Sarah Rice

Oct 7

MHA, RDN, LDN | Registered Dietitian Nutritionist
she / her

My journey to becoming a dietitian has been shaped by years of unlearning the harms taught in the traditional medical model surrounding nutrition and what it means to be healthy and well. Since 2017, I've been relentlessly re-educating myself on what I believe is a kinder, more values-aligned way to improve health, nutrition, and wellbeing, while supporting clients in healing their relationship with food and their body.

I love helping clients dismantle diet culture and the systems of oppression that have contributed to suppressing your natural hunger and fullness cues. What fuels my passion is seeing clients happy and laughing in session, truly understanding how nutrition fits into their life and, more importantly, their values. There's nothing more powerful than watching someone create a clear roadmap for their health journey that aligns with their values and actually leads to lasting change.

I utilize a framework I created called Values-Based Nutrition (VBN), which helps us connect your choices to what you truly care about. Much of my work also stems from the practice of infinitheism and the teachings of Mahatria Ra, who empowers people to live a life of holistic abundance. I believe that all humans deserve to live with dignity, no matter their background, health history, race, religion, or gender identity. Open Space's commitment to LGBTQIA+ affirming care aligns deeply with these values, and I'm grateful to offer nutrition support within a practice that truly centers marginalized communities.

In our work together, I gently explore your body story to understand where body shame originates. I'll help you name and externalize the anger you may have historically directed at yourself–because that anger belongs to the systems that failed you, not to your body. My intention is to support you in healing your relationship with food and body rather than trying to "fix" anything. We'll gradually rewire your old operating software and create new neural pathways, exploring your challenges and developing scaffolding that slowly turns your focus inward–towards your own body wisdom and attunement.

I want to be your roadmap to feeling joy, acceptance, and contentment in your body, right now, from wherever you are. I'll be present during your struggles and celebrate every breakthrough with you. I will never stop working with you to help you find joy in your body. Your body deserves kindness, your relationship with food can be peaceful, and you deserve to feel at home in your own skin.

LANGUAGES SPOKEN

English

APPROACHES

Health at Every Size (HAES)
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)
Motivational Interviewing
Intuitive Eating
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)

IN THE PROVIDER ROOM

Grounded
Intuitive
Narrative-Driven
Anti-Oppressive
Radically Accepting

YOU CAN FIND ME

Listening to a podcast, learning a new language on Duolingo, birdwatching and running on a local trail, singing to 90s hits, looking in the library for feng shui and local cooking books, baking, and training my two little bonsai.

I’M ALL ABOUT

Making priority and space for those soul-deep friendships, prioritizing sleep and self-care, and creating home wellness spaces to rest and recharge.

Provider Details

- Aetna
- Anthem
- BCBS PPO Plans
- Capital Blue Cross
- Highmark
In progress:
- Optum / United Healthcare
- UPMC
- Intake Session (55 minutes): $160
- Follow-Up Session (55 minutes): $150
- Follow-Up Session (30 minutes): $90
4 Session Package: $560
- Initial Consultation (55 minutes)
- Three (3) 55-minute Follow-Up Sessions
*Equates to $140/session
6 Session Package: $750
- Initial Consultation (55 minutes)
- Five (5) 55-minute Follow-Up Sessions
*Equates to $125/session
10 Session Package: $1200
- Initial Consultation (55 minutes)
- Nine (9) 55-minute Follow-Up Sessions
*Equates to $120/session
- Telehealth
- Medical Nutrition Therapy
- Intuitive Eating Counseling
- Adults (18+)

Specialties

We'll begin by exploring the future vision you have for yourself in a person-centered, motivating way. I want to understand the deep, value-based reasons driving your desire for change–not just what you want to achieve, but why it matters to you. I utilize a framework I coined, called Values-Based Nutrition (VBN), which helps us connect your choices to what you truly care about.
Together, we'll explore what you've tried before to achieve your health goals and what that experience was like for you. In a completely nonjudgmental space, we'll examine what makes change difficult and where you actually want to invest your time and energy. You deserve solutions that match what's really going on in your life, not cookie-cutter approaches that ignore your unique circumstances.
We'll incorporate exercises from the Intuitive Eating workbook, the Your Body is not an Apology workbook, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help you develop a relationship with food and your body that feels compelling and authentic. You'll work towards becoming an intuitive eater while dismantling systems of oppression that may have contributed to suppressing your natural hunger and fullness cues.
I've been working with clients on Intuitive Eating since 2019, and have received specialized training through WIND (Weight Inclusive Nutrition and Dietetics). Your relationship with food can be peaceful, and your body deserves respect–let's work toward that together.
We'll start with embodiment work–exploring what it means to have a body and to live in a body. Building sound interoceptive awareness is foundational to this work, as we move towards treating your body with respect, trust, and consistent nourishment. This isn't about forcing yourself to love your body overnight; it's about building a relationship with your body that feels sustainable and authentic.
Together, we'll embrace self-compassion as we explore body movement, healing touch, and ways to show your body kindness. We may incorporate massage, meditation, or other practices that help you reconnect with your physical self. We may also do a critical analysis of your social media consumption and review your body image timeline to understand how your relationship with your body has evolved over time.
I believe creativity can be a powerful tool for healing. We might write letters or create art that reflects your body image story, helping you process and reframe your experiences. I draw from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Radically Open DBT as we navigate towards an amazing, authentic relationship with your body.
I've received over 30 hours of specialized training in Body Image Healing through MarciRD's Food and Body Image Healers program. Your body deserves kindness, and you deserve to feel at home in your own skin.
The traditional medical model, societal constructs, and social media often combine to create the root of chronic dieting. If you've spent years trying to change your body through diets, you're not broken–the system is. Through our work together, we'll gradually dismantle and understand the reasons behind your chronic dieting behavior.
I'll utilize my Values-Based Nutrition (VBN) framework to do a deep dive into your medical history, health background, upbringing, and other factors that contributed to your desire to change your body. We'll gradually rewire your old operating software and create new neural pathways. Together, we'll explore your current challenges, troubleshoot existing strategies, and develop scaffolding that slowly turns your focus inward–towards your own body wisdom and attunement.
The goal of this work is to lift the mental burden of dieting by helping you tap into your suppressed wisdom as an intuitive eater. You deserve to feel the life and energy of your own body without constant calculation, restriction, or shame. I draw from motivational interviewing, Intuitive Eating, ACT, and CBT to support you in this journey.
I've been helping clients undo the harms of dieting since 2019. Recovery from chronic dieting is possible, and your body's wisdom is worth trusting.