Season 2, Episode 6 of The Plateful Parenting Podcast With Christine Heller & Chanel Kenner, RD Guest: Dawn Smith-Theodore, LMFT | Author of Mother, Men & Me and Tutu Thin

In this powerful continuation of our conversation with therapist, author, and former professional dancer Dawn Smith-Theodore, we explore how generational patterns, perfectionism, and secrecy shape our children's relationships with food, body, and identity.

Dawn opens up about her new memoir Mother, Men & Me: A Memoir of Anxiety, Anorexia, and Affairs—and the courage it took to revisit her past in order to break cycles of control and shame.

From the ballet studio to the therapy room, Dawn's story offers a profound look at what recovery looks like across a lifetime—and what it means to parent with compassion even when you're still healing yourself.

🩰 In this episode:

• Family secrets, body image, and inherited anxiety

• How Dawn's lived experience as a dancer informs her therapy work today

• The early cues parents can look for when perfectionism turns harmful

• Body image pressures in dance, sports, and social media culture

• Practical tools from Tutu Thin for raising confident, body-aware kids

• How writing and storytelling can bring healing and closure

Whether you're a parent navigating your child's body image struggles—or confronting your own—this conversation is a reminder that it's never too late to rewrite your family story.

🧠 Resources Mentioned:

• 📘 Mother, Men & Me by Dawn Smith-Theodore

• 📗 Tutu Thin: A Guide to Dancing Without an Eating Disorder

• 🌐 DawnSmithTheodore.com

• National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA)

• More Than a Body – Lexie & Lindsay Kite

👋 Connect with Us:

• Follow the podcast: @plateful.parenting.podcast

• Follow Chanel: @chanel.kenner.nutrition

• Email us your story: [email protected]

🎧 Listen now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. 💬 Share this episode to help break the silence—and the cycle.