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HI THERE! WELCOME. I’M LINN.

I work as a Nutrition Therapist and Body Image Coach, helping people, like you, find their way back to a more peaceful relationship with food, eating and their bodies. 

I am also a creative, a podcaster and a dog mum.

My story with food and nutrition have probably been with me most of my life, due to my mother’s interest in this area, long before I was even born.

Like many people who are drawn to doing this kind of work, I too have a history of disordered eating and body image struggles, which started in my later teens and carried on well into my mid 20s. Today I would consider myself well recovered, grounded in following my own body’s wisdom and rhythm for nourishment.

It hasn’t always been an easy journey to find peace and freedom around food and feeling connected with my body. To learn to hate it a little less but instead to take good care of it, in order to live a life that is richer, fuller and more fulfilling than what it was when I was preoccupied with making my body be something it is not.

You will find, info about the work I do; helping people break free from the chains of dieting, restriction, bingeing and body loathing.

I write blog posts on these topics too, and here are some  colourful simple to make recipes, beacuse I love creating in the kitchen, and I love photographing food!

I do this work to inspire and support you to become kinder and more compassionate towards yourself.

Hopefully it will help you to find ways of nourishing yourself and your body, in ways that feels good to YOU.

Plan-in-hands-compressor
Nutrition therapist Linn Thorstensson

My Philosophy

I have been interested in natural healing modalities long before I decided to study nutrition. And, for many years I also had an “unhealthy” relationship with food, eating and my body.

I went from a fairly carefree teenager to one that was caught in the net of Diet Culture, believing that if only my body would be a certain size and the scales would show a particular number, I would be truly happy.

Over the years I have discovered that perhaps at the core of healing our relationship with food, eating and body is a journey of self discovery. A sense of trust and connection with our body. The courage to show up fully embodied. A homecoming.

In a sense my own journey is backwards. When I learned more about the complexities of eating disorders as a professional I began to understand my own story better.

 

I’ve trained in the paradigm “Food as Medicine”, and to an extent I believe this to be true. Our bodies need good quality food and nutrition to nourish our physical selves. However, when we look to food in order to nourish our spiritual selves, when we use food to try and “fix” ourselves and our lives, we lose the balance.

Nutrients by themselves can never fill the deeper desires we have for creativity, self expression and connection. Decoding this, to look beyond our cravings and body disatisfactions leads us on the path of healing, to a place of flexibility, choice and freedom. To a place beyond rigid rules and restrictive plans, to a place where you are capable of nourishing your WHOLE Self.

 

All photos of me are by the fabolous Caroline Callaghan Photography

I believe ALL bodies are worthy of care and support

I am here to be an ally to people in bodies that are marginalised and I recognise the many privileges my own body holds in this current culture. I’m here to continue to dismantle the oppressive systems that keeps us all stuck but that harms some people more than others.

I practice nutrition from a weight inclusive and non diet lens. So you won’t be getting any weight loss advice from me. However I do recognise the immense pressure of trying to conform to current Westernised beauty standard, if you are in a body that doesn’t align with what the culture thinks it aught to be. And the living in a world that doesn’t accommodate for that may make it much harder to not diet.

I believe in body autonomy and that everyone should have the freedom to do with their body what pleases them, as long as it doesn’t harm others. I also believe in informed consent so any intentional weight loss interventions offered should be shared with all potential harmful side effects also disclosed.

My personal ethical stance is that I cannot offer intentional weight loss services as a) the data on long term outcomes is really poor, b) dieting is the leading cause for the development of eating disorders and disordered eating and c) I don’t find it ethical to prescribe a set of behaviours to one population that we would diagnose as a disorder in another set of the population.

Linn Thorstensson Nutritional Therapist for disordered eating Co Mayo Ireland

If you are looking for some support in your eating disorder recovery journey or repairing your relationship with food and body image, feel free to book in for a FREE 30 min no obligations call.

my professional journey

EDUCATION & TRAINING

My professional path is an ongoing one, and it is somewhat unconventional.

I am an Non Diet Nutritonal Therapist who offers nutritional counselling to folx who struggle with their relationship to food, eating and their body. I strive to practice from a Health At Every Size, trauma informed and social justice lens. (I am however human and won’t always get it right!).

In my work I draw on a multitude of modalities, such as Intuitive Eating, Mindfulness, CBT, Motivational Interviewing Neuroscience, Somatic practices and Nutritional Therapy, with the intention to work with my clients in a person centred way. This means that every persons programme and journey will be unique.

I actively engage in continued education and ongoing supervision. Beyond that I also lean on my own recovery, self development work and of course each and every client I have worked with in the past who have taught me much beyond what the textbooks ever could!

PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION

3 year Diploma in Nutritional Therapy from The College of Naturopathic Medicine, 2007-2010

Certified Food & Spirit Practitioner (Mind-Body Nutrition), 2015

Certified MB-EAT practitioner, 2017

Body Image training 2018

Nutrition Counselling Skills for Disordered Eating & Eating Disorders, 2018

Certified Eating Freely Practitioner (Binge Eating & Emotional Eating specialist training), 2020

Training in the overlap between GI distress & EDs with Marci Evans, 2019

The Coaching Way with Tara Mohr, 2021

Trauma Informed Dietetics, 2021

Peer Support Worker (ATU 23/24)

 

I currently serve as co-chair on the board of The Centre for Mindful Eating (TCME).

In the past I served as a Director (2016-2020) on the board of Nutritional Therapists of Ireland (NTOI)

 

I am a registered Nutritional Therapist and member of NTOI which means I am bond by the Code of Practice as set out by the organisation, do a minimum of 30h of continuous professional development. I also do ongoing supervision.

a few more

FUN THINGS ABOUT ME

IF I WASN´T A NUTRITIONIST...

I would probably still work in a “helping profession”. Or perhaps I would be a basket maker!

MY FAVOURITE DESSERT IS...

It’s a tight choice between a chewy brownie and a juicy crumble. Preferably one with cherries.

I LOVE BOOKS...

Besides house plants, books is the one thing that I have lots of. There will never be enough time to read all the books I want  to read.

NATURE IS...

My greatest source of healing and wellbeing. A few years ago I started cold dipping and getting in the water all year round and it feels so good.

AN IDEAL VACATION...

Anywhere with good food, good company and access to sea or a lake and the outdoors. Though, going on a silent retreat is also very restorative for me.

MY LOVE(S)

My dogs. My partner. My closest friends. Ireland. My Family. Books. Nature. Blue Skies. Crochet.