Tag: mental illness stigma

We’re excited for this special one year anniversary episode! Towards the end of nearly every episode, Francis or Catherine ask guests what words of wisdom, kindness, and hope they would offer to those seeking recovery from an eating disorder. Every response is unique to the person’s experience and every response is steeped in relatability that connects us all. The responses tell the story of recovery as a journey, not a destination. This episode is a collection of those responses to the question “what would you share with listeners who are seeking recovery?” If you are feeling stuck in recovery, thinking recovery is not possible, and are looking for guidance, take a pause and listen to these incredible people share their insights for you. Perhaps you’ll find pieces of yourself and your experiences within their answers. While we couldn’t include every person who has contributed on this podcast, we welcome folx to search episode descriptions and listen to episodes that feel relatable to your story.

Guests in order of responses: Syd Yang, healer, writer, artist, Episode 33; Vance Goodman, chaplain, poet, Episode 63; Mike Marjama, former professional baseball player, Episode 27; Melissa Bernstein, Melissa & Doug toys, author, Episode 65; Dr. Veronica Franklin, behavioral health clinician, Episode 19; Rebecca Eyre, CEO, Project Heal, Episode 55; Lucie Waldman, advocate, Episode 66; Kelly Davidson, RD, Episode 64; Misti Anderson, recovered individual, Episode 45; Kristina Bruce, body acceptance coach, Episode 57; Sarah Dionne, yoga instructor, Episode 25; Jenna DiLossi and Melissa Harrison, Center for Hope and Health, Episode 67; Beth Ayn Stansfield, founder, Stay Strong Virginia, Episode 21; Connie Sobczak, founder, The Body Positive, Episode 13; Eva DeVirgilis, advocate, actress, speaker, Episode 15

It’s been a year since we began this podcast adventure! To celebrate this milestone, we take time to interview each other, sharing thoughts about what the past year has been like, how co-hosting a podcast has impacted us, and what we hope to do more of moving forward.

We’re so grateful to our guests for continually inspiring and educating on this platform — we’re in awe of their vulnerability and resiliency. And to our listeners: we thank you for your continued support and communication throughout the past year.

Again, thank you, thank you, thank you! We can’t wait to see what’s next!

Francis and Catherine are thrilled to welcome to the podcast Kirsten Haglund, an international speaker, mental health advocate, community relations specialist for Timberline Knolls, and Miss America 2008. In this conversation, Kirsten shares her own experience of developing an eating disorder and then finding recovery through hard work and at times difficult choices about what could and could not fit into her life.

Kirsten talks us through the experience participating in–and winning–the Miss America pageant as someone in recovery and reveals the incredible benefits she received from the experience, both through scholarships and also through the opportunity to talk to girls across the country about body image and eating disorders. In addition, Kirsten discusses her foundation, the Kirsten Haglund Foundation, and the work she does to help those impacted by eating disorders.

Through her media and communications company, En Pointe, Kirsten currently serves as a social media consultant and content creator. Her Op-Eds on politics, culture and non-profit advocacy have appeared in the New York Daily News, Forbes.com, Huff Post and in industry journals. She served as Miss America 2008 and Goodwill Ambassador for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.

We’re grateful Kirsten took the time to talk with us so candidly about her eating disorder and recovery, and we hope you gain as much from the conversation as we have.

Welcome to Episode 68! We are so grateful for your listenership and interest in this important topic! Today, Catherine and Francis welcome Erin Welch, a Registered Dietitian who practices with clients experiencing eating disorders through a trauma-informed, Intuitive Eating, and Health At Every Size lens. In this conversation, Erin shares how her lived experience with a rare disorder created a disordered relationship with food and nutrition, which – along with a top-notch dietetics program – inspired her work in the field. Erin and the co-hosts explore how trauma is a theme throughout many experiences with disordered eating patterns, including hers, and how clinicians working in the field can address it with empathy and objective treatment. Erin also helps the co-hosts understand Intuitive Eating a bit better, examining what it is and what it is not. When not in the office, Erin can be found spoiling her two dogs, who love to help her provide meal support! We are incredibly grateful for her insight, energy, and time. We hope you enjoy!

CW: eating disorder behaviors, complex trauma, disordered patterns of eating and behaviors, body size

Catherine and Francis are excited to welcome two guests in this episode! Dr. Jenna DiLossi, Psy.D. and Melissa Harrison, LPC, are the co-founders of the Center for Hope and Health located in Ardmore, Pennsylvania. Both Jenna and Melissa bring years of experience working with individuals experiencing eating disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorders, and other anxiety-based disorders and behaviors. In this episode, Jenna and Melissa help the co-hosts understand compulsive obsessive disorder as it is diagnostically defined and how it may present in patients, and how OCD and eating disorders intersect. Through years of training, they discuss effective treatments for both disorders and share their insights into how individuals experiencing OCD, eating disorders, and trauma can find treatment, recovery, and lead a purposeful and meaningful life. We’re grateful they were able to join us.

Content Warning: eating disorder behaviors, obsessive-compulsive behaviors (specifically beliefs about sexual harm, accidents, and body size) weight loss, weight gain, trauma

Catherine and Francis are excited to welcome Lucie Waldman — a self-published author of the book called the Jots of Becoming, a book of her narratives and insights after fully recovering from Anorexia Nervosa — to the podcast. In this conversation, Lucie shares how the onset of her eating disorder symptoms differed from the mainstream narrative of eating disorders; how treatment was helpful and unhelpful; and how she is using her recovery to serve and help others experiencing eating disorders. As an ambassador with ProjectHEAL, she donates 20% of her book money to help provide financial support for those struggling to access care. She runs an eating disorder awareness and support account on Instagram (@lucie_shedding_layers). In addition, she enjoys speaking for other podcasts and mediums about the intersection between Judaism and Mental Health and is deeply passionate about mental health, Eating Disorder recovery, and equities in the treatment setting after her own experiences. Currently, Lucie is a psychology major with a Jewish Studies minor at Old Dominion University. In the summers, she works URJ Six Points Sci-Tech Academy-East doing writing and mental health and wellness for the camp community. In the future, she wants to continue work in the Jewish and Mental Health field by becoming an Eating Disorder therapist and hopefully opening her own treatment center. We’re excited to have her on the show and are grateful for her insight and story!

To further connect with Lucie or learn more about her book, visit her here:
Instagram: @lucie_shedding_layers
Book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08KH81GWB
FaceBook page for Jots of Becoming: https://www.facebook.com/JotsofBecoming/