Real Health Radio
Real Health Radio is a podcast focused on helping listeners recover from disordered eating and eating disorders. Produced by Seven Health, it offers expert guidance and practical advice for building a healthier relationship with food. The show explores topics around nutrition, body image, and mental health. It aims to support anyone struggling with eating issues on their journey to full recovery.
Episodes
372: Recovery After 20 Years Of Over Exercise, Under Eating and Living With An Eating Disorder With Shannon
In this episode, I speak with my client Shannon about living for 20 years with an eating disorder shaped by under-eating, over-exercise and an identity built around movement, despite appearing highly functional from the outside. She shares what it took to stop exercising, eat enough and face the physical and emotional discomfort of recovery, and how doing so transformed her health, relationships a
371: Full Recovery After Decades with an Eating Disorder with Pamela St Clair
Pamela St Clair shares how she achieved full recovery after living with an eating disorder for decades. We explore what finally helped her recover, why it is never too late and how her experience led her to become an eating disorder recovery coach.
370: Refeeding Syndrome Explained
In this episode, I explain what refeeding syndrome is, who may be at risk, the warning signs and monitoring that matter, and how nutrition can be increased safely. I also explore how unnecessary fear can reinforce restriction and delay the nourishment needed for recovery.
Rebroadcast: Co-Morbidity With Eating Disorders and ERP (Exposure and Response Prevention) with Dr. Brad Smith
This week on the show I speak with Dr. Brad Smith, the chief medical officer for Rogers Behavioural Health. We talk about the co-occurence of many conditions with eating disorders: OCD, anxiety, depression, and addiction. We also cover ERP (Exposure and Response Prevention) - what it is, how it works and how it can be used for different aspects of recovery.
369: GLP-1s, Weight Stigma, And The New Face Of Diet Culture With Virgie Tovar
Virgie Tovar joins the podcast to examine how GLP-1 weight-loss drugs are reshaping diet culture, from the medicalisation of restriction to the marketing of weight stigma as compassion. We discuss the impact on eating disorder recovery, the psychological cost of weight cycling, and what it takes to choose body acceptance in a culture still determined to sell thinness.
Rebroadcast: Going Slow Isn’t Easier And Better For Recovery
One of the most common mistakes I see people making is to go slow in recovery. As part of this episode I look at the common reason why people take this approach and why it doesn't help.
368: The Forgotten Phase of Eating Disorder Recovery
Nutritional rehabilitation receives a huge amount of attention, and rightly so. But considerably less attention is given to what comes next: learning how to build a life in which you no longer need the eating disorder.
Rebroadcast: Coping Without Using Eating Disorder Behaviours
Do you know how to cope without using eating disorder behaviours? For many (or most) the eating disorder becomes their only means of coping. This means that part of recovery is about learning other ways of coping, and that's what this episode is about.
367: Everything You Need To Know About Extreme Hunger
This episode explores everything you need to know about extreme hunger in eating disorder recovery, including why it happens, why it can feel so frightening, and how to respond when hunger feels relentless. It also covers mental hunger, hypermetabolism, weight restoration, common mistakes, and the myths that can keep people stuck.
Rebroadcast: Compulsive Movement, Digestive Issues In Recovery, And RAVES With Talia Cecchele
This week I the show I speak with Talia Cecchele. We talk about overcoming compulsive movement, digestive issues in recovery, the RAVES framework and how it can be used when making choices about food changes in recovery as well as some nutrition myth busting.
366: Recovery Challenges In Summer And How To Deal With Them
Summer can make eating disorder recovery feel harder, but it doesn't have to derail your progress. In this episode, I unpack many common summer challenges and share practical ways to navigate them without letting the eating disorder regain ground.
Rebroadcast: Start Before You Feel Ready
The eating disorder will always try to convince you that now is not the right time to recover. You will never feel completely ready, so rather than waiting any longer, start before you feel ready.
365: Why Self-Compassion Is A Behaviour, Not A Feeling
Most people think self-compassion is about being kinder to yourself. In this episode, I challenge that idea and explain why true self-compassion in eating disorder recovery is often a behaviour, not a feeling. We explore what self-compassion looks like in practice with food, movement, body image, and recovery commitments, even when your mind is arguing against you
Rebroadcast: Hidden Potential
This week on the podcast I am looking at Adam Grant's book Hidden Potential and the ideas from it that can be applied to recovery.
Rebroadcast: Autism and Eating Disorders with Livia Sara
Today's guest is Livia Sara. In this episode, we chat about the overlap between autism and eating disorders, existential loneliness, metabolism, body image, eating variety and its place in recovery, the fear of weight gain, hunger signals, interoceptive awareness, and how intuitive eating does or doesn’t work with autism.
364: Do Ultra Processed Foods (UPFs) Really Hijack Your Brain?
Are ultra-processed foods really “addictive” or is the fear around them creating more anxiety and obsession around eating? In this episode, I break down a new 2025 study exploring dopamine, ultra-processed foods, and overeating, while unpacking why restriction, deprivation, and psychology matter far more than simplistic “food addiction” narratives.
363: Unconditional Permission To Eat, Co-occuring Medical Conditions And Being Social In Recovery
In this episode, I answer listener questions on navigating social life in recovery, giving yourself unconditional permission to eat, and coping with body image distress, relapse patterns, support groups, and the role of co-occurring medical conditions in long-term recovery.
Rebroadcast: Overcoming Complex Trauma, Escaping An Abusive Relationship And Reaching Full Recovery with Victoria Kleinsman
Today on the show I'm chatting with Victoria Kleinsman. We cover her 20 year battle with an eating disorder, escaping an abusive relationship, reaching a place of full recovery, how she went from body hate to body love and so much more.
362: Why You Keep Getting Stuck In Recovery (Even When You Know What To Do)
Knowing what to do in recovery isn’t the same as actually doing it. In this episode, I break down why change still feels overwhelming, why insight doesn’t lead to action, and how patterns, thoughts, and isolation keep you stuck. If you’ve ever found yourself saying “not yet,” this will help you understand why and what to do differently.
361: Extreme Hunger, Neural Rewiring And Taking Bold Steps In Recovery with Emily Spence
In this episode, I speak to recovery coach Emily Spence. We unpack the reality of living with an eating disorder and what it actually takes to reach full recovery. We cover extreme and mental hunger, neural rewiring, rest, food indecision and the importance of bold action taking in recovery.
360: Why Rest Is Crucial In Recovery And The Blocks That Prevent It From Happening
This week on the podcast it's a deep dive into rest and recovery. We look at why your body needs it, the different types of rest, and what blocks you from getting enough.
359: Pregnancy, Postpartum, Early Motherhood and Eating Disorders
Pregnancy, postpartum, and early motherhood can be uniquely triggering for those with an eating disorder history. This episode explores the physiology, emotional challenges, and practical strategies to support recovery during this demanding time.
358: CBT For Eating Disorders, Chronic Pain, Insomnia, Depression, Diabetes and GLP-1’s with Jennifer Averyt
In this episode, I speak with Dr. Jennifer Averyt and we discuss how CBT applies across eating disorders, GLP-1s, sleep, chronic pain, and depression, and why behaviour, not thoughts, is the key to meaningful recovery.
Rebroadcast: Cognitive Distortions
Cognitive distortions are patterns of thought that distort our perception of reality, cause us to misinterpret situations, magnify negative emotions, and hold unrealistic expectations of ourselves, others and the world. This can lead to increased misery, anxiety, and self-doubt, ultimately impacting our overall well-being. In this episode, I look at a number of cognitive distortions that you can b
357: Planning vs Flexibility, Eating “Bad” Food, Dealing With Numbers on the Scale, and Recovery During Menopause
In this Q&A episode, I answer listener questions on identity in recovery, balancing planning with flexibility, fears about eating more, urges for “unhealthy” foods, navigating recovery during menopause, and coping with the numbers on the scale. We explore the practical and psychological realities of eating disorder recovery, including how to handle ambivalence, break the “earn your food” rule, and
356: Anxiety, OCD, and Eating Disorders with Dana Colthart
In this episode, I chat with therapist Dana Colthart about OCD, anxiety and eating disorders. We look at how the rituals that follow intrusive thoughts (including mental ones like rumination and reassurance seeking) reinforce the cycle, and how approaches like Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) help people break it.
355: Chronic illness, perfectionism, ADHD, CBT and Eating Disorders with Dr. Shannon Patterson
In this episode, I’m joined by psychologist Shannon Patterson, co-author of The Weight-Inclusive CBT Workbook for Eating Disorders, to explore how CBT can support full recovery in the context of chronic illness, perfectionism, ADHD, and neurodivergence.
Rebroadcast: Reaching A Place Of Full Recovery With Jayne Cudia
This episode features an interview with past client Jayne Cudia, discussing her journey to recovery from an eating disorder. Over two and a half years, she went from firmly entrenched in an eating disorder to being free from food, exercise and body image concerns.
354: Appeasement and Eating Disorders
In this episode, I explore how appeasement functions as a nervous system survival strategy — and how it can drive eating disorder behaviours. We look at why recovery can feel threatening when your system is wired to stay small, compliant, and safe, and what it takes to shift out of that pattern.
353: Weight-Inclusive CBT for Eating Disorders with Dr. Lauren Muhlheim
In this episode, I’m joined by psychologist Dr Lauren Muhlheim to discuss her new Weight-Inclusive CBT Workbook for Eating Disorders. We explore what CBT actually is (and isn’t), how weight stigma became embedded in traditional CBT-E, and what needed to change to make CBT genuinely supportive of recovery at any body size. We also unpack core recovery foundations including regular eating, restricti
352: The Myth of Endless Calorie Burn
In this episode, I break down Constrained Energy Expenditure Theory (CEET) and why the body doesn’t burn more and more energy indefinitely. We’ll explore how restriction and threat lead to conservation, and why symptoms like fatigue, feeling cold, and plateaus are signs of protection — not weakness.
Rebroadcast: Goal Setting In Recovery
Goal setting is an essential part of the recovery process from eating disorders. In this episode I look at different types of goals, when they are applicable and how to best use goals in support of action taking.
Rebroadcast: Recovery Even During The Most Difficult Of Circumstances With Kate Ely
This episode features an interview with my past client Kate Ely, discussing her journey to recovery from an eating disorder. It's an incredibly vulnerable and open interview as Kate discusses many of the family struggles that led to the eating disorder and kept it going for over a decade.
Rebroadcast: How to Recover From An Eating Disorder This Year
If you want to recover from an eating disorder this year, this episode is for you. I outline where to be putting your focus, the things that make a difference, and what to avoid.
299: Recovery Is Hard. Living With An Eating Disorder Is Harder
The eating disorder always makes out how hard recovery is. But the reality is, that living with an eating disorder is harder than recovery.
351: Body changes, rest, compulsive movement, stillness, extreme hunger and much more…
This week is another Q&A episode, where I continue to answer listener questions. We cover how long nutritional rehabilitation really takes, hether full recovery is possible, est, compulsive movement, and stillness, recovery in larger bodies, extreme hunger, body changes, and much more.
Rebroadcast: One Big Fear With Weight Gain
This episode was inspired by a recent client conversation (in fact, a conversation I've had many times before). I cover a common fear that comes up connected to making changes and weight gain, something that can stop you in your tracks just as you're getting started.
350: Overcoming avoidance, losing the ED identity, calorie requirements in recovery and much more…
This week, to celebrate 350 episode of the show, I'm doing a Q&A episode. We cover overcoming avoidance, depression and ED, navigating doctors/health professionals, recovering into a bigger body, advice for parents of children or loved ones suffering, taking action when it feels so wrong, going all in, coping with losing your ED identity, how much to eat in recovery and much more.
349: Does 5% Weight Loss Really Improve Health?
There's this claim that is made that "just a 5% loss in weight leads to improvements in health." But is it true? In this episode, I look at where this claim comes from and why there are other factors outside of weight loss that are actually driving the improvements.
348: Clean Eating, Body Image and Rebuilding Body Trust With Isa Robinson
This week on the podcast I chat with registered nutritionist, Nutritional Therapist and certified Intuitive Eating counsellor Isa Robinson. We chat about her eating disorder history, clean eating, redefining healthy eating, body image, rebuilding body trust and the talks she's doing in schools.
347: Navigating The Messy Middle Of Recovery
When you stick with recovery, you eventually hit the messy middle stage. Where some things have improved but it still feels confusing and like things should be better than this. In this episode I look at what this stage looks and feels like, why it feels so hard, and tools for navigating your way through it.
346: GLP-1’s And Eating Disorder Recovery With Melainie Rogers
Over the last few years GLP-1's for weight loss have exploded and it feels like everyone is on them. I talk to registered dietician nutritionist Melainie Rogers about how these medications work, the dangers with them and the impact they are having on recovery, weight stigma and the body neutrality movement.
Rebroadcast: The Asymmetry Of Eating Disorders
Eating disorders seemingly use logic to convince you of why you should or shouldn't do certain behaviours or why something is or isn't important. But in reality, eating disorder are actually illogical and this becomes obvious when we look at them more closely.
Rebroadcast: Binges While Recovering
Binges while recovering are a common occurrence, despite the fear that they create. As part of this episode, I look at why binges occur in recovery, how to think differently about them and suggestions for what to do after a binge happens.
345: Joy And Pleasure In Recovery
So often when people think of recovery, things like terror, fear and loss come to mind. But joy and pleasure are at the heart of recovery and and rather than being a nice bonus, are actually essential to recovery. In the episode I look at joy and pleasure and how to bring this into your recovery.
Rebroadcast: Stop Trying To Convince Yourself
This week it's a solo episode and I'm talking about stopping to try to convince yourself.
344: Oedema and Eating Disorder Recovery
Oedema or fluid retention is part of the recovery process. But despite this, it is uncomfortable and can lead to lots of fears. In this episode, I look at what oedema is, why it occurs, what helps and what doesn't and when it is useful to seek medical support.
Rebroadcast: What’s The Healthiest Way To Recover?
This week it's a solo episode and I'm talking about what's the healthiest way to recover. I explain why we need to rethink our ideas about health, why understanding context is so important and the reason the fear of "I need to do recovery in the healthiest possible way" arises.
343: Digestive Issues In Recovery
Digestive issues are common with an eating disorder, but can get worse in the beginning when starting to recover. In this episode I Iook at why digestive issues occur, what to expect in recovery and ways to manage this.
342: 10 Things You Need To Understand About Your Own Psychology
Our mind constantly plays tricks on us; sometimes this support us, but often, it's to our detriment. In this episode I look at 10 things that are essential to know about how your mind works.
Rebroadcast: These 6 Things Are Crucial For Recovery
I'm sharing a solo episode this week and I'm covering six crucial areas in recovery. If you are trying to recover, these are ideas you want to be aware of.
341: Highly Sensitive Persons (HSPs) And Eating Disorders
Highly Sensitive Persons (HSPs) make up 15-30% of the population but there is a huge overlap between being an HSP and having an eating disorder. In this episode I look at the HSP traits, the reasons for the high overlap with eating disorders, the power of knowing your an HSP, common HSP recovery mistakes and some practical ideas for HSPs in recovery.
340: Body Image Inside Out with Deb Schachter
This week I'm chatting with body image and eating disorder expert, Deb Schachter. We cover topics from Deb's book Body Image Inside Out, including what is body image, the three elements that are essential to body image work, Bad Body Image Moments (BBIM's), the negative body image rotary, shapeshifting, body image jealousy and much more.
339: Tools For Being Present In Recovery
It's easy with an eating disorders to get stuck in futuristic fear (what will happen to my body?) or past loops (memories of things that happened). The antidote to this is coming back into the present moment (as uncomfortable as that may be) and in this episode I share different practices to help with this.
Rebroadcast: You Saved My Life
This week on the show I'm interviewing a past client called Sam. We worked together for just under a year and it’s incredible the changes that occurred over this time.
338: Going All In For Recovery
The concept of going "all in" for recovery has gained more mainstream popularity over the past few years. In this episode, I look at what this means, how it can be helpful in recovery, what the limitations are with this option (because I do think it, at times, it's oversold in what it can deliver), and what's most important in recovery, whether or not you're going "all in."
Rebroadcast: Polyvagal Theory, Building Safety Anchors and Dealing with Trauma with Justin Sunseri
I'm chatting with Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist Justin Sunseri on the podcast this week. This is a deep dive into all things polyvagal: looking at what it is and all the component ideas, how to build safety anchors, getting unstuck from being in a defensive state and dealing with trauma.
337: Dealing with Low Motivation in Recovery
Motivation is something that isn't very dependable in recovery (and life in general). One day it's there, the next it's gone. In this episode I look at how to deal with low motivation at different points in recovery, as well as some ideas of things to rely on instead of motivation.
Rebroadcast: Recovery, Self-Compassion and Feeling Comfortable In Your Body with Aaron Flores
This week Aaron Flores returns to the podcast. We discuss anxiety, Aaron’s appearance on the Ten Percent Happier podcast, binge eating disorder and some of the misconceptions with it, feeling comfortable in your body, self-compassion, grief, anxiety and much more.
336: Overshoot in Recovery
Have you heard about the concept of weight overshoot in recovery? In this episode I talk about what it is, where the idea can from and problems that can arise from expecting the overshoot weight to drop off.
335: Weight Inclusive Healthcare with Vinny Welsby
This week on the podcast I'm chatting with Vinny Welsby about research they've done on healthcare and how being fat impacts this experience. We look at the outcome of this research including fat bias, the impact of this bias, people's stories of their experiences and how healthcare could be improved and become weight inclusive.
334: Breaking Free From The Restrict, Binge, And Purge Cycle
Eating disorders can follow some rather similar patterns, and one of these is the restrict, binge, purge cycle. As part of this episode I look at each of the elements of the cycle and the most important place to put your focus if you want to break out of this cycle.
Rebroadcast: Body Positive Fitness with Jenna Doak
Today I'm speaking with Jenna Doak, the Co-Founder and Head Trainer at Body Positive Fitness. We talk about Jenna's journey as a personal trainer and her own relationship with exercise. We also cover common topics of discussion with clients: abstaining from exercise when it’s needed, finding joy in movement after a compulsive and compensatory relationship with it, finding joy in movement for the f
Rebroadcast: The National Alliance for Eating Disorders with Johanna Kandel
Today on the show I'm chatting with Johanna Kandel. She is the founder and CEO of the National Alliance for Eating Disorders and the author of Life Beyond Your Eating Disorder. We talk about Johanna’s eating disorder, her recovery, and how she founded The Alliance and how it has grown and changed over the last 21 years. Then we cover many topics from her book and some of the wonderful exercises an
333: Body Image, Eating Behaviour and Social Media with Charlotte Markey
This week on the show I'm chatting with Dr. Charlotte Markey, a world-leading expert in body image research. We talk about what body image means, common struggles with body image, the differences between boys/means and girls/women with body image, the impact of social media, and much more.
332: The Five Phases of Eating Disorder Recovery
As part of recovery, you go through different phases. And depending on which phase you're in, will determine the kind of symptoms you're having and what's most important for you to be focusing on. As part of this episode I share the five phases of recovery.
Rebroadcast: Overcoming Exercise Compulsion with Henry
This week on the podcast I chat with Henry, a client I've worked with since September 2021. He’d been living with an eating disorder for many years, which included lots of over exercise and exercise compulsion. And while he’d worked with other practitioners, he was still struggling. He shares how things have changed since we started working together.
331: Intuitive Eating, Body Image And Dealing With The Comments Of Other People with Sam Previte
This week on the podcast I'm chatting with Registered Dietitian Sam Previte. We chat about how she discovered intuitive eating and many of aspects of how to apply this in your life, physical restriction and mental restriction, how to deal with the comments of others about dieting and your body, tools for dealing with body image and much more.
330: Common Mistakes That Prevent Recovery
I have been reflecting on the client's I have worked with over the years and thinking about what are the things that make a difference and what are the areas where people get stuck. So today I'm sharing some of the most common mistakes that prevent recovery and what to be doing instead.
329: How “Health Advice” Can Lead To (Or Perpetuate) Eating Disorders
Something that is very common is the following of "health advice" that leads to disordered eating or eating disorders. This is especially common when someone has been given a health diagnosis. Today on the podcast I investigate this, by looking at a recent meta-analysis.
Rebroadcast: How To Heal From Trauma
On this episode of Real Health Radio, it's a solo episode all about healing from trauma. I go through many of the different healing modalities that can be used to process and heal from trauma - explaining what they are and how they work.
328: Body Image, Self-Compassion and Why Recovery Is Worth It with Abbie Attwood
My guest on the podcast this week is anti-diet nutritionist Abbie Attwood. We chat about Abbie's history with an eating disorder, what led up to it and most importantly, what helped her to recover. We also cover self-compassion, not loving what your body looks like, the importance of values, why recovery is worth it and so much more.
327: Full Recovery Is Possible For Everyone
I've lost count of how many times I've heard people being told by their supposed recovery team that full recovery isn't possible for them. This is not ok and it's not accurate. Full recovery is possible for everyone and in this episode I explain why.
326: Parenting Without Diet Culture with Oona Hanson
This week on the show I'm chatting with parent coach Oona Hanson. We talk about her child developing an eating disorder, the FBT model, and the many reasons that parents reach out to her for help.
325: Making Recovery A Priority
To reach a place of full recovery (or even to just get started with recovery) you need to make it a priority. In this episode, I share what this means in real terms and some practical steps to help.
324: Why Your Goal In Recovery Is Not To Be A Normal Eater
It's so common to hear from people that they want to go from having an eating disorder to just being a normal eater. And while this can be the long term plan, this should not be the focus while in recovery and as part of this episode I explain why.
323: Story Follows State
One of the most important concepts to understand is "story follows state." As part of this episode, I talk about what this means and how it relates to eating disorder recovery.
Rebroadcast: Body Grief with Bri Campos
This week on Real Health Radio I chat with Bri Campos. We talk about body image, specifically through the lens of body grief.
322: Exercise And Recovery
One of the most common questions I get from people is, "What are your thoughts on exercise in recovery?" In this episode, I answer this question by looking at the fears connected to changing exercise habits, why I believe it's essential to have a break from exercise and how and when to reintroduce it, is stopping exercise the first change you need to make, do you have to go cold turkey or can you
321: Bulimia Recovery, Dealing with Difficult Emotions and Negative Thoughts with Harriet Frew
My guest this week is Harriet Frew, the host of The Eating Disorder Therapist Podcast. We chat about Harriet’s history with an eating disorder and becoming a therapist, bulimia recovery, the importance of regular eating, dealing with negative thoughts and emotions, self-esteem, motivation for change, learning to be assertive and much more.
