Processed foods are having a cultural moment, and the way they're discussed online is so extreme that it's hard to know what to trust without feeling stressed or guilty.

In this episode, I'm talking about why the fear-based language around ultra-processed foods is such a red flag, and why I don't trust conversations that rely on absolutist claims meant to scare you into compliance (or sell you something).

I also get into what's missing from most of the discourse: systems. Time, money, energy, access, chronic illness, and the realities of modern life matter, yet wellness culture keeps collapsing this into "personal responsibility," as if everyone has the capacity to live like it's their full-time job.

I share how ultra-processed foods fit into my own all-in recovery and why I stand by that choice, while still being willing to talk about nutrition without turning food into morality.

And I spend a big chunk of this episode on the psychology piece—because even when people are arguing about physiology, the psychological impact of restriction, scarcity, and moralizing food often creates the exact chaos they claim they're trying to prevent, especially when these foods are everywhere (and especially with kids).

If you've been feeling spun up by UPF headlines or wellness content, this is meant to bring you back to a grounded, common-sense view that includes both physiology and psychology. Subscribe for more on binge/restrict recovery, body image, food anxiety, and nervous-system-informed approaches to eating.

RESOURCES:

Binge Eating to Intuitive Eating Self-Study Course

Read my Substack essays

Read my short-form content on Instagram

If you're in recovery and you keep hitting the same walls, you might need more help than you want to admit.

In this episode, I'm talking about what it looked like for me to recruit support during my all-in recovery from years of binge eating + restriction, and why it can feel so loaded to say, "I can't do this by myself right now."

Here's what we get into:

• Why needing help can feel like a character flaw when you're used to being capable
• The specific kind of overwhelm that makes "self-help" tools bounce right off
• How having a small "buffer" can change what you're able to tolerate in recovery
• What it means when support creates stability so the actual healing work can happen
• The guilt math of asking for more help when you already feel like you ask for too much
• Why "accepting help" doesn't work if you're still punishing yourself for needing it
• What specialized support can do that love and reassurance can't (even when someone means well)
• The relief of making a clear decision in a hard season so you're not renegotiating everything daily
• A practical way to handle the inner critic: "not right now — we'll revisit later"
• How letting your body be part of the process can become a form of support, even if you're skeptical at first

If you're in a season where recovery is asking more of you than you expected, this episode will make that feel a lot more normal.

RESOURCES:

Binge Eating to Intuitive Eating Self-Study Course

Read my Substack essays

Read my short-form content on Instagram

Many of us live in a nervous system state where movement, productivity, and momentum feel like safety. Slowing down doesn't feel restful — it feels threatening. And when the body starts asking for less, the mind often panics and tries to think, plan, or "fix" its way out.

This episode explores what happens at the edge of capacity, when exhaustion collides with fear, and your system begins demanding a different pace.

✨ Why slowing down can feel terrifying even when you're exhausted
✨ How a lot of "motivation" is actually fear dressed up as productivity
✨ The difference between intuition and fear when your energy starts dropping
✨ "Wintering" — seasons where your system asks for less, whether you agree or not (from Wintering by Katherine May)
✨ How the body eventually forces a slowdown when the mind keeps trying to plan its way out
✨ Why consuming more content and "trying harder" often makes things worse
✨ A simple 10% practice: slowing speech, movement, and pace just enough to feel the body again

The episode also connects this to eating disorder recovery, body image work, and nervous system healing — especially the pressure to keep fixing yourself, keep learning, and keep doing recovery "right," instead of allowing space for integration.

Mentioned: Wintering (Wintering), Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals (Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals).

RESOURCES:

Binge Eating to Intuitive Eating Self-Study Course

Read my Substack essays

Read my short-form content on Instagram