✨ Episode Summary: In this episode, we are joined by CCN therapist and former school counselor, Michelle Butler, LCSW, to explore the often-misunderstood role of school counselors in supporting youth mental health. We talk about how school environments shape body image and eating disorder risk, what counselors actually do behind the scenes, and how schools can become safer, more supportive spaces for students. We also explore how humor and joy breed meaningful connections in an educational setting!

🧰 Takeaways:

• How school counselors support youth mental health beyond academics
• The impact of school culture on body image and eating disorders
• Creating safer, more connected school environments through joy and relationship

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🔗 Connect With Us:

Website: https://www.collab-counseling.com/
IG: @collab.counseling

✨ Episode Summary: In this episode, we are joined by Farah Myers, FNP, DipACLM, nurse practitioner and direct primary care provider, to unpack how weight stigma shows up in healthcare—and why it causes real harm. We explore how weight-centric care can delay diagnoses, overlook eating disorders, and erode trust between patients and providers. This conversation highlights the mental health impacts of weight stigma, the benefits of direct primary care, and what providers can do differently to support better outcomes.

Connect with Farah:

• Cool Creek Family Health
• Cool Creek Family Health Instagram

🧰 Takeaways:

• Weight stigma is a healthcare issue that can delay diagnosis and treatment
• Weight-centric care often misses the complexity of eating disorders
• Weight-neutral care prioritizes health without focusing on body size
• Direct primary care allows for more personalized, compassionate relationships
• Building trust and asking the right questions improves patient outcomes
• Collaboration across providers is essential for effective eating disorder care

📚 Resources & Mentions:

• Hex the Patriarchy, Curse the Bigots Sweatshirt
• SCOFF Questionnaire

🎧 Rate & Review:

If you loved this episode, share it with a friend and leave us a 5-star review — it really helps us reach more folks!

🔗 Connect With Us:

• Website: https://www.collab-counseling.com/
• IG: @collab.counseling
  

✨ Episode Summary: In this episode, we explore communication in romantic relationships through a trauma-informed, neurodivergent-affirming lens. Joined by a couple's therapist, Sara Blacklidge, LPCC, we unpack why communication breaks down, how emotional regulation and safety shape conflict, and what happens when ADHD, neurodivergence, or eating disorders are part of the relationship dynamic.

We discuss common misunderstandings couples face, the role of couples therapy, and why focusing on impact over intent can transform conflict. This conversation highlights practical, real-world strategies for improving communication, building emotional safety, and strengthening connection—whether you’re navigating mental health challenges or simply want a healthier relationship.

Connect with Sara: Sara's PsychToday Profile

🧰 Takeaways:

• Communication is less about “saying it right” and more about feeling safe, heard, and understood
  Emotional regulation plays a critical role in conflict and repair
  Neurodivergent partners may have different communication and processing needs
• Eating disorders can significantly impact intimacy, trust, and communication
• Effective apologies focus on impact, not intent
• Emotional safety is the foundation of healthy communication
• Couples therapy can be helpful before a relationship reaches crisis
  

📚 Resources & Mentions:

• Neurodivergent Love Languages

🎧 Rate & Review:

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🔗 Connect With Us:

Website: https://www.collab-counseling.com/

IG: @collab.counseling

✨ Episode Summary: Buckle up, because we are diving into all things GLP-1s in today’s episode! We take a critical look at GLP-1 medications—cutting through the hype to examine their mental health impacts, weight-loss marketing, and lack of long-term data. We unpack “food noise” as a mental health concern, the systemic pressures driving weight-centric care, and why GLP-1s can pose real risks for people with eating disorders. This episode emphasizes informed consent, self-advocacy, and the need for more nuance in conversations about health, weight, and well-being.

Content note: This episode includes discussion of weight loss medications, eating disorders, and diet culture. There are brief mentions of calorie numbers.

🧰 Takeaways: 

• GLP-1s impact mental and emotional health—not just appetite
• Long-term data on GLP-1 medications is still limited
• “Food noise” is often rooted in mental health and context
• Weight loss is not the same as well-being
• GLP-1s may increase risk for people with eating disorders
• Informed consent requires more than marketing claims
• Self-advocacy matters in weight-centric healthcare systems

📚 Resources & Mentions:

• Fearing the Black Body by Sabrina Strings
• Belly of the Beast: The Politics of Anti-Fatness as Anti-Blackness by Da’Shaun L. Harrison
• GLP-1 Informed Consent Resource from Medical Students for Size Inclusivity
• All About BMI blog post

🎧 Rate & Review:

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🔗 Connect With Us:

• Website: https://www.collab-counseling.com/
• IG: @collab.counseling

✨ Episode Summary: In this episode, Jen and Allison are joined by Wren Buse, a board-certified music therapist, to explore how music therapy can support emotional regulation, embodiment, and systemic liberation efforts like fat and body justice. Discover practical insights into how music can be a healing force for clients of all backgrounds.

🎶 Wren's Music Therapy and Body Image Support Group

Grab all the details and sign up ⁠HERE⁠. Or contact Wren at: [email protected].

🧰 Takeaways: 

• Music therapy is a clinical, goal-oriented modality that uses music to facilitate healing beyond just musical skills.
• It supports emotional expression, nervous system regulation, and embodiment, aligning well with body liberation efforts.
• Addressing systemic oppression like fat bias and discrimination is crucial within therapeutic frameworks.
• Music therapy groups and projects can foster community, creativity, and powerful healing experiences.
• You don't need to be a musician to benefit from or participate in music therapy sessions.
• Following your intuition and engaging with music intentionally can have profound effects on well-being.

📚 Resources & Mentions:

• Fearing the Black Body by Sabrina Strings
• The Body Is Not an Apology by Sonia Renee Taylor
• The Body Is Not An Apology WORKBOOK by Sonia Renee Taylor
• What We Don't Talk About When We Talk About Fat by Aubrey Gordon
• I Am Light by India.Arie
• Hunger by Roxanne Gay
• Shrill: Notes From A Loud Woman by Lindy West

🎧 Rate & Review:

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🔗 Connect With Us:

• Website: https://www.collab-counseling.com/
• IG: @collab.counseling
  

✨ Episode Summary: 

In this episode, we’re joined by Lauren Harding, a therapist specializing in OCD and eating disorders, to unpack what OCD actually is—and what it isn’t. We discuss common misconceptions and why it so often overlaps with eating disorders. We explore the obsession–compulsion cycle, what effective treatment looks like, and why recovery isn’t about eliminating thoughts.

🧰 Takeaways:

• Recovery ≠ absence of intrusive thoughts
• Discomfort is uncomfortable, not dangerous
• OCD is not about neatness or organization
• Recovery focuses on changing your relationship with thoughts
• Curiosity works better than resistance
• Self-compassion is essential
• Recovery is nonlinear
• You can tolerate discomfort
• Trust in yourself can be rebuilt

📚 Resources & Mentions:

• Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat
• Start Here
• SWIG
• NOCD: https://www.treatmyocd.com/learn/blog 
• The Self-Compassion Workbook for OCD

🎧 Rate & Review:

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🔗 Connect With Us:

Website: https://www.collab-counseling.com/

IG: @collab.counseling

✨ Episode Summary: 

Welcome back for Season 2 of Stop, Collaborate, and Listen! In this episode, we talk with our RD boss and favorite voice of reason, Lauren Rieker. And today’s episode is… a little spicier than usual. We’re talking about the new Dietary Guidelines that are being marketed as revolutionary… but in reality are confusing, misleading, and honestly kind of dangerous. 

In this conversation, we break down why these so-called “revolutionary” guidelines miss the mark—especially for folks with eating disorders. We dig into what’s misleading, what’s not actually backed by solid science, and how ranking or moralizing foods can do real harm.

🧰 Takeaways:

• The new dietary guidelines are marketed as revolutionary but are confusing and misleading.
• The emphasis on protein and animal foods in the new pyramid raises health concerns.
• Food insecurity and other social determinants of health are ignored.
• The guidelines may exacerbate fears around carbohydrates and processed foods, especially for those with eating disorders.
• The guidelines ignore decades of nutritional science and evidence-based recommendations.
• Ultimately, we’re advocating for nuance, context, and a more inclusive, balanced way of thinking about food.

📚 Resources & Mentions:

• South Park Style Announcement

• New Food Pyramid Website

• Plate by Plate Approach IG

🎧 Rate & Review:

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🔗 Connect With Us:

Website: https://www.collab-counseling.com/

IG: @collab.counseling

✨ Episode Summary: 

In this season finale of the podcast, we reflect on our journey through the first season, discussing our favorite episodes, achievements, and the impact of celebrity culture on body image. We delve into the Hollywood thinness trend, the societal pressures surrounding body image, and the importance of navigating these conversations with care. 

🎧 Rate & Review:

If you loved this episode, share it with a friend and leave us a 5-star review — it really helps us reach more folks!

🔗 Connect With Us:

Website: https://www.collab-counseling.com/

IG: @collab.counseling

✨ Episode Summary: 

In this episode, we sit down with CCN dietitian Amber Riggin for a deep, honest conversation about the intersection of neurodivergence and nutrition — and why traditional “just try harder” advice fails so many ADHD, autistic, and otherwise neurodivergent folks.

Together, we unpack the real-life experiences behind labels, stigma, and support. We dig into how neurodivergence shapes eating patterns: sensory needs, executive function, interoception, food rigidity, grazing, hyperfocus, meal-skipping, and everything in between. From intuitive eating to structure that actually supports ND brains, the conversation challenges old narratives about “willpower” and “healthy habits.” 

This episode is compassionate, validating, and full of practical insights for anyone navigating food, body image, or mental health through a neurodivergent lens.

🧠 Takeaways:

• Why labels aren’t limiting — they’re liberating
• How stigma, culture, and politics shape our understanding of neurodivergence
• The unique ways ADHD and autism influence eating patterns
• Why neuroaffirming nutrition beats rigid meal plans every time
• The hidden overlap between fitness culture and disordered eating
• How to build a more compassionate, realistic relationship with food

📚 Resources & Mentions:

• ANAD statistics

• A Guide to Understanding the Neurodivergent Umbrella

🎧 Rate & Review:

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🔗 Connect With Us:

• Website: https://www.collab-counseling.com/
• IG: @collab.counseling

✨ Episode Summary: In this episode, Jen and Allison sit down with fellow CCN clinician, Megan, to talk all things PCOS — what it is, what it isn’t, and how diet culture has totally distorted the conversation. We unpack the myths, the medical confusion, and the real-life impact PCOS has on body image, hormones, and mental health. Megan shares insights from her work with clients navigating PCOS and offers a grounded, compassionate take on what supportive care actually looks like (hint: it’s not cutting out every carb).

Together, we explore how providers, clients, and caregivers can approach PCOS with curiosity instead of fear, focusing on individualized care, self-trust, and ditching the shame that so often comes with this diagnosis. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by conflicting PCOS advice or stuck in the wellness noise, this conversation will feel like a deep breath.

🧠 Takeaways:

• PCOS is complex — and there’s no one-size-fits-all solution.
• Diet culture has turned PCOS into a fear-based diagnosis.
• Blood sugar, hormones, and mental health are all connected.
• Restriction and shame make symptoms worse, not better.

• It’s possible to manage PCOS without sacrificing your relationship with food or your body.

📚 Resources & Mentions:

What is PCOS? blog post by Megan

PCOS Nutrition Center

Ovasitol Inositol Powder Supplement

Rene Jay & Women’s Health Series on TikTok

Megan’s Fav IG Accounts:

• pcos.nutritionist
• pcosnutrition

Megan’s Iced Coffee Koozie

🎧 Rate & Review:

If you loved this episode, share it with a friend and leave us a 5-star review — it really helps us reach more folks!

🔗 Connect With Us:

Website: https://www.collab-counseling.com/

IG: @collab.counseling