Melissa-Jo Sharpe Moolman

The Dietetics degree led her to follow her dream right into the medical field, culminating in a qualification as a Dentist.

Melissa always dreamt of becoming a doctor, despite growing up in a house that was familiar with the long hours and physical stress of the medical field. Her dad was a devoted chemist and owner of a pharmacy. After graduating in Dietetics, she was accepted by Wits University to study Dentistry. Once qualified, she opened her own practice, The Dental Fairy, in July 2019. The support of the Hartbeespoort community has allowed her to continue dreaming about taking her interest in orthodontics further.

Melissa’s story:

“I was only 13 years old when I had anorexia. Looking back, it was the time in my life that I felt most vulnerable, and, in the process, I lost my sense of self. For the people that love me and recognised that I had a problem, the trauma was much more severe and emotional. I am so grateful that my mom never gave up on me. She realised I was on a self-destructive path and did not stop until I got the treatment I needed.”

There were doctors and psychiatrists that told her it might just be a “phase” and that it would pass, but as she got sicker and gradually faded away, it was clear that she was severely ill. It was only when she weighed 26kg at the age of almost 14yrs that she was diagnosed and got the professional help she needed.

“I would like young people and their parents to know the dangers of eating disorders and that you CAN heal if you don’t look the other way,” says Melissa-Jo.

“During that time, I did not realize that I had an eating disorder, although everybody around me voiced their concerns time and again. I distanced myself from social gatherings which was completely out of character and a major red flag to my loved ones. In my head everybody was overreacting! I struggled daily with my distorted perception of the person staring back at me when I looked in the mirror. A constant dialogue between my intellect and my visual perception, between what I see and what I know. Even after successful treatment. Eventually the realisation that I caused my loved one’s pain, motivated me to get better.”

Her obsessive thinking about food led her on a path to discover what would be best for her physical body. Although she already had such a wide, but slightly twisted, idea of nutrition (counting calories and knowing the content of everything she ingested, for all the years following her diagnosis), studying dietetics taught her how intriguing the human body is and how a balanced healthy diet is necessary for life.

“Nutrition forms an integral part our daily lives. I especially enjoyed the area of dietetics that deals with enteral and parenteral feeding of patients in hospital, including tube feedings of ICU patience and the diets that are needed for patients with pancreatitis, burn victims and people with renal disease,” she says, losing us with her professional knowledge of the field at the point!

Fortunately, the knowledge she gained from studying dietetics will never be lost and it did not only help her through her journey with understanding anorexia but integrated well with the next step in her education as a dentist.

“The body as a whole is connected. Knowing about nutrition also helps my patients in dentistry as bad eating habits have an influence on your teeth.”

Looking back, Melissa believes that it is only through the grace of God that she made such progress and is still alive today. Speaking of God, she says, “He uses the people around us, to support and help us through our hardships. I am so thankful and ask God daily to use me to fulfil His plan on this earth. I receive daily reminders that the Lord is with me. The fact that I had the best support system, was motivation enough for me to fight the disease. I can only urge parents, siblings and friends not to give up on their loved ones, but to seek help if they see the warning signs.”

This experience convinced her that she should warn young people and their parents to look out for eating disorders as these can be beaten if you do not “look the other way”.

Life can take interesting turns, but Melissa passionately believes that God has a set plan for each person’s life. She maintains that no matter how hard we try to control things, we always end up where He directs our path.

Melissa giggles and says, “I guess my next step should be to study proctology as then I would have made my way from the mouth, through the digestive tract and out.”

Humour is definitely one of the most prominent personality traits that makes Melissa so loved in her community and circle of family and friends. This beautiful woman endured and then embrace her past. She is filled with light and is an inspiration to parents or sufferers of this disease that are finding it difficult to visualize their future.

May her story help you to envision success, not only in your fight against the disease, but in creating a prosperous future in business and in a joyful life!