Meet Melissa & The Team

Melissa Bloom, Founder

MS, RD, LD + Certified Eating Disorder Registered Dietitian Supervisor (CEDS-S)

Food is my passion and smashing diet culture is my mission as an Eating Disorder Registered Dietitian. We live in a world that promotes disordered eating. Many of us have no idea that we have been exposed to an abundance of misinformation about nutrition and the human body. It’s time for that to change; It’s time for all of us to learn how to thrive, despite the toxicity of diet culture that saturates our media and daily conversations.

Melissa is Texan-born and raised. She played competitive tennis at the state-level as a junior throughout her childhood. Because of this experience, she went on to teaching tennis professionally as a USPTA certified coach, and still enjoys teaching and playing. It truly is a lifelong sport!

Melissa obtained her Master’s Degree in Nutrition at Texas Woman’s University and completed my Dietetic Internship there. Then she started her professional career in bariatric surgery and nutrition in the media until she moved into eating disorders at the inpatient and residential setting. As a result, she was recruited to build and direct nutrition treatment at various outpatient settings.

Her passion for the outpatient treatment of eating disorders and disordered eating grew, and she has stayed in this type of setting since. Her expertise is in working with Anorexia, Bulimia, Binge Eating Disorder, Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder, and disordered relationships with food that may not involve eating disorder behaviors.

Handwritten words saying "Let's do this!" to encourage getting in touch with EmpowRD Nutrition

NORA ZAMZAM, REGISTERED DIETITIAN

RD, LD (Frisco In-Person and Virtual Accessibility)

Nora received her Bachelor of Science degree in Nutrition and Food Science with an emphasis in Medical Nutrition Therapy at California State University, San Bernardino. Over the past five years, Nora has worked primarily in clinical settings, with children, adolescents and adults with chronic diseases, eating disorders, bariatric surgery.

Her true passion is helping people create a healthy relationship with food and their body.

In her free time, Nora enjoys cooking, traveling, and spending time with friends and family.

LIESEL MADDOX, REGISTERED DIETITIAN

RD, LD (Colorado In-Person Location & Virtual Accessibility) 

Liesel is passionate about eating disorder recovery and dismantling diet culture. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nutrition through the Coordinated Program in Dietetics at Texas Christian University. She has extensive eating disorder experience after working in the inpatient, residential, partial hospitalization, and intensive outpatient settings with the Eating Recovery Center in both Plano and Austin, Texas.

Liesel is eager to grow as an eating disorder specialist and is completing the steps for the Certified Eating Disorder Registered Dietitian (CEDS) certification through the International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals (IAEDP)

Liesel received the Texas Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics nomination for Outstanding Dietetics Student, Coordinated Program, and enjoys being a guest speaker on eating disorders for Texas Christian University’s Nutrition Department.

Liesel has worked with clients of all ages; however, she is especially passionate about working with adolescent and young adult women to find freedom with food in eating disorder recovery. Liesel has treated a variety of eating disorder diagnoses and has experience with treating coexisting complex medical and/or mental health conditions. Liesel provides individual and family nutrition counseling and takes an individualized approach to each client’s unique needs. Liesel uses a non-diet approach to nutrition based on Intuitive Eating, Health at Every Size, and eating disorder awareness.

Liesel loves to spend time with her husband and their sweet pup, Olive. She enjoys getting outside, hiking, skiing, doing yoga or pilates, traveling, and trying new restaurants. Liesel is always on the hunt for the best brunch spot and can be found making cappuccinos and baked goods any day of the week.

SARAH ORTIZ, REGISTERED DIETITIAN

RD, LD (Frisco In-Person Location & Virtual Accessibility) 

Sarah obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Dietetics from Ouachita Baptist University in Arkansas. She then returned to her home state of Texas to complete her dietetic internship at Medical City Healthcare. Throughout her training and early on in her career, Sarah quickly realized that she values making connections to promote health in all aspects of life. She has found her passion in working with those who struggle with eating disorders and disordered eating. She enjoys working with people of all ages to guide them towards food freedom and to build a healthy relationship with food.

Sarah’s mission is to meet people right where they are to help them believe that food can and should be….ENJOYED!

Aside from practicing her expertise in nutrition, Sarah loves to spend time with her family and friends. She and her husband also enjoy traveling to new places and spoiling their adorable dogs!

KRIZIA CROOKE, REGISTERED DIETITIAN

MS, RD, LD (Frisco In-Person and Virtual Accessibility)

Krizia obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Dietitians with a minor in criminal justice from Texas Woman’s University. She moved to NYC to complete her dietetic internship and to obtain her Master’s Degree in Clinical Nutrition at New York University.

She has extensive eating disorder experience after completing her clinical rotation as well as beginning her professional career at BALANCE Eating Disorder Treatment Center in Manhattan. Krizia is passionate about empowering individuals to experience peace with food and eating by incorporating an anti-diet, all-foods-fit approach. She follows a Health-at-Every-Size (HAES) and gender-affirming model for nutrition counseling and believes that food is more than just fuel for our bodies.

Krizia loves to spend time with her golden, Bryce, who is an avid reader and is always up to date with everything in pop culture. She loves to travel, try new restaurants, and spend time with friends and family.

EmpowRD Nutrition Team April 2022

About EmpowRD nutrition

Eating Disorder Treatment Counseling in Dallas, TX

EmpowRD Nutrition Co. provides virtual and in-person outpatient nutrition services for adolescents, teens and adults with eating disorders and disordered eating. Above all, we believe that everyone deserves to live a life free from the cages of toxic diet culture to which we are subjected. We also believe in science-backed nutrition information and implementation, not fad diets. Most importantly, nutrition is a science, not an opinion, and this is the motto we live by at EmpowRD Nutrition.

EmpowRD Nutrition’s Mission

It is our mission to provide nutrition therapy with compassion, empathy, and expertise at an individual pace to all of our clients.

Together We Can

Continue eating disorder recovery for ARFID, BED, OSFED, ANR, + BND

Smash diet culture!

Learn how to work with your body

Simplify the science behind nutrition

Improve your relationship with food

Live a happier, more fulfilled life!

Schedule a Free Consultation

Take the first step towards transforming your relationship with food. We can do this together.

Start focusing on intuitive eating and gain the resources and help you need to enjoy food again!

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