Hi, I'm Mellissa.
A Registered Holistic Nutritionist in the Okanagan, and a fairly ordinary person who happens to think a lot about food.
I didn't come to nutrition through a perfect diet. I came to it the way most people do — feeling not quite right, getting conflicting advice from every direction, and slowly realising that nobody was looking at the whole picture.
What I found, once I started studying properly, was that most of the useful stuff isn't complicated or expensive. It's unglamorous. It's eating enough protein at breakfast. It's fibre. It's not skipping lunch and then wondering why 4pm feels the way it does. The complicated part isn't knowing what to do — it's working out which two or three things will make the most difference to you, and then actually fitting them into the life you already have.
That's the whole job, as far as I'm concerned.
Where I come from
I am Secwépemc, with family ties to northern Secwépemc territory. My Secwepemctsín name is Simpachin, which means “first light of the day.”
I love learning about traditional foods and medicines, eating with the seasons, and the food traditions of cultures around the world. I'm still learning, and I'm careful with it. Traditional knowledge belongs to the communities and Knowledge Keepers who carry it, and I don't claim to speak for them.
In my practice I work as a Registered Holistic Nutritionist. I don't practise traditional medicine. What I bring is respect for where food comes from, and curiosity about the foods that matter to you.
What I believe about food
Food comes first
Whenever it's realistic, I'd rather change something on your plate than add something to your cupboard. Whole food does things no capsule can, and the habits you build stay with you long after a bottle runs out.
That said, I'm not a purist about it. Life is busy and sometimes a supplement genuinely fills a gap. When that's the case I'll tell you why, what to look for, and what to check with your pharmacist first.
Every body is different
There is no single right diet. Your digestion, your genetics, your medications, your sleep, your stress, your culture and what you actually enjoy eating all shape what will work. The plan that transformed your sister's energy may do nothing for you, and that's normal — not a failure on your part.
You should understand why
One of my main goals is that you leave knowing the reasoning, not just the instructions. If you understand why we're moving your protein to breakfast, you can adapt it when your week falls apart. If you only have a rule, the rule breaks.
No fear, no hype
You won't get scare tactics from me, and you won't get miracle claims. I'm not going to tell you a food is toxic to sell you a cleanse. If something is genuinely worth being cautious about, I'll say so plainly and in proportion.
What a Registered Holistic Nutritionist is — and isn't
This matters, so I want to be direct about it rather than bury it in a footer.
A Registered Holistic Nutritionist is a nutrition educator. I work with food, eating patterns and lifestyle habits, and I help people make sense of the nutrition information they're drowning in.
What I do:
- Take a detailed history of what you eat, how you live and what you're hoping to change
- Help you build eating patterns that fit your actual week
- Explain nutrition science in plain language, including where the evidence is genuinely uncertain
- Work alongside your doctor, midwife, pharmacist or specialist — not instead of them
What I don't do:
- Diagnose any condition or disease
- Treat, cure or prevent disease, or claim that food or supplements will
- Order, run or interpret medical tests
- Tell you to stop, start or change a medication — that's between you and your prescriber
- Replace medical care, therapy, or a registered dietitian where one is needed
"Registered Holistic Nutritionist" is a designation from a private professional body, not a government-regulated health profession in British Columbia. It is a different thing from a Registered Dietitian, which is a protected, provincially regulated title. I think you should know the difference before you hire anyone, including me.
A few things that aren't on my CV
I live in the Okanagan and I'm not going anywhere. Most of my summer is spent on or near the water, and a good chunk of my grocery budget goes to whatever the farm stands have that week.
I cook well but not fancily. On a Tuesday I eat the same five dinners as everyone else. I drink coffee, I eat bread, and I have strong feelings about tomatoes in February.
I say all that because I think it matters who you're taking advice from. I'm not going to hand you a plan I wouldn't follow myself.