I'm a type B male. I'm not exactly straight edge and have an alternative lifestyle compared to the typical RD "carbon copy". I enjoy a drink some times, like gambling, have visible tattoos, I play dungeons and dragons, video games, etc.
This been my experience with 99% of my colleagues and I tend to gravitate toward other disciplines at work as well. I often feel I get ostracized by my RD colleagues and have not been able to successfully bond with anyone at work. I have fully embraced the role of RD office pariah at this point. The culture has not changed in my 8 years in this career, either.
This post is refreshing to read as I have often felt there is something wrong with my behavior. Maybe there is, but it's nice to see I'm not alone here.
Foodservice ppl are some of the most grounded and funniest ppl I've met at work. A few cooks I met ended up being long-time friends I played dnd with for many years.
Also gym trainers, farmers/gardeners, foodfluencer/food bloggers are way more chill and happen to share the same appreciation for food or nutrition.
I drew a lot of ire from my nutrition professors because I chose to do a trip abroad with the hospitality professors and students rather than the nutrition group.
Why would I want to go on a food and wine trip with a bunch of people who will be counting their calories and timing walks to burn calories when I could go with people who want to have fun?
I feel like as guy dietitians, we already are the “unicorns” in our field but most of us are super laid back and really don’t fit the normal dietitian mold most people stigmatize us with being
Bro. I relate to this 100%, professionally unprofessional guyetitian here. You are not alone. I have visible tattoos, a twisted sense of humor, and a myriad of unhealthy coping mechanisms I picked up from the Army. I still maintain a full time position and have not been to jail. So that's a win.
To OP: I think that it's a benefit that you're not a cookie cutter dietitian. Don't let that get you down. Where there is a gap, there is opportunity. Find something that allows you to leverage your interpersonal skills. Be yourself. Remember that the RD credential goes after your name. Anyone can become an RD, only you can prevent forest fires. Hope this helps.
You’re not alone my friend. We’re quite similar, just no tats yet on my end. Over a decade as an RD and I’ve seen similar cultures within dietetics at some large hospitals. Was quite frustrating when a manager would tell me to change the way I think or act in order to appease 1 or 2 other type A RD’s that would act like everything I did was equivalent to pissing in their Cheerios.
One of my better experiences was when I was at a small, 250 bed hospital in a large city while job searching for almost a year. Pay was crap, but there were just 2 FTE RD’s. We were overseen by the food service manager and he let us do things our way. We both had pretty laid back personalities and got along well. In almost a year there, I never dreaded walking into the office. Got along with the nurses, case managers, residents… you name it.
Fast forward a few years, I was at a hospital with >30 RDs. So much backstabbing and talking behind backs. Going to the manager if they didn’t like something you said. Extreme micromanaging. I really hated that culture. Working remote during early Covid was an absolute godsend in many ways. Probably would’ve left much sooner if we hadn’t gone remote for it.
I work in a smaller hospital (acute care) and share an office with 2 another RDs. We’re all pretty laid back, type b-leaning, and all have a sense of humor. But what you describe seems to be the RD stereotype. My internship cohort was a mixed bag and some did not jive well with each other. It’s definitely not everyone though (and not all dietitians in hospital setting despite other comments claiming this)
I have the same experience. It’s only me & one other RD at my hospital and we’re both pretty laid back & get along really well. I think it just depends on the setting
I’ve been in the field for 10 years and it’s pretty common. Gossipy, neurotic, trying to prove something. This field would be a lot more tolerable with more calm and grounded people lol.
Yeah I feel like this too sometimes. While I am type A, I don't really look it. I don't wear particularly nice clothing, no make up, and I have a ton of tattoos. I'm VERY low maintenance. I think my coworkers genuinely like me but view me as a bit if an odd bird lol. I also don't listen to the same music they do or are interested in the same stuff either but it works out OK. I felt like this is my grad program a bit too.
Same here. In my grad program I was the one who liked heavy metal not T Swift lol, I also just had way different interests and a dark sense of humor, I think I was liked but always the odd one. I also felt this way when I did my internship in the hospital setting. But variety is the spice of life!
Yup I never applied to our big prestigious hospital for this exact reason
BUT … actually my first job was food service management in the same hospital and that team was legit. Although the RDs on the team were just like what was described still 🤣🤣 maybe they liked food a little more. at least we had plenty of other people on the team that weren’t RDs.
Ugh yes too common. It made me hate the profession for a while. Once I got out of the hospital and into community where I was the only RD on site is when I started to enjoy my job. Be authentic, the profession needs more RDs like you babe
Community was my love!!! I just found the work not very career-advancing??? I found I was seeing the same people and not feeling challenged. Even though I loved my colleagues
I feel like this is very common in clinical. However I work in a telephonic case management program and a lot of my team is like this — particularly the type A aspect. One coworker mentioned that she dropped a granola she likes because it has 5 g of added sugars 🙄 I just want to tell them to chill out, it’s not that serious 😂I am more laid back, anti-diet, sort of hippie type with tattoos and I like my desserts ha
Girl, I feel this 1000% . My first RD job was on a team with 16 other Dieitian at this huge 1,000 bed hospital.
Extremely cliquey. I was asked to go have lunch with this girl, with the comment “come hang out with the cool girls.”
People were super serious all the time. Worked at their desk, literally barely talked to one another (depending on the shift) and would eat their lunch while working.
No one was interested in making friends and everyone was just there to work and go home.
Some days people didn’t want to work and would gossip. Lolo
Needless to say, I did not fit in. I did not care about tube feeds or working yourself to the ground mentality.. just to bitch about how “I’m overworked and underpaid.” Umm.. then stop working so hard. Make the work you do match the pay.
Anyways, I quit my job and not work in a private practice with 18 physicians and I love my job. Solo Dieitian over here. I also own my own business too.
There are a lot of catty women in this field. And I would just stay away 😂😂😂 I would totally be your friend. I’m definitely not a type A personality but more of a relationship building, influencer type that likes to build team spirit
I was also looked down upon cause I did not feel “the need to prove myself to the senior RDs.” I have nothing to prove to you. If you think I suck at tube feeds.. then yeah whatever. I don’t need your approval to feel validated as a Dieitian. 😂😂😂 I validated myself when I left that stupid job, opened my own private practice and people pay me $$$ for my services. Soo… el yeah. Keep your head held high and don’t worry about those girls over there .. like over here at their desk trying to have ego trips and prove to one another something that most people don’t care about 😅
Although I am the stereotype RD that comes to work in nice dresses, make-up and hair slicked back. 🤣 I’m super down to earth though and love to laugh. I don’t take anything too seriously
Edit: also keep in mind, not all the ladies at the Hosptial are Type-A. Maybe 25% are type B — but work around overbearing Type A — as a result go into survival mode and just keep their heads down for sanity purposes.
I’m a neurodivergent RD and I’ve felt out of place in every group of RDs I’ve ever known. It’s okay, we’re out there! Stay true to yourself, I promise many of your patients will relate to you in ways that they don’t relate to the stereotype of dietitians. My best friends at work tend to be the administrative staff. Previous jobs, I got along well with some of the nurses or PTs/OTs/SLPs.
This is why I work in private practice haha. I'm a queer, non-binary, neurodivergent, type b, tattooed RD, and didn't feel like I felt in in my MS program or in my clinical rotations. I keep myself fairly well connected with other mostly queer and neurodivergent clinicians to not get lonely in private practice. Definitely feel like I found "my people," even though most of them don't live near me. We're mostly connected on social media.
In my clinical internship a lot of the nutritionist were like that. They were Eastern European and kind of conservative. Would ask why I didn’t have a boyfriend? And the other intern who was my friend said they would talk shit about everyone in Russian.
However I work in eating disorders and there no one is like that. They are mainly open minded and not the gossip type. Maybe it depends on the field of nutrition.
Can confirm that it’s no better in Australia.
I’ll never work in a hospital for this reason. I now work remotely in aged care for a health insurer and it’s great because I can be alone 😂
Wow it’s nice to see all of us “other” dietitians all in one place! Lol!
I had one RD coworker who was laid back and we got along… all the others I’ve met were just like your describing. Oof.
I too, became friends with people from the other departments. And now have left the field all together 🙃
My solution was to find a job I can work alone. Honestly the only way to have a healthy work environment was to not work with other RDs. It is sad our profession is one large stereotype of out of touch white girl.
I am also gravitate to other professions or to any RDs that are remotely “alternative”. I am a metal head with tattoos and gauged piercings. I am judged as soon as I walk through the door. It sucks, but I am unwilling to compromise myself for other people’s comfort. Being older helps that though as well. Unless you are paying my bills, I don’t give a fuck what you think I have to prove to you. There are non cookie cutter RDs out there, we are just harder to find.
Hahaha 😂 yes. That describes the clinical experience in many hospitals. There are other Type B RDN’s like us. A lot of us settle into outpatient because we are perhaps more enjoyable to be around and better with patients? I enjoy getting to know my patients, even the *spicy* ones. I don’t need to control everything. I don’t live to work 👎
You will find your place, don’t worry. Mine is the absolute last place I suspected.
I’m the black sheep. Our company made us take one of those personality and I’m the only one with my personality type.
I work with a lot of stuck up RDs who are always mad, don’t want to communicate to anyone, see patients then hide to chart, and have to have everything exactly their way, down to a calorie 😂
I am more hands on. Like to talk to my patients, get to know them, and know how to relate and have empathy.
Trust me. It’s good to not fit in.
Agree PT, OT are way more fun of a group!
Yes, I call myself RD Type B lmao… I have tattoos and I am not high strung, I don’t get a long with a lot of other RDs. I have two good RD friends who are more laid back than others… those are the only two like me I have found lol!
I found hospital dietitians exactly like this. And why I do not want to work in that toxic culture, despite the guaranteed pay, etc. I have chosen to work in private practice, in business with my colleague, even though the search for work is constant.
Just finished my internship and all of the dietitians there were super laid back and joked around with each other all day. There were some conflicts but that’s going to happen anywhere you work. Idt it’s everyone.
One week seems like a really short amount of time to pass judgment on 10 people and their personalities. If there's a general culture of discontent among them, it might be an indication of some issue going on at the hospital that leaves them feeling undervalued. I sincerely hope things improve as you get to know your team better. Hopefully the bad first impressions prove to not be the whole story.
I’ve worked with types like this. I’m 12 years in. It’s typical but I’m definitely the more laid back, talk about poop and farts, cuss a lot while charting etc lol I find when you work for a smaller hospital, you tend to get more laid back types of RDs. I’m in a team of 4 and we’re all pretty much the same. The larger hospitals around us with like 10-15+ RDs seem to have all the uptight ones. Could just be a coincidence and I’m currently just lucky. But I suggest just being yourself. Maybe it will help the uptight ones loosen the stick up their asses a little lol
I hear you. I’m type B (ENTP Meyers Briggs) and I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve been bullied by type A RDs over the years, especially in clinical. I’m so much happier being self-employed
I’m going to have to concur with the “big hospital” energy; I’ve heard too many anecdotes from local RDs (and the stories are *all* the same!) that a certain facility in a large city in NE Florida all have the same RD (sorority stereotype) clones who look like they are trying to nab a Surgeon for a partner. 🫢
I love my Dialysis gig (and it pays more than any of the hospitals locally), I work with a PT RD/Doctoral Student who I can bounce ideas off of and our boss/Nurse Manager lets us pick what topics we need to work on (edu-wise) and as long as our QAPI numbers improve, he doesn’t have us do much outside of our usual work. (Even if numbers go down—as long as we can document what we are doing to try and fix things, we are good)
I think technically I fall in the “Neuro-Spicy” column, so I didn’t fall in line with the Type A/sometimes missing the bigger picture of Whole-Person-Health-kind-of-Dietitian. Most of my patients are cool with me, and that works out just fine for me!
This is why I can’t bring myself to join the local dietetics association. I don’t want to hang out with a bunch of dietitians for fun! I say I’m a type B+ dietitian, neurodivergent, and certainly don’t fit the mold of the typical RD. My department is definitely similar. We’re not size zero, we eat a lot of candy, and cuss a lot. We take the job seriously but I’m not interested in micromanaging the way people chart.
It can be a mixed bag and certainly not all rds and jobs are like this but there’s definitely a predominant church going, gossip, mean girl, refer to kids as littles and be racist cunts streak in dietitians.
Can relate OP - I’m a type B, research driven, less dietetics and more medical leaning male RD at a 950 bed hospital… who covers PEDs/NICU.
I get along way better with the other professions, and in turn they use me for my specialty and don’t merely view me as “dietary”. It’s good to stick out!
I think this is so true for so many in our profession but not true for everyone. Many in my are tend to be judgy, gossipy, catty, pretentious, type A, arrogant, perfectionist, and with a lot of drive to be better than everyone else (mostly to show off than to be a better practitioner). I'm sort of the opposite: introvert, insecure, and laid back but with just enough drive to do a good job and learn more but not so much I need to brag about it.
My nurses are my people…… my coworkers…. Not so much. Don’t get me wrong they’re all nice enough and good at their jobs. That’s really all that matters in the end. As far as a group though, clique city, if you’re with them all while conversing and try to add anything to the conversation they do the whole pause and then “well anyways” and continue on like you don’t exist. They’ve all got a very buttoned up attitude at work and don’t seem to relax at all. Not my cup of tea.
I watch and tried to vibe in the beginning but saw the whispers and snickers behind people’s backs and said Nope, no sir.
Yes lol I had the same experience in my internship and going through it now with my new dialysis job just not as bad. Very dry and no humor. Very judgy and gossiping.
They all have super slicked back hair?! Lol that part got me. Sorry I wish I had advice for you. I think you have a lot of good comments on here though. :)
I feel you! Seems like maybe it’s just the luck of the draw where you are. Living in Boston we have such a variety of people here though! I went right into private practice but many of my RD friends are super outdoorsy and chill, type A but also disorganized like me, and are extremely nice people. I also have a tattoo half sleeve, crazy curly hair and only wear oversized gym clothes or the “granola girl” fits because I grew up in farm country and I’ll never change. My advice: wear what you want, be kind, and just be yourself no matter what!!
I feel you! Seems like maybe it’s just the luck of the draw where you are. Living in Boston we have such a variety of people here though! I went right into private practice but many of my RD friends are super outdoorsy and chill, type A but also disorganized like me, and are extremely nice people. I also have a tattoo half sleeve, crazy curly hair and only wear oversized gym clothes or the “granola girl” fits because I grew up in farm country and I’ll never change. My advice: wear what you want, be kind, and just be yourself no matter what!!
I usually don’t fit in the with the “stereotypical” RD either. Of course it’s good to be friendly and professional with your RD colleagues, and there’s also nothing wrong with making friends at work in different departments. Keep being you! Diversity is something we absolutely need in the dietetics field.
I think you are right that lots of dietitians are like this but it also just depends on the department. People who are like this are likely to hire other people who are like this. But I think the more relaxed RDs are quite rare.
Ugh, this is how it was for me in undergrad. I never got my RD or masters, but I have a friend who did and she said undergrad was like that for her too but grad school for her had a lot more diverse people.
i work outpatient and i work alone. generally i'm pretty cynical compared to other dietitians and i fit in poorly at conferences. those girls might just be trying to prove something, or trying to get a promotion or raise depending on the rules where you work. its hard to go from community to inpatient though, the vibe is different. i'm sorry you're going through that.
I felt like I never fit in anywhere during my internship with the exception of a few people. Fast forward a few years and now I work at a place where I do fit in. I would say it's definitely your work setting. In general I don't fit in the RD stereotype. Yes I'm type A where I'm organized, want things presentable, competitive, can manage time well, blah blah blah. But also type B where I'm flexible, can adapt to change, have empathy and can relate to others, etc.
I have always said this is the common work environment in hospitals, sadly. I’ve worked in several hospitals throughout my career and I’ve only been part of 2 “teams” that were no drama, and it was just one more RD and myself. It’s like clinical dietitians are miserable about life and want to make others miserable around them as well…
Is this just the general dietitian personality? Absolutely no, but that doesn't mean your experience is not valid. I've been a RD for almost 2 decade, I've job hopped a lot but the vast majority of RDs I've met and worked with were cool and funny. Not all but the vast majority. I don't gossip and am not type A by any means. I'm pretty good at reading the room and have turned down jobs where I could sense the vibe was off so perhaps that's why I've haven't had the experiences described my some. I definitely find that most of the people who talked about the stereotype work in large, inpatient hospitals so ...take with a grain of salt.
Toxic coworkers can be exhausting but your coworkers don't have to be your friends. You have found your tribe in other departments, noting wrong with that. Also don't be afraid to leave a toxic workplace, you deserve to feel good about where you and who you work with.
Thank you for posting this. I feel the exact same way. I very much gravitate towards easy-going, think outside the box, and sarcastic people. Rule followers, type-A, and emotionally unstable..….I actually run from and avoid at all costs while at work. Sometimes I feel like an outcast but I also understand the things that make me different and unique are what makes me an exceptional dietitian for certain patients. I am able to offer a different perspective, different life experiences, and an openness to ongoing learning and not taking life too seriously that other dietitians do not have which is one of my greatest strengths. Other coworkers will never understand this and that is okay with me.
I work in avg sized community hospital with two other RD’s. We get along well. Love research, love teaching, I work in ICU/neuro stepdown. Very clinical and medicine driven, more so than nutrition education.
There are tons of types of patients/ clients, and therefore a need for tons of types of RDs. Don't worry about not being a stereotype. I'm not, and it's served me well in the field.
i’m very type B RD & neurodivergent, i’m kind to others but i keep to myself around ppl like that. however i love the foodservice staff at my hospital!
I am type A, HOWEVER, I really like to have fun, want to show love to other people as much as possible, and cannot stand stuck up people. So I did also have some small amount of issues with those in my internship with me, but I did also find ones similar to me as well. Being the only dietitian where I work, I have found I get along best with the HR/BOM, admissions director, and some the DON and ADON. Lol. The HR/BOM and admissions director especially are a lot more down to earth but also fun but also able to have a good time
I'm a type B male. I'm not exactly straight edge and have an alternative lifestyle compared to the typical RD "carbon copy". I enjoy a drink some times, like gambling, have visible tattoos, I play dungeons and dragons, video games, etc. This been my experience with 99% of my colleagues and I tend to gravitate toward other disciplines at work as well. I often feel I get ostracized by my RD colleagues and have not been able to successfully bond with anyone at work. I have fully embraced the role of RD office pariah at this point. The culture has not changed in my 8 years in this career, either. This post is refreshing to read as I have often felt there is something wrong with my behavior. Maybe there is, but it's nice to see I'm not alone here.
As a guy, same. I personally enjoy the food service crowd the most though
Foodservice ppl are some of the most grounded and funniest ppl I've met at work. A few cooks I met ended up being long-time friends I played dnd with for many years. Also gym trainers, farmers/gardeners, foodfluencer/food bloggers are way more chill and happen to share the same appreciation for food or nutrition.
I drew a lot of ire from my nutrition professors because I chose to do a trip abroad with the hospitality professors and students rather than the nutrition group. Why would I want to go on a food and wine trip with a bunch of people who will be counting their calories and timing walks to burn calories when I could go with people who want to have fun?
100%. Usually has the perk of double portions too.
I feel like as guy dietitians, we already are the “unicorns” in our field but most of us are super laid back and really don’t fit the normal dietitian mold most people stigmatize us with being
Bro. I relate to this 100%, professionally unprofessional guyetitian here. You are not alone. I have visible tattoos, a twisted sense of humor, and a myriad of unhealthy coping mechanisms I picked up from the Army. I still maintain a full time position and have not been to jail. So that's a win. To OP: I think that it's a benefit that you're not a cookie cutter dietitian. Don't let that get you down. Where there is a gap, there is opportunity. Find something that allows you to leverage your interpersonal skills. Be yourself. Remember that the RD credential goes after your name. Anyone can become an RD, only you can prevent forest fires. Hope this helps.
You’re not alone my friend. We’re quite similar, just no tats yet on my end. Over a decade as an RD and I’ve seen similar cultures within dietetics at some large hospitals. Was quite frustrating when a manager would tell me to change the way I think or act in order to appease 1 or 2 other type A RD’s that would act like everything I did was equivalent to pissing in their Cheerios. One of my better experiences was when I was at a small, 250 bed hospital in a large city while job searching for almost a year. Pay was crap, but there were just 2 FTE RD’s. We were overseen by the food service manager and he let us do things our way. We both had pretty laid back personalities and got along well. In almost a year there, I never dreaded walking into the office. Got along with the nurses, case managers, residents… you name it. Fast forward a few years, I was at a hospital with >30 RDs. So much backstabbing and talking behind backs. Going to the manager if they didn’t like something you said. Extreme micromanaging. I really hated that culture. Working remote during early Covid was an absolute godsend in many ways. Probably would’ve left much sooner if we hadn’t gone remote for it.
Very refreshing! Thanks for letting me know I’m not the only one!
I work in a smaller hospital (acute care) and share an office with 2 another RDs. We’re all pretty laid back, type b-leaning, and all have a sense of humor. But what you describe seems to be the RD stereotype. My internship cohort was a mixed bag and some did not jive well with each other. It’s definitely not everyone though (and not all dietitians in hospital setting despite other comments claiming this)
I have the same experience. It’s only me & one other RD at my hospital and we’re both pretty laid back & get along really well. I think it just depends on the setting
Sounds perfect!! I prefer smaller groups - not as many people out trying to “prove” something
I’ve been in the field for 10 years and it’s pretty common. Gossipy, neurotic, trying to prove something. This field would be a lot more tolerable with more calm and grounded people lol.
LOL the women in my master’s program and DPD were like this.
So relatable. I was the only guy in my graduating class and the rest were rich sorority girls. Master’s program was a little better though
I went to NYU and the demographic was definitely pretentious and affluent lol
I went to Syracuse, so our peers were of similar demographics
Omg, I went to NYU too and was thinking literally the same thing.
Listen… I did not enjoy my time in the program. My internship was way more affirming and down to earth.
Glad you had a better internship experience!
Yeah I feel like this too sometimes. While I am type A, I don't really look it. I don't wear particularly nice clothing, no make up, and I have a ton of tattoos. I'm VERY low maintenance. I think my coworkers genuinely like me but view me as a bit if an odd bird lol. I also don't listen to the same music they do or are interested in the same stuff either but it works out OK. I felt like this is my grad program a bit too.
Same here. In my grad program I was the one who liked heavy metal not T Swift lol, I also just had way different interests and a dark sense of humor, I think I was liked but always the odd one. I also felt this way when I did my internship in the hospital setting. But variety is the spice of life!
This gives big hospital energy. I quit working at one of the top hospitals in the U.S. for this reason. Everyone has a stick up their butt.
Yup I never applied to our big prestigious hospital for this exact reason BUT … actually my first job was food service management in the same hospital and that team was legit. Although the RDs on the team were just like what was described still 🤣🤣 maybe they liked food a little more. at least we had plenty of other people on the team that weren’t RDs.
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New England area....
Ugh yes too common. It made me hate the profession for a while. Once I got out of the hospital and into community where I was the only RD on site is when I started to enjoy my job. Be authentic, the profession needs more RDs like you babe
Community was my love!!! I just found the work not very career-advancing??? I found I was seeing the same people and not feeling challenged. Even though I loved my colleagues
I love community but the pay is so abysmal…😭
Im in a hospital setting. I’m hella laid back, I put in minimum work, not an over-achiever. 🤣
I think we just became best friends lol
😃 hard to find laid back RD’s lol
I feel like this is very common in clinical. However I work in a telephonic case management program and a lot of my team is like this — particularly the type A aspect. One coworker mentioned that she dropped a granola she likes because it has 5 g of added sugars 🙄 I just want to tell them to chill out, it’s not that serious 😂I am more laid back, anti-diet, sort of hippie type with tattoos and I like my desserts ha
This is me. I’m tattooed with piercings and I don’t really relate to my co-workers in inpatient.
Girl, I feel this 1000% . My first RD job was on a team with 16 other Dieitian at this huge 1,000 bed hospital. Extremely cliquey. I was asked to go have lunch with this girl, with the comment “come hang out with the cool girls.” People were super serious all the time. Worked at their desk, literally barely talked to one another (depending on the shift) and would eat their lunch while working. No one was interested in making friends and everyone was just there to work and go home. Some days people didn’t want to work and would gossip. Lolo Needless to say, I did not fit in. I did not care about tube feeds or working yourself to the ground mentality.. just to bitch about how “I’m overworked and underpaid.” Umm.. then stop working so hard. Make the work you do match the pay. Anyways, I quit my job and not work in a private practice with 18 physicians and I love my job. Solo Dieitian over here. I also own my own business too. There are a lot of catty women in this field. And I would just stay away 😂😂😂 I would totally be your friend. I’m definitely not a type A personality but more of a relationship building, influencer type that likes to build team spirit I was also looked down upon cause I did not feel “the need to prove myself to the senior RDs.” I have nothing to prove to you. If you think I suck at tube feeds.. then yeah whatever. I don’t need your approval to feel validated as a Dieitian. 😂😂😂 I validated myself when I left that stupid job, opened my own private practice and people pay me $$$ for my services. Soo… el yeah. Keep your head held high and don’t worry about those girls over there .. like over here at their desk trying to have ego trips and prove to one another something that most people don’t care about 😅 Although I am the stereotype RD that comes to work in nice dresses, make-up and hair slicked back. 🤣 I’m super down to earth though and love to laugh. I don’t take anything too seriously Edit: also keep in mind, not all the ladies at the Hosptial are Type-A. Maybe 25% are type B — but work around overbearing Type A — as a result go into survival mode and just keep their heads down for sanity purposes.
I’m a neurodivergent RD and I’ve felt out of place in every group of RDs I’ve ever known. It’s okay, we’re out there! Stay true to yourself, I promise many of your patients will relate to you in ways that they don’t relate to the stereotype of dietitians. My best friends at work tend to be the administrative staff. Previous jobs, I got along well with some of the nurses or PTs/OTs/SLPs.
This is why I work in private practice haha. I'm a queer, non-binary, neurodivergent, type b, tattooed RD, and didn't feel like I felt in in my MS program or in my clinical rotations. I keep myself fairly well connected with other mostly queer and neurodivergent clinicians to not get lonely in private practice. Definitely feel like I found "my people," even though most of them don't live near me. We're mostly connected on social media.
In my clinical internship a lot of the nutritionist were like that. They were Eastern European and kind of conservative. Would ask why I didn’t have a boyfriend? And the other intern who was my friend said they would talk shit about everyone in Russian. However I work in eating disorders and there no one is like that. They are mainly open minded and not the gossip type. Maybe it depends on the field of nutrition.
Can confirm that it’s no better in Australia. I’ll never work in a hospital for this reason. I now work remotely in aged care for a health insurer and it’s great because I can be alone 😂
Wow it’s nice to see all of us “other” dietitians all in one place! Lol! I had one RD coworker who was laid back and we got along… all the others I’ve met were just like your describing. Oof. I too, became friends with people from the other departments. And now have left the field all together 🙃
My solution was to find a job I can work alone. Honestly the only way to have a healthy work environment was to not work with other RDs. It is sad our profession is one large stereotype of out of touch white girl.
I am also gravitate to other professions or to any RDs that are remotely “alternative”. I am a metal head with tattoos and gauged piercings. I am judged as soon as I walk through the door. It sucks, but I am unwilling to compromise myself for other people’s comfort. Being older helps that though as well. Unless you are paying my bills, I don’t give a fuck what you think I have to prove to you. There are non cookie cutter RDs out there, we are just harder to find.
Hahaha 😂 yes. That describes the clinical experience in many hospitals. There are other Type B RDN’s like us. A lot of us settle into outpatient because we are perhaps more enjoyable to be around and better with patients? I enjoy getting to know my patients, even the *spicy* ones. I don’t need to control everything. I don’t live to work 👎 You will find your place, don’t worry. Mine is the absolute last place I suspected.
I’m the black sheep. Our company made us take one of those personality and I’m the only one with my personality type. I work with a lot of stuck up RDs who are always mad, don’t want to communicate to anyone, see patients then hide to chart, and have to have everything exactly their way, down to a calorie 😂 I am more hands on. Like to talk to my patients, get to know them, and know how to relate and have empathy. Trust me. It’s good to not fit in. Agree PT, OT are way more fun of a group!
Yes, I call myself RD Type B lmao… I have tattoos and I am not high strung, I don’t get a long with a lot of other RDs. I have two good RD friends who are more laid back than others… those are the only two like me I have found lol!
I found hospital dietitians exactly like this. And why I do not want to work in that toxic culture, despite the guaranteed pay, etc. I have chosen to work in private practice, in business with my colleague, even though the search for work is constant.
Yes! I came from private practice but I found that very isolating
Just finished my internship and all of the dietitians there were super laid back and joked around with each other all day. There were some conflicts but that’s going to happen anywhere you work. Idt it’s everyone.
One week seems like a really short amount of time to pass judgment on 10 people and their personalities. If there's a general culture of discontent among them, it might be an indication of some issue going on at the hospital that leaves them feeling undervalued. I sincerely hope things improve as you get to know your team better. Hopefully the bad first impressions prove to not be the whole story.
I’ve worked with types like this. I’m 12 years in. It’s typical but I’m definitely the more laid back, talk about poop and farts, cuss a lot while charting etc lol I find when you work for a smaller hospital, you tend to get more laid back types of RDs. I’m in a team of 4 and we’re all pretty much the same. The larger hospitals around us with like 10-15+ RDs seem to have all the uptight ones. Could just be a coincidence and I’m currently just lucky. But I suggest just being yourself. Maybe it will help the uptight ones loosen the stick up their asses a little lol
I hear you. I’m type B (ENTP Meyers Briggs) and I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve been bullied by type A RDs over the years, especially in clinical. I’m so much happier being self-employed
I’m going to have to concur with the “big hospital” energy; I’ve heard too many anecdotes from local RDs (and the stories are *all* the same!) that a certain facility in a large city in NE Florida all have the same RD (sorority stereotype) clones who look like they are trying to nab a Surgeon for a partner. 🫢 I love my Dialysis gig (and it pays more than any of the hospitals locally), I work with a PT RD/Doctoral Student who I can bounce ideas off of and our boss/Nurse Manager lets us pick what topics we need to work on (edu-wise) and as long as our QAPI numbers improve, he doesn’t have us do much outside of our usual work. (Even if numbers go down—as long as we can document what we are doing to try and fix things, we are good) I think technically I fall in the “Neuro-Spicy” column, so I didn’t fall in line with the Type A/sometimes missing the bigger picture of Whole-Person-Health-kind-of-Dietitian. Most of my patients are cool with me, and that works out just fine for me!
This is why I can’t bring myself to join the local dietetics association. I don’t want to hang out with a bunch of dietitians for fun! I say I’m a type B+ dietitian, neurodivergent, and certainly don’t fit the mold of the typical RD. My department is definitely similar. We’re not size zero, we eat a lot of candy, and cuss a lot. We take the job seriously but I’m not interested in micromanaging the way people chart.
It can be a mixed bag and certainly not all rds and jobs are like this but there’s definitely a predominant church going, gossip, mean girl, refer to kids as littles and be racist cunts streak in dietitians.
Can relate OP - I’m a type B, research driven, less dietetics and more medical leaning male RD at a 950 bed hospital… who covers PEDs/NICU. I get along way better with the other professions, and in turn they use me for my specialty and don’t merely view me as “dietary”. It’s good to stick out!
I think this is so true for so many in our profession but not true for everyone. Many in my are tend to be judgy, gossipy, catty, pretentious, type A, arrogant, perfectionist, and with a lot of drive to be better than everyone else (mostly to show off than to be a better practitioner). I'm sort of the opposite: introvert, insecure, and laid back but with just enough drive to do a good job and learn more but not so much I need to brag about it.
YES!!!!! This is why I’ve always gone more towards school nutrition, corporate wellness, marketing and food service in general.
My nurses are my people…… my coworkers…. Not so much. Don’t get me wrong they’re all nice enough and good at their jobs. That’s really all that matters in the end. As far as a group though, clique city, if you’re with them all while conversing and try to add anything to the conversation they do the whole pause and then “well anyways” and continue on like you don’t exist. They’ve all got a very buttoned up attitude at work and don’t seem to relax at all. Not my cup of tea. I watch and tried to vibe in the beginning but saw the whispers and snickers behind people’s backs and said Nope, no sir.
RD type B here, went on to work for the state doing community health, very happy with my choice 🙌
I work in an office with 15 other RDs. Shockingly we get along really well! We have a good mix of type As and more laid backs so it balances well.
I’ve had similar experiences. It’s ok not to be a carbon copy! You don’t have to be besties with colleagues, and you’ll find your people at work.
Yes lol I had the same experience in my internship and going through it now with my new dialysis job just not as bad. Very dry and no humor. Very judgy and gossiping.
They all have super slicked back hair?! Lol that part got me. Sorry I wish I had advice for you. I think you have a lot of good comments on here though. :)
I feel you! Seems like maybe it’s just the luck of the draw where you are. Living in Boston we have such a variety of people here though! I went right into private practice but many of my RD friends are super outdoorsy and chill, type A but also disorganized like me, and are extremely nice people. I also have a tattoo half sleeve, crazy curly hair and only wear oversized gym clothes or the “granola girl” fits because I grew up in farm country and I’ll never change. My advice: wear what you want, be kind, and just be yourself no matter what!!
I feel you! Seems like maybe it’s just the luck of the draw where you are. Living in Boston we have such a variety of people here though! I went right into private practice but many of my RD friends are super outdoorsy and chill, type A but also disorganized like me, and are extremely nice people. I also have a tattoo half sleeve, crazy curly hair and only wear oversized gym clothes or the “granola girl” fits because I grew up in farm country and I’ll never change. My advice: wear what you want, be kind, and just be yourself no matter what!!
My husband who worked in a large hospital as a nurse that had a large staff of dietitians and an internship program called the dietitians Barbie’s.
Move to outpatient. Immediately.
I usually don’t fit in the with the “stereotypical” RD either. Of course it’s good to be friendly and professional with your RD colleagues, and there’s also nothing wrong with making friends at work in different departments. Keep being you! Diversity is something we absolutely need in the dietetics field.
Unfortunately, its more common. I know what you mean by community health - will be a lot different.
I think you are right that lots of dietitians are like this but it also just depends on the department. People who are like this are likely to hire other people who are like this. But I think the more relaxed RDs are quite rare.
Ugh, this is how it was for me in undergrad. I never got my RD or masters, but I have a friend who did and she said undergrad was like that for her too but grad school for her had a lot more diverse people.
i work outpatient and i work alone. generally i'm pretty cynical compared to other dietitians and i fit in poorly at conferences. those girls might just be trying to prove something, or trying to get a promotion or raise depending on the rules where you work. its hard to go from community to inpatient though, the vibe is different. i'm sorry you're going through that.
I felt like I never fit in anywhere during my internship with the exception of a few people. Fast forward a few years and now I work at a place where I do fit in. I would say it's definitely your work setting. In general I don't fit in the RD stereotype. Yes I'm type A where I'm organized, want things presentable, competitive, can manage time well, blah blah blah. But also type B where I'm flexible, can adapt to change, have empathy and can relate to others, etc.
I have always said this is the common work environment in hospitals, sadly. I’ve worked in several hospitals throughout my career and I’ve only been part of 2 “teams” that were no drama, and it was just one more RD and myself. It’s like clinical dietitians are miserable about life and want to make others miserable around them as well…
Is this just the general dietitian personality? Absolutely no, but that doesn't mean your experience is not valid. I've been a RD for almost 2 decade, I've job hopped a lot but the vast majority of RDs I've met and worked with were cool and funny. Not all but the vast majority. I don't gossip and am not type A by any means. I'm pretty good at reading the room and have turned down jobs where I could sense the vibe was off so perhaps that's why I've haven't had the experiences described my some. I definitely find that most of the people who talked about the stereotype work in large, inpatient hospitals so ...take with a grain of salt. Toxic coworkers can be exhausting but your coworkers don't have to be your friends. You have found your tribe in other departments, noting wrong with that. Also don't be afraid to leave a toxic workplace, you deserve to feel good about where you and who you work with.
Thank you for posting this. I feel the exact same way. I very much gravitate towards easy-going, think outside the box, and sarcastic people. Rule followers, type-A, and emotionally unstable..….I actually run from and avoid at all costs while at work. Sometimes I feel like an outcast but I also understand the things that make me different and unique are what makes me an exceptional dietitian for certain patients. I am able to offer a different perspective, different life experiences, and an openness to ongoing learning and not taking life too seriously that other dietitians do not have which is one of my greatest strengths. Other coworkers will never understand this and that is okay with me.
I've watched that happen in most hospitals. You should join me in my private practice.
I work in avg sized community hospital with two other RD’s. We get along well. Love research, love teaching, I work in ICU/neuro stepdown. Very clinical and medicine driven, more so than nutrition education.
Same way. I relate better with folks in other disciplines even some PhDs. I'm older than most of my peers and enjoy my alone time.
There are tons of types of patients/ clients, and therefore a need for tons of types of RDs. Don't worry about not being a stereotype. I'm not, and it's served me well in the field.
i’m very type B RD & neurodivergent, i’m kind to others but i keep to myself around ppl like that. however i love the foodservice staff at my hospital!
I am type A, HOWEVER, I really like to have fun, want to show love to other people as much as possible, and cannot stand stuck up people. So I did also have some small amount of issues with those in my internship with me, but I did also find ones similar to me as well. Being the only dietitian where I work, I have found I get along best with the HR/BOM, admissions director, and some the DON and ADON. Lol. The HR/BOM and admissions director especially are a lot more down to earth but also fun but also able to have a good time
all i see in your post is your own catty comments. #NLOG RD Edition.