Marissa Uhlhorn

FSHN 486-A

Counseling Practicum

Self-Evaluation

During my counseling practicum, I was able to gain a better understanding of what it looks like to actually apply nutrition among the community. It was amazing to finally put what I’ve learned in various classes into practice. I was able to share my knowledge during a few Healthy You classes, and was surprised what these community members needed; basic nutrition/health information. I enjoyed observing counseling and teaching methods being put into practice by the dietitians with a wide variety of clients that we saw. It is truly a teaching opportunity that these dietitians have when counseling clients. I absolutely cannot wait to be able to share the knowledge I have learned in other courses as well as this practicum with clients of my own someday.

I am very thankful that Kelsey and Lauren gave me a larger role with the Healthy You class. I felt that I was able to gain confidence talking in front of this population and sharing basic nutrition information and advice with them. I could tell that this group genuinely listened and appreciated what I had to say. In addition, Emily and I were given the opportunity to speak about the KANC through a Resource Fair for individuals with roles in CSU’s Apartment Life. I enjoyed representing the KANC and talking to a variety of international students/mentors about the importance of nutrition, health, and accessibility of the on-campus resource that all students are given through the nutrition center. It was a completely different population to speak to, as we geared our answers that they had specifically towards the international population. It was amazing how interested and excited these individuals were to share what we told them about the KANC with other students living within their apartments.

Something that I was both surprised but absolutely loved, was the wide variety of clients I was able to observe during their counseling sessions. The population ranged all the way from a Korean lady with pre-diabetes to a 16 year old cross country athlete, to an 82 year old woman with IBS. What a unique experience for me to be able to listen, observe, and learn from the dietitians that counseled this variety of clients! I appreciated that before each session, the dietitian would sit down with me and explain a bit about the client that we were about to see. Lauren showed me the nutrition analysis and calculations she had done for the high school athlete and how she planned to approach some of his goals. Afterwards, we would debrief and discuss any questions/additional concerns regarding the session. This was an excellent time for me to learn even more about a particular disease/condition, or have specific advice that was given to the client further explained

One of my favorite opportunities was the case study given to me by Shelby. Researching a rather unknown disease all on my own, calculating basic nutritional needs, and writing a meal plan for a client was such a great experience! Learning about Huntington’s disease and what an impact it has on an individual nutritionally, was truly amazing. Just by reading the client’s wife’s emails, I could tell how much she and he wanted to learn to prevent an even faster decline in the client’s health. I took this project into my own hands, asking Shelby when I needed help, but spending the last few weeks in the center researching, brainstorming, and coming up with advice and a meal plan to give to this couple. I

truly hope that what I have done makes a difference in the client’s health as he struggles with a very serious degenerative disease. This type of independent work was a wonderful learning experience for me and I appreciate Shelby trusting me to get the necessary work done.

This summer’s counseling practicum at the KANC was one of the greatest learning experiences I have ever received in my undergraduate years studying nutrition. I cannot begin to explain how much I have learned from such a hands-on, real-life, application-based course. The practicum made me finally realize that it isn’t until you put what you’ve learned into practice and talked with real individuals about nutrition, that you get the overall picture of what it means to work in this field. As someone who loves face to face communication, learning about others, and teaching individuals or groups about something I am passionate about, this type of community setting is where I would love to work someday. I am so thankful for all of the opportunities, learning experiences, and advice I received from each of the wonderful dietitians at the KANC. Someday I hope to be like them, working with the community, teaching the importance of nutrition and health, and making a difference in people’s lives. This practicum has made me even more excited about my future and the field I will be working in soon.

Correspondence