The simple answer is – No – Need any more information? O.k. continue to read on…
Then what gives me the authority to write about nutrition?
I am self-taught.
Did you know that people who are self-taught actually do have a title – Autodidact.
Autodidactism is actually not as easy as you think as there is no structure, no incentives and no piece of paper at the end. In fact, there is no ‘end’. It only ends when one changes the subject.
However, the upside is that one has complete control over what is learned, no assignments and no waste of time with teachers who are structured within the curriculum and only have one view.
I did look at nutrition courses quite a number of years ago, but, because I’m vegan, the courses just didn’t seem to ‘gel’ with my thinking. Which made me decide to teach myself.
There is so much knowledge out there, and by doing my own research I was not encumbered by courses that had been ‘sponsored by’. I’m going to hasten on to say, that not all schools and courses are ‘sponsored by’, but the general thinking can be a little biased in order to promote a certain ideology.
Now I do already have extensive training in Anatomy and Physiology which was covered when I did a three-year training in Massage way back when it wasn’t taught in traditional schools and there was no diploma. It was under an apprentice system with the medical side taught by those already trained in medicine.
It’s a bit like algebra… if you’re not using it every day, then one tends to forget it, so please don’t ask me to explain the human body at a microscopic level, including the structure and function of cells, tissues and membranes.
However, ask me about calcium and I’ve got it covered!
This particular post subject has come about because the other day, at the Vegan Vibes festival, I had a lady approach me to tell me she had read my Nutrition book. She said it was great and that she really liked the fact that it was coming from a different angle than the normal nutritional books. I did hasten to say that I wasn’t a qualified nutritionist, that I was self-taught. Her response really boosted my confidence ….
“Well, I am a qualified nutritionist and I can tell you that I have learned more from your book than I did on my course.”
Wow – now that blew me away so much that I never thought to ask her to put it in writing.
However, on looking at the Reviews on this particular book on Amazon, there’s one little snippet that jumps out about my lack of credentials.
“Fee tells us that she has no certifications or special training in nutrition, well, I do have a certification in fitness and nutrition, and I can honestly say that this very talented lady has done her research well, and so much more”
Sometimes it pays to be ‘self-taught’ and not caught up in the boxes of ‘qualifications’. Have a look at some of these people.
Frank Lloyd Wright – American architect.
Leonardo da Vinci – We know him as an artist, but he was also a mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist and botanist.
The Wright Brothers – neither graduated high school.
Thomas Edison.
Charles Darwin.
Benjamin Franklin.
Karl Marx.
Even Steve Irwin never went to college and was primarily taught everything he knew about biology and zoology from his father and actually getting out there learning and teaching as he went along.
Jimi Hendrix and Heston Blumenthal.
and I’m going to finish with one last one that I think really says it all about being an Autodidact
Michael Faraday
Faraday was an English chemist and physicist. He made huge contributions to the field of electromagnetism and electrochemistry even though he received little formal education and knew little of higher mathematics. During his seven-year apprenticeship at a local bookbinder and bookseller, he read many books by writers like Isaac Watts, Jane Marcet etc. that helped him learn. At the end of his apprenticeship, he also attended lectures by the eminent English chemist Humphry Davy of the Royal Institution and Royal Society, and John Tatum, founder of the City Philosophical Society. This self-learner is now regarded as one of the most influential scientists in history.
I am certainly proud to be an autodidact and included in such an illustrious list.
The second – maybe not a “quirk” but quite delightful. I hang my bag on the kitchen door and Lily has discovered it. She rubs up against it, licks it and generally just hangs out by it. When she first started doing it I must admit I was a bit puzzled. Now I think I’ve got the answer. I have a small bottle of peppermint essence in there (wonderful for headaches) and I believe Lily can smell it. I’ve yet to have a headache, rub a dot on the temples and then get near her to test my theory.
