Background
I earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from UNC-Charlotte and my Masters in Human Nutrition from Winthrop University. I have worked in the clinical setting but mostly in the wellness and sports world since my undergraduate days. As a Board-Certified Sports Dietitian, I use evidence-based research with the gentle nutrition model of Intuitive Eating to guide athletes and non-athletes to trust their hunger cues and choices to fuel their success.
Experience
I have spent the last nine years teaching nutrition at UNC-Charlotte and the past five years at Queens University of Charlotte. At Queens University I have also had the pleasure of working with athletics as their sports dietitian and this is where my experience as an athlete, ED survivor and body acceptance ambassador really came together and allowed me to teach courses like "Diet Culture You Suck." I have interests in sports nutrition, Relative Energy Deficient in Sport (RED-S) and building positive body images in our youth through parental body image and acceptance work. I also have a personal interest in celiac disease as I was diagnosed in May of 2018.
Practice Philosophy
I operate on the foundation that every single person has what they need inside them to heal. Pulling from different modalities that include research, experience, somatic processing and experiencing, motivational interviewing and trauma informed care I work alongside patients to help increase their capacity for discernment with their felt body.
Email: christindowrd@gmail.com