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Frequently Asked Questions

Lifestyle PeriMenopause aims to nourish, educate, and empower you through high quality education, resources and support.

What is the difference between

A nutritionist and dietitian?

In Australia there is a difference between a dietitian and other nutritional health providers including nutritionists. All dietitians are nutritionists, but nutritionists without a dietetics qualification can’t call themselves a dietitian.

While the definition of a dietitian and nutritionist are similar, there are differences in qualifications and regulation. As a profession, nutritionists aren’t regulated and can have limited qualifications. The dietetic profession is regulated. Most dietitians have graduated with an approved dietetics degree from an Australian university.

Dietitians with the Accredited Practising Dietitian (APD) credential commit to ongoing training and education throughout their careers. It’s important to check the credentials of your healthcare provider before making an appointment

Does my health provider cover

dietitian appointments?

You can see a Lifestyle PeriMenopause dietitian without a GP or specialist referral. If you have private health insurance, some of your appointment costs may be covered depending on your level of cover – we recommend you check with your insurer. Following payment for your telehealth appointment we will provide you with a receipt to self-claim from them.

To check what you will be required to pay, provide your insurer with the consultation cost and the HICAPS item number below to find out how much you will be required to pay.

HICAPS item number:

  • Initial individual consultation: 301
  • Long review or review appointments: 302

Dr Shelley Wilkinson of Lifestyle PeriMenopause is a Credentialed Eating Disorder Clinician. She is able to receive referrals from GPs to see people with diagnosed eating disorders. As we operate fully via telehealth the item number is 93074.

What is included in

an initial consultation?

Lifestyle PeriMenopause offers care that is comprehensive, holisitc and personalised.

Before we see you

Once you book an appointment with us, we will send you a link to complete a dietary assessment. This will let you share whatand how you eat using industry standard surveys. This provides us with direction for your consult as well as a baseline against which we will measure your changes.

You will also be sent the Lifestyle PeriMenopause ‘My Goals and Plans‘ worksheet to start to complete before your session.

In your consultation

Based on your goals, questions, and dietary assessment, we will collaboratively develop your plan. Together we will discuss how nutrition guidelines can be shaped to your needs and preferences. This optimises your perimenopause cardiometabolic health.

Following the consultation

You will be sent our comprehensive summary resources including, Nutrition Foundations and Nutrition Balance for Perimenopause.

We offer review and long review appointments for ongoing accountability and support.

How does an individual session differ from

an online, self-paced program?

Lifestyle PeriMenopause’s online, self-paced programs are designed and delivered to achieve similar outcomes to individual appointments.

Assess your own health habits against perimenopause recommendations and then follow easy steps to help you shape your habits for lasting change using our simple handouts.

Our programs are designed by Lifestyle PeriMenopause’s principal dietitian, Associate Professor Shelley Wilkinson. They are based on her PhD and her ongoing research. They contain proven strategies that support women lead healthier lives through better nutrition and physical activity habits.

Enrol in an online program as a one-off or as an introduction to building a relationship with Lifestyle PeriMenopause for ongoing support and accountability.

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