Food Psych #189: False Pictures of Health with Tiffany Roe
Mental-health counselor and fellow podcaster Tiffany Roe joins us to discuss how diet culture paints false pictures of what health and eating disorders “look like”; the connections between religion, shame, diet culture, and eating-disorder recovery; why we need to fight fatphobia in the eating-disorder-treatment field; the importance of learning to sit with feelings of distress and discomfort; why even therapists have internalized stigma about mental illness and treatment, and so much more! Plus, Christy answers a listener question about how navigating emotional eating fits into the intuitive eating process.
Tiffany Roe is a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, psychology teacher, speaker, podcast host, & the owner of Mindful Counseling in Orem, Utah. She passionately helps her clients remember they are enough. Tiffany has focused her career on treatment for women navigating disordered eating, poor body image, poor relationships with themselves and food, anxiety, life transitions, and low self-worth. Tiffany personally survived an eating disorder and has been fully recovered for over 12 years. She passionately works to dismantle diet culture and feels called to work with women and to help them find their true purpose and self-worth. Tiffany believes you can love yourself, your mind, your body, and your relationship with food.
She attended Argosy University where she graduated with honors and received her Master of Arts degree in Mental Health Counseling in 2011. She received her Bachelor degree in Sociology from Brigham Young University in 2008. Tiffany is an award-winning teacher & speaker. She taught psychology courses in the Behavioral Sciences Department for Utah Valley University from 2012-2017. Tiffany regularly speaks for community events, workshops, and retreats. She wants to change the mental health game and make therapy accessible and cool. Find her online at TiffanyRoe.com.
This episode is brought to you by Ori, a new clothing brand that makes cute, comfortable, and modern pieces specifically designed to fit larger bodies. Head over to WearOri.com/Psych for an exclusive 15% discount for Food Psych® listeners.
This episode is also brought to you today by Katie Dalebout’s let [a podcast] out course. If you’ve ever wanted to start a podcast, this workshop, which features interviews with over 100 podcasters (including Christy,) will help you learn the ins-and-outs of podcasting, so that you can focus on crafting your own unique content. To learn more and sign up, visit LetAPodcastOut.club, and use promo code FOODPSYCH for $25 off at checkout. Sign up before March 21, 2019 to receive an additional $75 off the course.
We Discuss:
How growing up in a large family steeped in diet culture affected her relationship with food and with her body
The factors that led to her eating disorder
How disordered eating is often normalized or ignored because of stereotypes of what eating disorders “look like”
Why people who are diet culture’s “picture of health” are often secretly struggling
How moving to another country as a Mormon missionary exacerbated her eating disorder
How recovery changed her relationship with her faith and identity
The connections between shame, religion, and diet culture
Post-traumatic growth
Intuitive eating, and its role in eating-disorder recovery
What inspired Tiffany and Christy to work with eating disorders
Why we need to fight fatphobia in eating-disorder treatment and dietetic training
The importance of recognizing our own biases
Being open to being called out/in and educated
Why it’s essential for helping professionals to be aware of social justice and systems of oppression
Healthism in healthcare institutions
Sitting with our shame and discomfort in growth and recovery
Mental-health stigma amongst therapists
Tiffany’s work to break down the stigma around mental illness and treatment
Vulnerability, and arriving at a place where it feels safe to share personal information and experiences
Trust in eating-disorder recovery and intuitive eating
Tiffany’s podcast, Therapy Thoughts
Resources Mentioned
Some of the links below are affiliate links. Affiliates or not, we only recommend products and services that align with our values.
Submit your questions for a chance to have them answered on the podcast!
My online course, Intuitive Eating Fundamentals
Help spread the anti-diet message by subscribing to the podcast
Sign up for email updates on Christy’s upcoming book
Be Nourished, and Food Psych® episodes with co-founders Dana Sturtevant and Hilary Kinavey
Therapy Thoughts podcast
Tiffany’s website, counseling practice, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
This episode is brought to you by Ori, a new clothing brand that makes cute, comfortable, and modern pieces specifically designed to fit larger bodies. Head over to WearOri.com/Psych for an exclusive 15% discount for Food Psych® listeners.
This episode is also brought to you today by Katie Dalebout’s let [a podcast] out course. If you’ve ever wanted to start a podcast, this workshop, which features interviews with over 100 podcasters (including Christy,) will help you learn the ins-and-outs of podcasting, so that you can focus on crafting your own unique content. To learn more and sign up, visit LetAPodcastOut.club, and use promo code FOODPSYCH for $25 off at checkout. Sign up before March 21, 2019 to receive an additional $75 off the course.
Listener Question of the Week
Given that emotional eating is normal, does the intuitive eating principle “Honor Your Feelings Without Using Food” still apply? What truly drives what we call “emotional eating?” Is it possible to turn to food for comfort without a background of dieting or deprivation? Why is simply replacing emotional eating with other coping mechanisms usually not effective? What are the first steps that a person take to recover from disordered eating? What are some coping mechanisms that a person can use in addition to emotional eating? What are some ways to reframe the idea of emotional eating?
(Resources Mentioned:
Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Program that Works, 3rd ed. by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch