Non-diet virtual dietitian care for Pembroke and the Ottawa Valley, with Lauren Hofstee, RD. Eating disorder recovery, disordered eating, body image, binge eating, and food anxiety support, all online.
Book a free intro callPembroke is the regional hub of Renfrew County, set along the upper Ottawa River in the Ottawa Valley, roughly 150 kilometres northwest of Ottawa. It draws people in from a wide rural catchment for shopping, work, and health care, but the services it cannot offer still mean a long drive to the city. I work with people across the valley by secure video.
Lauren is based in Guelph and Toronto and works virtually across Ontario. That means people in Pembroke can access specialized nutrition counselling without travelling to a clinic, while still working with someone registered with the College of Dietitians of Ontario.
You may be looking for general nutrition advice, but many people land here because food has become louder than they want it to be. You might be dealing with restriction, binge eating, guilt after eating, fear foods, body checking, or feeling unsure whether your eating is serious enough to deserve support. It is enough to start a conversation.
What nutrition counselling can look like when recovery needs to feel steady, collaborative, and safe.
A gentle, private self-reflection tool if you are not sure what to call what is happening.
How private dietitian fees and extended health receipts usually work in Ontario.
Book a free, no-pressure intro call. We talk through what brought you here and what you are hoping for.
Sessions happen by secure video from wherever you are in Pembroke. Nothing to prepare, nothing to weigh.
We work at your pace toward a calmer, steadier relationship with food and your body.
Every person who reaches out is met where they are. These are the main reasons people in Pembroke and across Ontario look for this kind of care:
Nutrition support for anorexia, bulimia, binge eating, ARFID, orthorexia, and eating that feels frightening or out of control.
Compassionate, weight-inclusive care when food, exercise, rules, guilt, or body image have started to take over.
A non-diet approach to binge eating, emotional eating, and the restrict-binge cycle, without shame or more rules.
Gentle support for food anxiety, fear foods, avoidance, and the slow work of feeling safer around eating.
Help for chronic dieting, body checking, food guilt, and rebuilding trust with your body at a steadier pace.
Work with a Registered Dietitian online from anywhere in Ontario, with receipts for extended health reimbursement.
Because care is virtual, I work with clients in Pembroke and nearby communities including Petawawa, Renfrew County, and the upper Ottawa, as well as people right across Ontario. You do not need to live near a clinic to get thoughtful, registered dietitian support. You can also browse every Ontario city served.
Pembroke Regional Hospital anchors health care for a large stretch of the Ottawa Valley, but like most community hospitals it does not run a specialized eating disorder program. For that, adults are referred into Ottawa, to programs at The Ottawa Hospital, and young people to the program at CHEO, both about an hour and a half to two hours each way from Pembroke.
Renfrew County is one of the largest and most rural counties in the province, and for people in Deep River, Barry's Bay, or the smaller townships, Pembroke is already the drive, and Ottawa is much further again. Adding a weekly trip to the city on top of that is often what makes people give up on care.
Winter in the valley makes it harder still. The roads along the Ottawa River and up into the highlands are not forgiving in January, and a two-hour appointment becomes a genuine risk rather than just an inconvenience.
Virtual care removes the drive without removing the depth of support. You meet by secure video from home, at a time that fits shift work or family, and you get individual, weight-inclusive nutrition care from a Registered Dietitian. If you already hold an Ottawa referral, working with a dietitian alongside it is straightforward.
Valley life also runs on shift work, seasonal work, and long commutes, and those patterns quietly wear away at regular eating. When your days start early or rotate, skipping meals and then overeating later can become the norm without anyone choosing it. Part of the work is rebuilding a rhythm that fits your actual schedule rather than an idealized one, and doing it from home means the support fits the valley's realities instead of fighting them. No referral is needed to begin.
The approach is non-diet, weight-inclusive, and free of judgment. Lauren Hofstee is a Registered Dietitian with the College of Dietitians of Ontario, registration number 15869. If you would like the wider map first, there is a plain overview of what eating disorder support exists across Ontario.
Yes. Every session with Lauren is virtual, so you can meet from anywhere in Pembroke or the Ottawa Valley by secure video. You get the same individual, professional care as an in-person visit, without the commute or waiting room.
No referral is needed. You can reach out directly to book a free, no-pressure introductory call. Physicians and other clinicians are also welcome to refer a patient through the online referral form.
Lauren supports people with eating disorder recovery, disordered eating, binge eating, restriction, chronic dieting, food anxiety, body image concerns, intuitive eating, digestion, energy, and general wellbeing. The approach is non-diet, weight-inclusive, and free of judgment.
Book a free intro call. It is a relaxed conversation to see if working together feels right, with nothing you need to prepare beforehand.
Some of the writing people in Pembroke find their way to first. No plans, no rules, just honest thinking about food and body.
Intuitive eating has a set of guiding principles. Here is what they really mean, in plain and kind language.
A clear, honest walk through of how dietitian coverage actually works in Canada, from workplace benefits to spending accounts, and how to check yours.
Not sixteen identical containers of chicken and broccoli. A softer, more forgiving way to make future you a bit less stranded.
Reaching out is often the hardest part. The intro call is free, and there is no pressure to continue.
Book a free intro callPrefer to talk? Call (226) 407-8455
Plain, no-cost guides for anyone weighing eating disorder or nutrition support in Ontario, with nothing behind a form. How to find an eating disorder dietitian · What seeing a dietitian costs in Ontario · How virtual sessions work · Free support across Ontario · Publicly funded programs · Support at Ontario campuses · Seeing a dietitian for free · Ontario eating disorder therapists · Peer and caregiver support groups