Western principles and is a unique opportunity for acupuncturists, Asian body workers, physical therapists, personal trainers, healthcare practitioners, individuals seeking to start a stand-alone practice, or anyone wishing to expand their knowledge of Wholistic Nutrition!

The 280-hour program consists of 18 classes that meet one weekend a month to accommodate busy work schedules and real life demands! This format is ideal for commuters, full-time jobs and anyone with a busy schedule. Classes can also be taken individually for continuing education credits or personal enrichment.

Our past and current student body for this program include RN’s, PT’s, OT’s, Amma Therapists, Bodyworkers, Teachers, and many folks from different professions, all of whom tell us this program has given them some of the best tools possible in applying the benefits of nutrition.

It’s really a great program that we believe can make a difference. What are you waiting for? Contact us with any questions. 503.688.1482 or info@thewellspring.org.

“Currently I am incorporating the knowledge and wisdom(learned from The Wellspring School Wholistic Nutrition Program classes) to enhance my already established physical therapy practice. The combination couldn’t be better.” 
T. Hindson, CPT, CHN

December 8, 2011

National Association of Nutrition Professionals December E-Zine – Nutritional Tips, Recipe & Spotlight on The Wellspring School!

This month the National Association of Nutrition Professionals has some great tips on maintaining adrenal health through the holidays and beyond in their December E-Zine. In addition, there is a great recipe contributed by one of our current Boise Wholistic Nutrition Program students, Florence M-R (shown in the pic cooking away!) and yours truly for a pumpkin pudding/pie that’s sure to please for a holiday dessert that’s GF, DF and just plain yummy!

Even more exciting is that we are officially launching our Wholistic Nutrition Certification Program in Portland in January 2012!  We are very pleased to be able to bring this program in its entirety to the Portland community. Contact the school office at 503.688.1482 or send us an email at info@thewellspring.org for more info on how to register.

Rachael Myles
Director, The Wellspring School for Healing Arts
 
November 11, 2011

What’s Cooking at The Wellspring School?

WHAT A GREAT CLASS!

Last weekend in Boise, Wholistic Nutrition students had the opportunity to don aprons and roll up their sleeves for two days in the kitchen with Tressa Yellig, Executive Chef and Owner of Salt, Fire & Time in Portland. Tressa kept the students going non-stop with two packed days. Topics covered included -cooking with spices, working with ingredients you have on hand, making tasty substitutions (GF, DF, SF, etc.), re-working traditional Thanksgiving dishes, cooking with different meat cuts, and fermentation. Oh, and lots of tasting!

Needless to say, students left tired but happy lugging jars of homemade ginger ale and goji berry sauerkraut, lots of new recipes  and increased confidence in their ability to make healthy and tasty foods for all kinds of dietary needs for themselves and future clients. Cooking classes are part of our nutrition program and an incredible hands on experience. Probably the best “lab” class you will ever come across. We will be offering additional cooking classes in 2012 so stay tuned.

The next nutrition class is this weekend (11/12 & 11/13) in Portland, Western Nutrition I. Check out our website for a complete listing of classes in both Boise and Portland.

Check out some pics from the weekend below.

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October 19, 2011

Meet Bari Mandelbaum – New Wellspring Nutrition Instructor!

We feel very fortunate to be able to work with some very talented teachers. One of our newest instructors, Bari Mandelbaum, CHN, CN, has joined us to teach a number of our nutrition classes. Bari is a Board Certified Holistic Nutritionist, Holistic Health Provider, Herbalist, and Somatics Coach. Her areas of expertise include interventions for blood sugar dysregulation, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, hormone imbalance, low libido, digestive disorders, and autoimmune disorders.

Bari was in Boise last month and scheduled to be in Portland in November and December to teach two of our Fundamentals of Nutrition classes. There’s still time to register for Fall classes, by the way!

Check out the below Q&A to get a little more insight into Bari, the field of Holistic Nutrition and a true testament of how big an impact diet can have on health.

Welcome, Bari!

Q: How did you end up as a practitioner in the field of nutrition?

A: I ended up a nutritionist the way many folks end up as health care providers – I was sick and looking for answers.  Back in 1998, my health began an alarming downward spiral. I had been a vegetarian, athlete, self-defense instructor and semi-professional dancer in addition to holding down a full-time job doing crisis intervention and volunteering in several organizations.  In other words, very active, very busy, and doing everything I thought was the right thing, health-wise.

As my health got worse and worse, I started going to my medical doctor to try and get answers and relief.  A year into it, I had only a vague almost-diagnoses, was on 9 prescription medications, and needed a cane to get around.  I had to give up all of my non-work activities and was afraid I was going to lose my job, as every passing day seemed to bring more symptoms and less energy.

I was frustrated and frightened, so I began seeking out alternative health modalities. The first thing I tried that made any significant difference was a diet change.  A friend who was in nutrition school at the time suggested I might be sensitive to gluten. So after grumbling some about how silly that sounded, I stopped gluten as an experiment. Lo and behold, a significant chunk of my chronic daily symptoms were gone within a week.  I wasn’t “fixed”, but boy did I feel better.

I was very enthusiastic and very motivated to learn more at that point, not to mention in need of a career change, so I went back to school to study holistic nutrition.  By the end of my first year of nutrition school, I’d successfully taken myself off all but one of my prescription medications.  By the end of my second year, I was mostly off my cane.  I’ve been in practice now since 2001 and while I need to still be mindful of my health and my level of activity, I no longer use any prescription medications and not only walk, but hike, dance, kayak, and teach nutrition classes among other things!

Q: What is it about your practice today that you find most surprising?

A: My clients are constantly surprising me, both in good and bad ways.  Every time I think I’ve seen it all, someone shows up to the clinic doing something so incredibly outrageous with their diet or health, I am astounded that they’re still alive. And every time I start to doubt the effectiveness of nutrition and lifestyle interventions as a healing modality, the incredible healing I get to witness astounds and humbles me.

Q: How did you choose your areas of specialty?

A: When I was a student and just starting to see a few clients for pay, my very first paying client came in with a diagnosis I’d never heard of before: Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). I was nervous to be working with someone with a diagnosis, and grateful that she trusted me even though I was new, so I wanted to “do right” by her. I began furiously researching her condition and discovered that PCOS is, at its heart, insulin resistance.  My research became the basis for my student final paper, and then became a community workshop, then became my first article in a professional nutrition journal.  In studying PCOS, I had the incredible fortune to dive really deeply into researching the role of blood sugar in hormone imbalance in women.

This set me up nicely to understand how to work with other manifestations of blood sugar related disorders, such as Type II Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome as well as other hormone related dysfunctions, ranging from PMS to Uterine Fibroids to Endometriosis.  Further research showed me the connection between blood sugar, adrenal dysfunction and mood, which led to my work with stress, trauma, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, anxiety and depression.

Struggling to understand my own health has led me to do quite a bit of research into food allergies/sensitivities (and substitution cooking and baking!), autoimmune disorders, digestive disorders, fatigue, and the incredibly powerful interconnections between the thoughts, emotions, physical body/physical health, and spirit.  All of these have also become areas of expertise for me.

Q: You’ve been working in this field for over a decade. What have been the most exciting changes you’ve seen? 

A: I’ve seen many changes, certainly!  Fats and fat-rich foods such as eggs, butter and coconuts are no longer demonized the way they once were; there is more intelligent conversation happening about the importance of each macronutrient in balance (carbohydrates, proteins and fats: we really do need all three to be healthy); there is far deeper and more compassionate conversation happening about weight, weight management, the role of obesity in disease states, and the physical AND emotional harm that dieting can cause.

Q: What have been the biggest disappointments?

A: Less encouraging has been the vicious legal fights that have cropped up over the years that threaten to take away our right to practice holistic nutrition.  I was horrified to find out that one of my nutrition mentors Liz Lipski, PhD, CCN was barred from practicing nutrition counseling in her home State of North Carolina.  Legislation was recently passed there limiting who is allowed to practice nutrition counseling to exclusively A.D.A. registered dietitians.  It doesn’t matter that Liz has a PhD, has written numerous books and articles, and has taught nutrition courses in medical schools; she does not have a basic R.D. license and is therefore barred from practicing.

Q: If you could give any advice to someone wanting to enter this field, what would it be?

A: This is such an incredibly rich field.  Every day there is new information, new techniques, new products, new recipes, new conditions to research, new books to read, new controversies or challenges to learn about and explore.  If you are considering becoming a holistic nutritionist, begin by researching the laws in your state, to make sure you can legally practice where you’d like to be living.  Get excited about the information – you are your own first client!

Those of us in the field MUST practice what we preach if our clients are going to trust us enough to try our recommendations.  Try the foods, herbs, products, or lifestyle changes you are recommending before recommending them; see what works, troubleshoot to see where the problems may lie in the implementation.

Be passionate about what you are doing.  I have been a holistic nutritionist for over ten years.  I look forward to going to work and I truly love what I do.  I practice what I preach consistently and joyfully, because I really believe that these techniques work.  And I am a testament to the effectiveness of healthy diet and lifestyle interventions – with every passing year, my health gets better, my body gets stronger.

The best advice I can give to someone entering any field is this: do what you love. I love nutrition and wellness, I love being engaged in people’s healing journeys, supporting folks through their challenges and cheering with them through their successes.  If that sounds interesting and exciting to you, you’ve come to the right field!

Bari received her Bachelor’s degree with Honors from Stanford University and her four levels of nutrition credentials—Nutrition Consultant, Nutrition Educator, Diet Counselor, and Nutrition Instructor—from Bauman College.  Bari has been working in the field of holistic health and wellness since 2001.

October 12, 2011

Dietary Supplements & Mortality Rate – What’s That About???

Did you all happen to see the somewhat unbelievable slue of articles out earlier this week that stated according to a recent study taking multivitamins could shorten one’s life?   If you missed it, check out the abstract in the AMA Internal Medicine Archives entitled, Dietary Supplements and Mortality Rate in Older Women.  The Alliance for Natural Health has posted a response to the study itself and asks a lot of great questions about the validity of the scientific method applied and subsequent gross generalizations made.

Regardless of your stance on supplementation the bigger issue is how these types of scientifically flawed studies are leveraged in the legislative process and give momentum to the types of bills that would regulate or deny public access to supplementation. We aren’t just talking multivitamins here. These types of studies and corresponding propaganda have the potential to be used against all herbs and supplements.

Below the ANH’s article. Read it!

Shame on AMA’s Archives of Internal Medicine

October 11, 2011

Did you hear the breaking news last night—that multivitamins may shorten your life? Here’s how junk science from the AMA set off the media frenzy.

Bloomberg phrased it this way: “Multivitamins and some dietary supplements, used regularly by an estimated 234 million US adults, may do more harm than good, according to a study that tied their use to higher death rates among older women.” The study’s authors outrageously concluded, “We see little justification for the general and widespread use of dietary supplements.”

Read the rest of the article here!
September 30, 2011

How To Make Coconut Kefir & Open House!

So what does coconut kefir and an Open House have in common? A lot actually!

As part of our overall Wholistic Nutrition Program, we ask our students to constantly try new things and tackle projects where they can explore firsthand the multiple facets of whole foods nutrition. We’re sharing another one of our student projects at the end of this post on making coconut kefir. Coconut Kefir is an awesome source of probiotics, micronutrients and other essential good things for your body. See how a student literally cracks this project wide open!

Now for the Open House Part. We will be hosting a very informal Open House at our school location (214 SE 18th) in Portland next Monday, October 3rd, from 5:00-7:30PM. Click here for directions!

The focus of the evening is to provide an opportunity for any of you who’ve expressed interest in our Wholistic Nutrition Program and/or classes to meet the school directors as well as other prospective students to learn more about the field of wholistic nutrition, career opportunities and our upcoming nutrition classes (which start October 15th!). Find out how you can get in on the fun too! If this is something you’ve been thinking about this is a great opportunity for you to get more information and perhaps even take the plunge and register for classes! There will be prizes, snacks and great fun overall.

Check out our website for more information on individual fall classes that are part of our Fundamentals of Healthy Living class series.

HOW TO MAKE COCONUT KEFIR!

September 13, 2011

Fall/Winter Nutrition Classes in Portland! Sign up now!

 

 

 

 

 

Last weekend kicked of the first in the Fundamentals of Nutrition class series in Portland. There are still 4 more classes coming up, so definitely plenty of time to still register. The next one is October 15th & 16th. You can sign up for one or all of the classes. Each class is $285. If you sign up for 3 classes you get $100 discount. All of these classes are part of our nationally recognized Wholistic Nutrition Program and may be applied towards future certification once the next program level enrollment is offered.  These are great classes for anyone who wants to learn more about nutrition. If you are a practitioner looking for continuing education opportunities or ways to expand your practice, or a person who wants a clearer understanding of nutritional foundations for you and your family, these classes are great!

Check out our website for more information one each class and how to register! Or  simply download our PDX Fall/Winter Classes Registration Form and e-mail (info@thewellspring.org) or fax it to our school office (208.388.0206). Don’t wait! Class size is limited.

 

 

August 2, 2011

Daily Dose I – This Weekend in Boise w/ New Instructor, Jessie Hensley, MS, RD

Anyone taking either the Amma Bodywork Therapy Program or the Wholistic Nutrition Program (WNP) is familiar with Daily Dose classes. Where else can you learn about uses, sources, safety, etc., for vitamins and minerals alongside French Green Clay, Castor Oil Packs and Nettle Tea? This is definitely a unique class packed full of ever evolving information relevant to the holistic healthcare practitioner, nutrition professional or anyone interested in learning more about healthy living. It’s a little different every time and definitely worth repeating!

We are very excited to be offering Daily Dose I this weekend, August 6th & 7th, 9:00-5:30 both days, with one of our new WNP instructors, Jessie Hensley, MS, RD. To give you a feel for Jessie and her approach to nutrition and the upcoming class in particular, we’ve included a recent Q&A with her from our Summer Newsletter. Check it out and if you are interested in taking the class, call the school office to register at 208.388.0206. There are still a couple of spots available. The price of the workshop is $275, but for alumni re-taking it again it’s 50% off!

 

More about Jessie!

Jessie Hensley, a Wellspring Wholistic Nutrition Program Instructor, is dedicated to helping others by exposing them to wholistic health knowledge. She earned her Masters of Science in Nutrition at Bastyr University. Following graduation, she interned at hospitals and became a Registered Dietitian. Currently, Jessie consults with nutrition clients, writes nutrition-related articles, and teaches health topics for Art Institute of Seattle, University of Phoenix, and the YMCA. Jessie will be teaching Daily Dose I in Boise August 6th & 7th.

Q: When did you know this was the path your life would take?
A: I had become increasingly interested in nutrition after years of eating poorly and not feeling very good in my adult life. When it finally became apparent to me that nutrition was such a basic foundation of health, I decided to go to graduate school to study it.

Q: Where are you presently practicing?
A: I am starting my own practice in Seattle this summer, but it doesn’t have a name yet! I’d love to hear some suggestions! I am thinking of something along the lines of “real solutions for regular people.”

Q: How do you challenge yourself to keep up with new knowledge in the field?
A: That is always a challenge, especially in the nutrition field, in which opinions are constantly changing, the media picks and chooses the issues, and new scientific discoveries are constantly being made. To keep up, I read a lot, but I stay grounded by remembering the principles behind traditional nutrition, which don’t really change.

Q: What’s the biggest impact your practice has had on your life?
A: Practicing nutrition has resulted in better health for myself and those I’ve shared my knowledge with.

Q: How did you begin teaching?
A: My first teaching experience was in Japan, teaching conversational English to children and adults. After that, I volunteered as a community nutrition educator during grad school, which was a lot of fun. I also volunteered as a teacher in Ghana. Since then I’ve been teaching undergraduates.

Q: What’s your educational background?
A: My MS in Nutrition was earned from Bastyr University. Upon graduating, I went through a 9-month dietetic internship, to become a Registered Dietitian. During the internship, I worked at hospitals, long-term care facilities, school districts, and community nutrition programs. My BA is in Liberal Arts & Sciences, from Virginia Tech, with concentrations in biology, chemistry, history and journalism.

Q: How does teaching affect your practice and inner life?
A: There’s a saying that you haven’t really learned a subject until you’ve taught it. I think this is very true. I feel that, by teaching nutrition, I can better explain it to my clients. It makes me confident that I know it, inside and out.

Q: How did your life before becoming a teacher prepare to take on the role of teacher?
A: I used to be a pretty shy person, and would never have imagined myself standing in front of a class by choice. I think writing, first for my college newspaper, and then as a freelance writer, helped to bring me out of my shell, as well as giving me experience in clearly communicating ideas to an audience. Moving around a lot and traveling have also helped me become a more social and outgoing person. Both of my parents were teachers at some point, as well, so maybe it’s in the genes.