Navigating Overthinking in Your Health Journey

“I thought about starting an ‘overthinkers anonymous group,’ but I couldn’t make up my mind.” – Anonymous

Hi, I’m Laura and I am an overthinker. I’ve been this way my whole life and it has both served me and held me back. When it comes to my health journey, recently it has lately been causing confusion and unnecessary complication. I’ll bet I am not alone on this path and that many of you will connect to this post.

Back in January of this year, I made the decision for my health to switch to a whole food plant based lifestyle. Like most overthinkers, I have strong analytical skills and used them to learn about this lifestyle. I enrolled in courses, became a certified health coach and learned new ways to cook. For me, learning is always stimulating and satisfying. Whenever I take something on, I fully immerse myself in the process. In fact, overthinkers are thorough and consider multiple aspects of a situation, which can lead to better decision-making and problem solving. This trait has served me well in my life and especially my career.

Overthinking can cause problems, as over time conflicting information, especially in the health and wellness industry, can cause confusion. There are multiple research studies to be found on any topic and all provide “scientific” evidence to support their claims. In my case, my need to ensure my health and wellness, led me to so much information and caused what’s known as analysis paralysis. This simply means that my overthinking led to indecision, which caused me to make unnecessary changes and ultimately led to confusion. My confusion caused me to over complicate my eating and then led to me doubting my ability to sustain this lifestyle.

Instead of changing course, I decided to seek someone out who could help fill in gaps in my understanding of my specific nutritional needs. I decided to work with a Registered Dietitian (RD) to better understand how to put information I learned into practice. You would think this would be an easy task, but it was most definitely not. It was very hard to find someone I felt comfortable working with who had a strong understanding of plant based lifestyles. Most RD programs do not have a specific focus on plant based foods, rather they cover it as one component in a holistic program. Sometimes this means spending as little as one week on the topic. When it comes to plant based and vegan lifestyles, it was important to me that I find a RD who specialized in plant based/vegan lifestyles, or was personally living it.

I finally found a dietitian that I feel comfortable with and am so excited to begin learning from her. I did, however, hit a few roadblocks along the way before I found her, so I want to share my experience to perhaps help you avoid making the same mistake.

Finding the Right Registered Dietitian For You:

1. Search Your Healthcare Provider List for Participating Dietitians
   • This didn’t work well for me, as my search for Registered Dietitians mostly led to weight loss centers focused on surgery. It was hard to find one that didn’t specialize in that, and there were no plant-based RDs in my area.
2. Search Online for Dietitians Near You
   • There were none to be found in my area.
3. Search Online for Registered Dietitians
   • This search provided me with some leads. My next step was to set up interview meetings to see if we would be a good fit. This specific process led me to make a poor decision, but we learn from our mistakes.

Ensuring the Right Fit For Your Needs:

1. Research Providers
   • It’s important to read through the provider’s website and ensure they speak to what you are seeking. I’d also do some google searching on the providers, as well as a social media search. See what others have said about working with them.
2. Set up a Meeting on Zoom
   • I no longer work with anyone before I spend time speaking in a Zoom. If they are not providing a consultation meeting, then they are not for me. I would have know immediately that the first RD I met with was not a good fit for me and could have avoided wasting time and money.
3. Be Careful of Programs
   • There are many programs out there that come up when searching for Registered Dietitians. They use the right words, but tread carefully. I had a consultation with one of these companies back at the end of August. I explained what I was seeking clearly and the woman I met with was just incredible. I signed up to work with this company, thinking I’d be working with her, for five months. I feel like it was a bait and switch routine, as the person I met with was NOT the person I work with. And, when I expressed my concern I was told I needed to trust them. When I emailed a second time, I received no response. This was an expensive lesson to learn, but learn I did. I just had a similar situation and knew enough to say no to this even more expensive program. Be careful as there are a lot of these types of programs. If it sounds like it’s too good to be true, it most likely is.
4. Avoid Long Term Initial Contracts
   • I will no longer sign a long term contract to work with someone. There is no reason I would need to do this and I should have known better. I am paying monthly for a program that is not truly meeting my needs. If they are trying to lock you in, walk away. Reputable providers do not need to make you do this.

I finally feel like I am back on solid footing and have a strong plan moving forward. I felt better just from my initial meeting with the dietitian on Friday. She explained my blood work in a manner that I understood and she eased my mind about the concerns I had. She cleared up some misconceptions I had and is currently mining through the data I sent her. I am a data geek and was so glad she wanted the information I have. I am cutting back on the information I am taking in at this point. I plan to follow her guidance and find more clarity around my plant based food choices.

Have you had a similar experiences with overthinking? or, looking for a wellness provider? Would you like to share your story? So many of us are on this path to reclaiming our health and I’d love to feature your story in a future blog. Please reach out to me and let me know about your journey. We all can gain motivation and help each other through this sharing. Reach out to me at laurakump@reclaiminghealth.blog, on Instagram, or in the comment section below.