Shows
EDeology: The People Behind Today's Eating Disorder Treatment LandscapeSymptom Management vs. Root Causes in Eating Disorder TreatmentIn eating disorder treatment, do we focus on managing symptoms or addressing root causes?There are so many issues tied into this question, at both a theoretical and very practical level. Treatment focused on symptom management often rests on the premise that the issues encountered in eating disorder recovery are the result, not the cause, of food restriction. From this perspective, when a person is nutritionally rehabilitated and weight-restored, many co-occurring symptoms like mood disturbances and body dysmorphia will naturally resolve.In contrast, an approach that emphasizes addressing the underlying root causes sees disordered food...2025-07-281h 00
Curious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP51_Breaking the Silence: A Journey of Mental Health, Recovery & Hope with Erica Meline (Personal Story)Erica Meline is a mental health advocate and public speaker. Diagnosed with an eating disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Major Depressive Disorder, and OCD, Erica has spent much of her life feeling like she was broken. Following a suicide attempt in 2022, Erica made the decision to turn her life around and set out on a long journey to recovery.
Though the journey is far from over, Erica has been able to finally reach a point in her life where hope has returned, and she now tries to instill that hope in others. Today, Erica aims to help people...2025-02-0351 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP50_Expect the Miracle with Author and Trauma Survivor, Alle C. Hall, (Personal Story)In this episode I speak with author and recovery warrior, Alle C. Hall who identifies as a person in recovery for 35 years from codependency, bulimia, alcoholism, and sexual anorexia. Her lived experience is shared through her work as an author, speaker, and writing instructor who focuses on the joy and creativity resulting from trauma
recovery.
Alle’s debut novel, As Far as You Can Go Before You Have to Come Back, has been honoured fifteen times; including 1st place in The National League of American Pen Women’s Mary Kennedy Eastham Prize for an excerpt, and most rece...2025-01-1453 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP49_Educational Psychologist, Lucy Hathorn Shares her Anorexia Lived Experience and Passion for ED AdvocacyToday I speak to fellow South African, Educational Psychologist and Eating Disorder Advocate, Lucy Hathorn. Lucy shares with us her personal experience with anorexia and neurodivergence, and her mission in mental health advocacy.
Lucy is passionate about helping others navigate recovery, particularly addressing eating disorders in South Africa, where they are often overlooked and runs a successful Instagram account (@lovelucyclaire) to raise awareness about eating disorders and connect with those in recovery.
In this episode Lucy speaks to us about the impact of a parent's relationship with food and how this can unknowingly significantly impact...2024-11-1935 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP48_Treating Neurodivergence and Eating Disorders Together with Angel Sipp, LISW-S (Expert)In this episode, we sit down with Angel Sipp, a licensed independent social worker and therapist who specializes in eating disorders, ADHD, autism, and body image. With personal experience as a neurodivergent individual, Angel brings a unique perspective to her work at Keller Counseling and Associates in Columbus, Ohio.
We explore the complex relationship between ADHD and eating disorders, discussing the roles of executive functioning challenges, masking, shame, and external validation. Angel shares her insights on how movement and sensory stimulation can both help and hinder recovery, especially in neurodivergent individuals, and advocates for personalized, holistic approaches...2024-10-0357 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP47_My anger, denial, and sadness was actually grief. Understanding when you might be grieving your old eating disorder self. (Solo)In this episode, we dive into the complex emotions and processes that come with recovering from an eating disorder, focusing on the grieving stages that often surface during this journey.
Key Topics:
Understanding Grief in Recovery: We explore how the stages of grief (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance) play a significant role in the recovery process. Recognising these emotions as normal helps create space for healing.
The Importance of External Support: External support is essential when dealing with overwhelming emotions. We discuss how reaching out to others and showing self-compassion can ease...2024-08-2039 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP46_Nourishing the Inner Landscape: Parts work for eating disorders with Celia Clark (Expert)Today, I explore the Internal Family Systems (IFS) framework and its profound impact on healing from eating disorders with IFS Therapist, Celia Clark. IFS sees individuals as composed of various parts or sub-personalities, each with its own thoughts, beliefs, and behaviours. We discuss how these parts develop early in life, influenced by interactions with caregivers. Understanding when certain parts are activated and addressing their underlying needs is crucial.
We highlight four core parts involved in eating disorders: restriction, binge eating, purging, and body checking, each serving a distinct role as well as the concept of the Internal...2024-03-1949 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP45_Therapeutic Movement as a Tool for Emotional Processing with Lauren Elise Peterson, MS, BC-DMT (Expert)In this episode, Lauren Elise Peterson, a board certified dance/movement therapist and body image coach, joins the conversation to explore the transformative power of movement in healing and recovery, particularly for individuals struggling with eating disorders. Lauren has been passionate about eating disorder and trauma recovery for over 20 years and loves to help people feel better in their own skin through using recovery-friendly movement practices.
This epsiode emphasizes the importance of listening to the body as a means of understanding and processing emotions, highlighting the bottom-up approach in therapy. The conversation delves into Po...2024-02-1557 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP44_Mindful Awareness in Body-oriented Therapy (MABT) with Cynthia Price, Ph. D., M.A., LMT (Expert)In this episode I interview Cynthia Price, the Senior Director of the Center for Mindful Body Awareness (CMBT) and a leading researcher in the field of Mindful Awareness in Body-oriented Therapy (MABT). The discussion revolves around MABT, its applications, and its potential benefits, particularly in the context of disordered eating.
The first part of the podcast covers the basics of MABT, highlighting its emphasis on interoceptive awareness, body connection, and sustained attention to internal experiences. Cynthia explains the unique aspects of MABT, distinguishing it from other mindfulness approaches and highlighting its focus on integrating physiological and sensory processing.
The...2024-01-1848 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP43_Sex, Sexuality, and Intimacy and their Roles in Eating Disorder Recovery with Nicole M. D’Aoust (Expert)In this episode, licensed therapist Nicole M. D'Aoust, AMFT shares her expertise at the intersection of eating disorders and sexuality. With an M.A. in Clinical Psychology, emphasizing Marriage and Family Therapy, Nicole draws on her diverse experience, including interning at the VA with women veterans who've faced sexual trauma.
We explore the intricate web of influences on sexuality, touching on media, medical, and moral factors. She discusses the concept of pleasure rituals, emphasizing the need to break sex stigma and expand our understanding of sexuality beyond mere behavior.
The episode delves into four distinct types of intimacy and...2024-01-1259 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP42_The Importance of Community in Eating Disorder Recovery with Jessie Huebner, LMHC, CEDS-C (Expert)Today I chat to Jessie Huebner about the importance of collaboration in Eating Disorder Recovery. Eating disorders are complex illnesses that need a holistic approach. Often we need an entire team of professionals working together to help those who suffer with this illness. This means that often a recovery journey can involve people like dieticians, coaches, therapists, psychiatrists, spiritual healers, family counsellors, doctors, and more.
We also know that eating disorders are no “one-size-fits-all” matter, and the world of ED recovery is constantly evolving. This is why it’s important for professionals to work together and to learn from e...2024-01-0841 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP41_Accessible , Weight Inclusive & Affirming Eating Disorder Therapy with Emily Andersen, LMFT (Expert)Too many people avoid seeking medical or therapeutic help because of existing weight stigma in the health industry. This means thousands of people don’t get the help that they need for very real, and even life-threatening illnesses like an eating disorder.
In today’s episode I speak to Emily Andersen, Marriage and Family Therapist from PsychED Recovery, who serves as a holistic and healthy model of what it is like to be a provider in a larger body.
Emily’s mission is to create a safe, inclusive, accessible space for all clients of all identit...2023-11-081h 14Curious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP40_Star Wars, Body Grief, and Dudes in Recovery with Aaron Flores, RDN (Expert)Navigating a changing body, whether it’s through eating disorder recovery or for any other reason, can be really challenging. Learning to trust your body is a process which often comes with trial and error, moments of joy, and grief.
Coming back home to your body includes building relationship to it, which doesn’t always feel easy. In fact diet culture tells us we can’t trust our bodies! But this is not how we were born. We were born with the intuitive ability to trust our bodies, yet conditioning from systemic influences or personal experiences can lead yo...2023-10-1147 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP39_Why We Need to Consider Mind-Body Interventions for Sustainable Eating Disorder TreatmentIn this episode, we delve into the complexities of eating disorders and the crucial role of understanding the body-brain connection in the recovery process. We emphasize why this understanding is essential for both professionals and individuals struggling with eating disorders.
Eating disorders can be challenging to overcome due to their multifaceted nature. They not only affect one's relationship with food but also disrupt the integration of self, leading to distorted self-image. Exploring the neurobiology of eating disorders, including the effects of malnutrition, is crucial in developing more effective treatment approaches. The brain's ability to change and adapt...2023-09-261h 12Curious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP38_Nutrition & Body Image Counselling: Courtney Vickery's Story (Expert + Personal)Dietitian, Intuitive Eating Counselor, Food Therapist, and Body Image Coach living in a small, rural town in Georgia. Today she shares her journey, and why she chose to work in the field of nutrition and body image.
We highlight the prevalence of disordered eating numbers in college students. You can find a study done by NEDA in 2013 here: https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/sites/default/files/CollegeSurvey/CollegiateSurveyProject.pdf
We also talk about some of the challenges Courtney faced in her own food and body wellness journey, and the tools she used to support her...2023-09-0835 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP37_I Guess Deep Down, I Had Hope - An Anorexia Recovery Journey with Charlotte (A Personal Story)Today I speak with Charlotte Cummings, who currently works as a Recovery Coach at Monte Nido - which you can find out more about here: https://www.montenido.com/
She touches on her personal story through anorexia, the traumatic experiences she endured in treatment, and her Borderline Personality Disorder diagnosis.
We talk about the importance of catching an eating disorder early, and what parents need to be aware of - checking in to see whether they are unknowingly encouraging disordered eating behaviour.
We discuss the feelings of guilt that come up when trying to recover from anorexia...2023-08-171h 15Curious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP36_The Role of Relationships, Family Based Therapy, and a Dive into Kirsten’s Story: An Interview with Dr Susan Perkins, PART 2 (Expert)In this episode I invite Dr Susan Perkins, licensed marriage, and family therapist, for the second time onto the show. In our first meeting together, we discussed the role of family based therapy and how it fits into the process of eating disorder recovery, for both adolescents and adults.
We explored the many misunderstandings, frustrations, and challenges that both the suffering eating disordered individual and their families undergo. After we met, we had a lovely discussion about doing an experimental episode where we flip the script a bit in that Dr Susan interviews me (Kirsten, your host...2023-07-151h 35Curious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP35_You Don't Have to Be at War With Your Body. With Maya Naumann, RD from Non-Diet South Africa (Expert)Diet culture is pervasive. What it teaches, is problematic. Those that have tried it again and again, end up with a predictable set of behaviours and attitudes about food and their bodies. If the following list describes you, you may be one of them:
It seems as if I am always on diet
I lose weight, only to gain it again
I am preoccupied with the desire to be thinner
I feel guilty when I eat “illegal” foods
I have a closet full of clothes in different sizes
I...2023-06-3046 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP34:_“You’re Meant to Make Love, Touch, Connection to Other.” Sustainable Subconscious Healing with Paige Frisone (Expert)Resolving trauma and cultivating internal healing through talk therapy can do wonders for any mental health journey. But what about those challenges that we just can’t seem to get past? There are things going on beyond the conscious thinking mind that could be at play in keeping us stuck. Today I interview Paige Frisone, an integrative and sensory practitioner, writer, creator, educator, and speaker dedicated to helping others transform their innate wisdom into soul-powered living.
She helps you access your subconscious mind, the 95% that exists beyond our conscious thinking mind. This is an intricate and elaborate wa...2023-06-071h 01Curious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP33_Challenges Faced by Trans+ & Intersex People in Eating Disorder Treatment with Kevin (they/them), FEDUP Collective (Expert)Eating disorders affect hundreds of thousands of people around the world, yet most people still hold the stigma that they largely only affect smaller bodied, caucasian, cis-gender females. This stigma is seen across the board in treatment centres, medical practises, and societies. For this reason, people who do not fit this typical mould often face harsh and even life-threatening challenges when trying to find safe and inclusive spaces for recovery from their disordered eating.
In this episode I speak to Kevin (they/them) about some of these challenges. I acknowledge that I ask these q...2023-05-221h 31Curious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP32_Bravely Making Art for Mental Health Healing with Ali Gillett. (Expert)Eating disorders are largely made up of self-criticism, perfectionism, inability to release control, and fear of vulnerability. Art asks you to challenge every one of those areas fully. That is why Ali Gillett from The Brave Arts, uses her artistic talent and lived experience with an eating disorder (whom she calls “Slug”), to help others navigate their internal fears with curiosity and compassion.
Ali holds a BA in Fine Art from RMIT, Melbourne, 2014, a current working with children card, and holds an NDIS workers card. She divides her time between a studio and mural prac...2023-05-1548 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP31_Nourishing Others in ED Recovery with a Mindful Dietitian: With Laura Gajda, EDRD, LDN, CEDS-SIn today’s episode I speak with Laura Gajda, a Registered Dietitian and Nutritionist with a background in Eating Disorders and mental health diagnoses. She specialises in working with adults with Eating Disorders and building sustainability in their recovery. She is not only incredibly passionate about the work of dietetics, but she has a personal history of a loved one with an eating disorder, which feeds into her passion for helping others in a holistic way. She works with her clients to help them build their own sense of autonomy around food and decrease the power that food can ha...2023-05-0951 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP30_Getting your Period Back – A Rewarding and Compassionate Process. With Cynthia Donovan AKA The Period Nutritionist (Expert)Getting your period back after experiencing disordered eating is an important part of the recovery process. It can lead to a more fulfilled life & improved overall health. Some people may even fear not being able to conceive and become a mother in recovery because of the damage done to the menstrual cycle over the years. But there is hope!
While not every person will fully recover their natural cycle, there are steps you can take to improve those chances. And along the journey you will see how recovering your period is about so much...2023-04-2859 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP29_Embodied Recovery for Eating Disorders (ERED) with Rachel Lewis-Marlow and Annie Goldsmith. (Experts)Rachel Lewis- Marlow and Annie Goldsmith join me from the Embodied Recovery Institute to talk about the importance of embodiment (for both the individual and the practitioner) in the process of recovery from disordered eating.
Embodied Recovery Institute facilitates trainings, consultation, and program development for physical and mental health professionals in EMBODIED RECOVERY for EATING DISORDERS (ERED) – a trauma-informed, relationally oriented, and neurobiologically supported approach to the treatment of eating disorders that weaves modalities and interventions based on the latest research in traumatology, interpersonal neurobiology, and child development. This embodied perspective draws on principles of the Polyvagal The...2023-04-221h 01Curious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP28_Could Genetic Testing Save You Years of Trial & Error in Mental Health Treatment? A Chat with Dr Evelyn Higgins (Expert)Many people come into treatment for eating disorders and co-occurring mental health concerns and are put onto prescribed medication. Whilst this approach may work, often we see people getting worse, or struggling through trial and error to find the "right" combination. What if there was a way to avoid the back and forth of things not working? What if you could even avoid certain issues being triggered in your treatment process, or avoid certain triggers completely?
This is where Wired For Addiction® comes in. Wired For Addiction® specializes in the biological component of mental health and addiction re...2023-04-0449 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP27_From Recovery to Helping Others Recover with Kathryn Smith, LPC NCC (Expert)Meeting a client where they are at is vital to truly creating safety in their eating disorder recovery journey. It is really helpful when the professional you work with has lived experience with their own recovery such as Kathryn Smith, who is passionate about helping individuals improve body image, stop disordered eating behaviours, find peace from emotional eating, and process the negative impact of trauma on weight related challenges.
With training in areas such as DBT, Yoga, The Gottman Method, Somatic and Attachment Focused (SAFE) Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), and the Health at Every Size® (HA...2023-03-1459 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP_26: Finding Your Reasons to Recover – A Male Role Model in ED Recovery, Alex Rodriguez (Expert)In honour of Eating Disorder Awareness Week this year, and in alignment with BEAT’s desire to spread awareness around men in the recovery world, I spoke to Alex Rodriguez, an accredited practicing dietitian and recovery mentor at River Oak Health in Brisbane, Australia.
It is not often that we see men in the recovery space and so it was really great to get his perspective and hear about the journey of finding his reasons to recover from anorexia. So often men are overlooked when it comes to disordered eating. There is societal pressure for a man to...2023-02-2457 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP25_You Can Break The Cycle - Navigating a Healthy Food/Body Relationship For You And Your Child With Dr Christina Stai, Psy. D. (Expert)If you have ever struggled with poor body image, low self-esteem, disordered eating behaviors, or feelings of being powerless and out of control, there is a strong possibility that you may unknowingly pass these same struggles on to your children.
In today’s episode I chat to Dr Christina Stai, Psy. D. about how to navigate yourself and your child through every stage of childhood development – starting with pregnancy, so that this doesn’t happen.
Dr Stai is a licensed clinical psychologist and the owner of Holistic Resources LLC in SE Iowa, where she provides therap...2023-02-181h 25Curious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP24_When You Need Therapy but Don’t Fit the “Neuro-typical Mould”: Halina Brooke, LAMFT, LAC (Expert)Good therapy goes beyond simply teaching skills or delivering a cookie-cutter intervention. Halina Brooke is a licensed associate counselor and marriage and family therapist in Arizona who works with those who have felt like “outsiders” or who conventional therapy hasn’t quite gelled for, and with those who are often pushed aside from healthcare because of the complexity of their recovery process.
Whether a person is struggling with autism, neurodivergence, minority groups or more, it can make recovery from disordered eating even more challenging to navigate. Halina is here to bring awareness to the fact that there is help...2023-01-2953 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP23_Where am I, How am I, Who am I? Three Questions for Creating Presence in Eating Disorder Recovery (Solo)After this year's festive season (2022) I found myself in quite a slump. I was really struggling emotionally and could feel eating disordered elements start to creep their way back into my life as a way to try avoid or cope with things that I was suppressing. I know that every person with an eating disorder will, at some point face the same struggles. So, my aim for this episode is firstly to help you understand that you are not alone. Even professionals have slumps or bad days (or weeks), and that it is only when we stop paying attention...2023-01-0932 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP22_Gut Health and Restrictive Dieting with Dr Heather Finley (Expert)Dr Heather Finley is a Registered Dietician and Gut Health Specialist who has helped hundreds of women find relief from digestive issues whilst moving away from restrictive dieting and toward long-lasting relief and balance.
In this episode she talks to us about gut health and we look at it from the lens of recovery from disordered eating. She explains a bit about the science behind why restrictive diets don’t work in restoring gut health and how a combination of low secretory IGA, stress and disordered eating can cause food sensitivities and other gut issues. She encourages fo...2022-12-2050 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP21_Life After Exercise Addiction - Holly Farrar (Expert)In this episode I speak with Holly Farrar, MS,LPC - owner of Dedicated Recovery, a unique health and mental wellness organization that specializes in helping athletes with many health and mental issues. We explore what it means to create a life for yourself after exercise addiction and how to challenge your relationship to movement and exercise.
Holly has her bachelor’s of science in kinesiology (aka exercise science). At 23years old she began her doctorate in physical therapy in California, but opted to step out of the program after six months of battling an upper respiratory in...2022-12-0957 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP_20: Finding Food Freedom - We are Always in Process - Cherie Miller (Expert)In this episode I speak with eating disorder therapist and coach, Cherie Miller, owner of Food Freedom Therapy™. Cherie loves to speak on topics related to food and body freedom, which we explore at different levels in our chat. We take a look at different modalities such as CBT, DBT, ACT, and taking a gentle approach to recovery from an eating disorder.
We look at what “food freedom” looks like for Cherie specifically and how you could apply these thoughts into your own life, acknowledging that diet culture tells us that our bodies can’t be trusted, but this...2022-11-0759 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP19_Contemplative Prayer: A Tool for Growth in Eating Disorder Recovery (Solo)Spirituality may be a really hard thing to navigate and explore in recovery from an eating disorder or any other addiction. Trust me, it wasn't always easy for me. I had very set views of the idea of a non-existent "God". After all - why would God put me through such pain? Fortunately, I was blessed to have started my recovery journey in a 12 Step Program, which allowed me to explore what God may or may not mean for me, in whichever way I saw fit. This was key to my spiritual journey, because I was never told my...2022-10-2746 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP18_Weight Inclusive Treatment, a Much Needed Aspect in Eating Disorder Recovery: Dr Joy Zelikovsky (Expert)In this episode I speak with Dr Joy Zelikovsky, clinical psychologist and National Health Service Psychologist in New Haven, CT. She is also the founder of Nourish The Heart Counseling in New Haven, Connecticut.
I thoroughly enjoyed this discussion on the importance of having representation in the treatment process. So often we are riddled with the stigma around disordered eating - that it is a white, thin, female illness. This may be true in some cases, but not all! The problem is that there are so many treatment teams (for whatever reason) who comprise of exactly this...2022-10-1954 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP17_Dream Interpretation as a Tool in Eating Disorder Recovery (Solo)Dreams may seem like a random string of symbols and situations that make no sense, but they are a way to connect with the deeper self. Our dreams are messengers that help us see ourselves clearer, process emotions or understand our fears or obstacles. They can be seen as a tool to access that which our waking mind struggles to connect with.
In this episode I take you through my personal experience with dreams and how they have played a role in my recovery from disordered eating. I look at some studies that were conducted in the 90’s...2022-09-2850 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP16_Attuned Eating for Eating Disorder Recovery: Tracy Brown, RD (Expert)In this episode I speak with Tracy Brown, RD, LD/N who is a somatic nutrition therapist, registered dietitian, attuned eating coach, and embodiment teacher. We explore the topic of attuned eating, taking a special look at the significance of trauma responses in eating disorders.
Tracy also shares some of her personal story around disordered eating and how she came to be a dietician. Since 2006, she has guided people in healing from disordered eating and chronic dieting, many of which have PCOS and other stress-related conditions. Tracy will walk you through not only how to stop dieting, b...2022-09-2357 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP15_Anti-Diet, Eating Disorder Dietician Challenges: LKNutrition, Taylor and Jessi (Expert)Being a dietician for eating disorders comes along with a load of challenges. How do you best help clients? What challenges do you face on a daily basis? What are some dieticians getting wrong? How do you promote health in an anti-diet way? How do you manage your own mental and physical health? How do you handle crushing diet culture while not feeling like the food police?
In this episode I talk to Taylor and Jessi who are registered dieticians and co-founders of LK Nutrition LLC in Ohio. LK Nutrition LLC seeks to provide evidence based and...2022-09-0955 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP13_The Role of Family in Eating Disorder Treatment: Dr Susan Perkins: PART 1 (Expert)This episode forms part one of a two-part series with Dr Susan Perkins who earned her Master’s Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Hardin-Simmons University (2003) and her Ph.D. in Marriage and Family Therapy from Virginia Tech (2010).
She worked at Carolina House, a residential treatment facility for 17-year-olds and older, in a gender inclusive space for a year and a half doing family therapy. In her time there, and within her own private practise, she has been witness to many misunderstandings, frustrations, and challenges that both the suffering eating disordered individual and their families undergo. In...2022-09-0251 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP14_Binaural Beats and Music in Eating Disorder Recovery (Solo) *Plus a bonus at the end ;)Music has always been a huge part of my life and undoubtedly has played an important role in my recovery from disordered eating. In this episode I take you through a little story about my personal history with music and why it has been so significant for me, and then I get curious about some of the science behind why music is so healing.
I look at the different brain states and how binaural beats can help regulate the nervous system and reduce anxiety, how music has been shown to affect cortisol levels as well as how...2022-08-2642 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP12_Gravitating Toward Love in Binge Eating Disorder: Dr. Kari Anderson (Expert)Dr Kari Anderson has been an eating disorder therapist for over 30 years and has a history of binge eating disorder as a teen/young adult. Her career has been driven by her own recovery and research into what causes binge eating disorder and how can we best treat it. She has written two books on Binge Eating Disorder, her latest book is a memoir, “Food, Body, and Love, but the greatest of these is love.”
In this episode we explore topics around binge eating disorder, looking at harm reduction, heart rate variance, faith-based practice and how to holi...2022-08-1948 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP11_Why Change is Scary in Recovery (Solo)Change is an uncomfortable thing for most people, but it is ever so more in a person who struggles with mental illness such as an eating disorder. In this short episode, I get curious about why we might perceive change (in general) as far more terrifying than your average person, and that creating safety around changes in your life can really help you with facing this very real fear.
Have a listen if you're feeling afraid of changes in your life or in your recovery and would simply like to change your perspective to how you process c...2022-08-0817 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP_10: Plant Medicine for Eating Disorders - Francesca Rose (Expert)Plant medicine is becoming an interesting topic in mental health treatment, and so I decided to get curious about how it might fit in with someone's eating disorder recovery. So I got chatting with the beautiful Francesca Rose from Cape Town, South Africa who, after navigating over 14 years of her own eating disorder recovery, found plant medicine to be an incredible support to her process.
The trouble with this modality is that it is often very misunderstood and used incorrectly without proper guidance. Francesca takes us through the importance of how to approach using this modality wisely a...2022-08-0558 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP_9: Relapse in Eating Disorder Recovery: How to Bounce Back (Solo)Relapse prevention is a part of the recovery process in eating disorders, which means there are certain things we need to manage to not fall back into old behaviour. However, eating disorders are non-linear and can feel quite challenging from time to time. You may even experience relapse.
This can be a scary place, especially if you feel like it came out of nowhere. It may be the first and only time you relapse in your life, or perhaps this has happened a few times for you and you’re feeling lost and confused.
Regardless of...2022-07-2816 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP_8: How Recovery Coaches Help - Merrit Elizabeth (Expert)Merrit Elizabeth is a Carolyn Costin Institute Certified Eating Disorder Recovery Coach based in Dallas, Texas. I had the honour of speaking with her in this episode about her lived experience with disordered eating and how she helps adolescents and young adult women through their recovery.
We chat about the fact that there can often be a lot of pressure for young girls at school and college, and that it's okay to reach out for help if you are struggling. We also explore how exactly a "Recovery Coach" can form a part of your treatment team and...2022-07-2735 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP7_Phases of Awareness in Eating Disorder Recovery (Solo)In this solo episode (just me!) I share a personal account of some of the different areas, levels or "phases" of awareness I have felt in my journey with bulimia.
When I first started noticing things (like my choices, feelings, thoughts etc.) I was thrown into deep self-blame, shame and even fear. However, through practising stillness, getting intimate with myself on a deeply explorative, inward journey, over time I have come to see that at each level of awareness, I am given opportunity to realise my wholeness on new levels and to grow toward love.
T...2022-07-1830 min
Curious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP5: Yoga and Eating Disorders: Lori Haas (Expert)Lori Haas is a 500 hour Certified Healing Emphasis Yoga Therapist who helps people create nurturing, kind and loving relationships with their body as well as calming their nervous system.
In this episode she takes us through how we can tap into the body as a resource for cultivating calm and guides us through a practical grounding exercise.
We touch on Dr. Stephen Porges "Polyvagal Theory" which relates to the autonomic nervous system, finding your "Anchor Pose" for nourishment and empowerment, and chat about her chapter in Carolyn Costin and Joe Kelly's book "Yoga and Eat...2022-07-051h 00Curious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP 6: Connection, Community & Creative Expression. Balancing these in Eating Disorder Recovery (Solo)In today's solo episode, I chat about the three C's of recovery.
These are Connection - to the self, Community - with others and Creative Expression - as a necessity.
While they are not the be all and end all of recovery, I have definitely noticed (in my own journey) how balancing these areas (and nourishing them) have deeply contributed to my level of sanity and the decline of immense fear around food and my body.
Take a listen to see what these areas mean for me, and check out the simple exercise at...2022-06-2432 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP4_Permission to Eat_Libby Parker (Expert)Registered dietician, owner of Not Your Average Nutritionist, and author of International Best-seller, "Permission to Eat" takes us through some diet myths and perspectives from her personal and professional background with nutrition and eating disorders. Libby Parker helps people learn how to eat intuitively and to nourish their bodies for "normal life" and for theatre.
If you are a performer of any kind, who faces long rehearsal hours and taxing strain on the body, she can help you make sure you are giving your body the fuel it needs to thrive.
Find Libby here: https://no...2022-06-1359 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP3_Family Based Treatment_Carolyn McCarter Wood (Expert)Carolyn is a therapist and CEDS who has specialized in eating disorders and trauma for over 12 years. She entered the area of eating disorders after the experience of having a daughter who struggled with AN for many years.
She is trained in Family-Based Treatment for AN and BN, Embodied Recovery for Eating Disorders, and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy. She currently offers therapy primarily to adults who have kids with trauma and long-standing eating disorders and works from a HAES perspective.
In this episode we chat about how things like FBT and the polyvagal theory can help parents be...2022-06-1059 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP2_Cultivating Internal Freedom in Eating Disorder Recovery (Solo)Often, when we think of "freedom" in recovery, we think a lot about the external stuff. Our food behaviors, our body image and such. In this episode I talk to you about the importance of cultivating INTERNAL freedom in your eating disorder recovery journey.
I explore what internal freedom means, what I have found hinders my ability to find that freedom, and how to start taking steps toward this freedom I describe.
Please like and share with anyone you may think would benefit from this show!
If you are struggling with an eating...2022-06-1030 minCurious About Recovery - Diving Into Eating DisordersEP1_Intro to Curious About Recovery Podcast (Solo)In this episode I introduce the purpose of the show, tell you a little bit about myself (Kirsten Hunneyball, Peer Recovery Specialist Coach) and what you can expect when tuning in to each episode.
Eating disorders are complex and challenging to navigate, whether you are a sufferer, professional or family / loved one of a sufferer. Join Kirsten Hunneyball as she gets curious by interviewing professionals, chatting to ED survivors, and sharing her personal ED experience so that you can better understand various perspectives, remove stigma, hear inspiring testimonies and simply get curious about all things eating disorder r...2022-06-1013 min