Fearless Rebelle Radio With Summer Innanen - Body Image, Body Positivity, Self-help, Feminism

Carmen Cool, Psychotherapist is on the show talking about how to move past the “rebellious streak” that happens when we stop dieting, how to care for ourselves during political turmoil and more. In this episode, we chat about: - How Carmen overcame an eating disorder and found health at every size and fat acceptance, - The importance of weaving fat politics into her work with clients,  - The practices that Carmen uses to help others unpack internalized fatphobia and weight stigma, - How to manage/process feelings that come up with recent political events,  - The importance of self-care and how to manage that when you feel guilty for taking a pause from everything happening in the world,  - How tapping into our “rebellious side” during healing can lead to freedom, but also keep us stuck, - What to do if you feel you are bouncing between compliance and rebellion (all or nothing anti-diet thinking),  - Why attunement goes far beyond our food needs, Plus, so much more! 

Rachel Cole shares the mic with me as we share our experiences with pregnancy, about our fears about the postpartum period, weight stigma, body image and more. We chat about: - Our experiences with pregnancy thus far – the impact it’s had on our physical, spiritual and emotional well-being and whether it was what we expected, - The amount of self-care that we’ve had to allocate to managing the emotional and physical changes of pregnancy,  - The cultural pressure and beauty standards are put on pregnant people, - Weight stigma and the impact it has on pregnant people, - How pregnancy has impacted the relationship we have with our bodies and our body image, - The specific things we’ve done to support our body image throughout pregnancy,  - Rachel’s Belly Love Podcast to help people “get out of the homogenous stories of bellies" and feel more at ease, - Our fears about postpartum – depression, anxiety, isolation and what plans we’re putting in place to support us, - The importance of learning and talking a

Kristina Bruce, Certified Integrative Life Coach is on the show talking about how our thoughts are not the truth, tools you can use to change your beliefs about food and your body and more. We chat about: - Kristina shares her story of being obsessed with “wellness” to be thin and how she found the anti-diet way and health at every size, - How Byron Katie’s “The Work” helped her to find out her truth and stop relying on external messages,  - The basics of “The Work” and the various questions you can ask yourself to dig into your beliefs, - Why our stressful thoughts are not the truth,  - How to dig deeper into beliefs in order to shift them or see them another way,  - Specific steps you can take to explore a stressful/negative thought to try and shift it, - How to integrate social justice into changing your thoughts,  - Why our culture’s obsession with extreme diets might be a response to the chaos in the world, Plus, so much more! 

Gloria Lucas, body-positive activist and founder of Nalgona Positivity Pride is on the show talking about the impact of historical trauma on the mental health of BIPOC, why diet culture is colonial mentality and more. We chat about: - Gloria shares her story of recovering from an eating disorder and why this prompted her to start Nalgona Positivity Pride, - How her experience recovering from an eating disorder brought to light how ED recovery leaves out and is inaccessible to marginalized groups,  - What historical trauma is and how it impacts the experiences and recovery for marginalized folx, - Why “diet culture is colonial mentality” and how “you are what you eat” is colonial mentality,  - How foods that are part of indigenous cultures become co-opted by health culture and why this is so problematic,  - The influence of colonialism on body image for brown-indigenous folx and Gloria’s experience with this, - Why body positivity needs to be more inclusive and political to change the institutions that are

I’m interviewing Sassy Latte, Body and Sex positive Feminist, about how the concept of “self-love” leaves out marginalized individuals, issues within body positivity and more. We chat about: -How @sassy_latte came to be and thoughts on first discovering body positivity, -How fusing the political with personal has been imperative to healing body dissatisfaction for Sassy,  -The intersection of race and body image,  -Why “self-love” neglects the trauma/experiences of marginalized bodies and how we can do better to make it more inclusive,  -The problems with the body positivity movement and how it can discredit marginalized bodies, -Is allyship even possible as a thin and/or white person? -What it means to tokenize and how this is problematic for those in marginalized groups, -Where white women (and particularly thin white women) can do better to support POC and other marginalized groups,  Plus, so much more! 

I’m interviewing  Isaiah Bartlett, queer trans radical therapist, about his struggles with body image and an eating disorder, the intersection between gender dysphoria and body image, and advice on healing for queer and trans folx. We chat about: - Isaiah shares his story of coming out as trans and how gender dysphoria impacted his body image, - Isaiah’s recovery from an eating disorder and exercise addiction and what he continues to struggle with,  - The intersection of gender dysphoria, body image and eating disorders,  - Why the prevalence of eating disorders in trans individuals is likely much higher than 4 times,  - The problems with eating disorder recovery and how it’s not inclusive to trans folx, - Cultivating body trust as a queer and trans individual, - The problematic messages in the body positive movement that exclude and further marginalize trans folx,  - Why we need more space for not being OK with our bodies and that we don’t all need to radically love ourselves, Plus, so much more! 

I’m answering your questions on the relationship between weight gain and emotions, whether you need to eat intuitively to feel better in your body and what to do if you feel like you’re “not doing this right.” I talk about: - My thoughts on whether weight loss can happen through healing trauma, - The problems with the “weight gain is the result of emotions trapped in the body” narrative,  - The importance of looking at whether or not something promotes a fatphobic narrative,  - What it means to have a positive body image and why eating without rules supports this,  - The importance of getting rid of conditions and tracking tools that we use to measure our worth,  - Why we need to define what it means for us to have a good relationship with our body, - The importance of following people who have a larger body to your own, - Why weight change has nothing to do with whether you are doing this whole body image/food thing right,  Plus, so much more! 

I’m running solo and talking about how to set boundaries with people who talk about dieting. Plus, how to successfully exist in diet culture.. I talk about: - How to decide what boundaries to set, - Why having boundaries is an essential part of bolstering your self-worth,  - The two types of boundaries you can set,  - How to set a boundary with family/friends who talk about dieting,  - A script of what to say when you’re setting the boundary,  - What to do if setting boundaries feels scary and hard, - How to respond to triggering situations where your body image has been shaken or you feel tempted to diet, - Specific things you can do to cope when you’ve been triggered,  Plus, so much more! 

I’m interviewing Dr. Colleen Reichmann, about the problems with wellness and fitness culture, how they hurt our mental health and how to heal an obsessive relationship with these things. We chat about: - How Colleen healed her eating disorder and went on to become a clinical psychologist who specializes in this field, - How she found health at every size and fat acceptance and incorporates this into her practice,  - The problems with wellness culture and why it is diet culture in disguise,  - Why we are so obsessed with wellness as a culture,  - Why our body and willpower is not the problem when it comes to having “control with food,”  - Why we both think the keto diet is the worst, - How to heal your obsessive relationship with wellness and fitness, - Why “strong is the new skinny” is so problematic and why extremes in fitness are not often acknowledged as disordered,  Plus, so much more! 

I’m interviewing Aaron Flores, about healing body image from a male perspective, how to teach kids to have a positive body image and taking a health at every size approach to healing binge eating disorder. We chat about: - How Aaron’s path to intuitive eating and health at every size started by helping clients with weight loss and realizing the damage it was doing, - Aaron’s struggles with body image and the steps he took to heal,  - The importance of focusing on respecting your body instead of “loving” your body,  - Different ways to teach kids how to have a positive body image,  - How Aaron responded when his son came to him and was upset because someone had called him fat,  - What characterizes binge eating disorder and makes it similar to binging in response to chronic dieting, - How weight-stigma is trauma and the importance of addressing this in healing, - How Aaron approaches BED from a health at every size, trauma-informed perspective,  Plus, so much more! 

I’m interviewing Carla Korn, about pre and post-natal body image, the relationship between negative body image and post-partum depression and navigating self-care as a parent. We chat about: - Carla’s story of navigating pregnancy as a recovered person and why she is so passionate about the work she does today, - We unpack the pressure to only gain a certain amount of weight while pregnant and its impact on body image,  - How to navigate body image struggles while pregnant,  - Why we often feel like we’ve lost a piece of our identity post-partum and how to reclaim that sense of self,  - Carla’s answer to the “getting your body back” BS,  - The relationship between post-partum depression, negative body image and perfectionism, - How to reduce comparisons to other parents, - How to navigate self-care and make it a priority as a new parent,  Plus, so much more! 

I’m running solo and talking to you about hunger, fullness, satiety and things you need to know to heal from the diet mentality. We chat about: - The number 1 rule I teach clients: eat like a grown-up adult, - The signs of hunger that we don’t often acknowledge and why we need to pay attention to them, - Signs that you might not be eating enough, - The reason you feel “out of control” around food, - 10 habits or patterns of thinking that get in the way of honoring hunger,  - Why you don’t need to rate your hunger to decide whether you want to eat,  - A helpful reframe to shift your relationship with food,  - Why eating behaviors are really innocent, - Advice on how to heal the diet mentality, Plus, so much more!

I’m chatting with Ashlee Bennett, The Body Image Therapist. We talk about why “obesity” is not the result of personal responsibility, navigating life outside dieting and the importance of self-compassion in healing. In this episode, we chat about: - How Ashlee found fat acceptance and health at every size and the impact this had on her life, - Why “the assumption that obesity result from personal responsibility” is not supported by data,  - How to overcome feelings of failure when it comes to weight,  - Why it can be really terrifying to navigate life outside of dieting,  - The void that we feel once we are not dieting - “liminal space,” - The importance of self-compassion in healing, - Why some people really struggle with self-compassion and why this can be so difficult, - The biggest misconception about self-compassion and why it doesn’t mean “giving up,” - The importance of reclaiming the word fat, Plus, so much more! 

I’m interviewing Erin Brown, author, speaker, slam poet and activist. We talk about the relationship between sexual abuse and body image, female leadership and empowerment and how to teach kids about oppression. In this episode, we chat about: - What inspired Erin to write the book Sovereign – which explores the story from abuse and internalized misogyny to fully expressed autonomy and leadership, - How women are conditioned to be “pretty, ashamed, quiet and of service,” - How Erin’s sexual abuse impacted her relationship with her body,  - How she was able to start to feel safe in her body again and her advice to others who have experienced sexual abuse,  - The role that self-defence played in her healing, - The gaps in the current landscape of female leadership, - Where Erin would like to see us raising the bar on female leadership, - The importance of talking to your kids about oppression and how to do that, - The problem with men not showing up to conversations on social justice, Plus, so much more! 

I’m interviewing Melissa A. Fabello, feminist writer and speaker. We talk about desirability politics, how our conditioned beliefs shape our sexual experiences, orgasms and a primer on feminism. In this episode, we chat about: - How Melissa got into body politics and how this gave her a framework for understanding the world, - Why understanding body image through the feminist lens can be a catalyst to healing, - What desirability politics are and why they are important,  - The influence that societal standards have on who we are attracted to,  - What to do if your partner is not on board with body positivity, - The role of body image on sexual satisfaction, - The different kinds of orgasms and how we experience them differently, - Why feminism is not the simple belief that men and women are equal, - The importance of intersectionality, Plus, so much more! 

It's a special episode because I’m speaking to 4 incredible women, whom I’m willing to bet will have pieces of their story resonate with you. These are 4 of my clients who worked with me during the You, On Fire program and they are here to show you that it is possible to go from obsessing over food and hating your body, to no longer fretting about your reflection and having so much more confidence in who you are outside of how you look. These women go on to be role models to their kids, they have more time so they volunteer or become advocates for social justice, they ask for a raise and a promotion at work, they speak up to their medical professional about HAES or they pursue a new calling. And in all of these little ways, they start to leave a different kind of mark on this world and change the culture. To enroll in You, On Fire go to summerinnanen.com/youonfire

I’m interviewing Imogen Fox, the person behind @the_feeding_of_the_fox. We talk about what it was like to recover from an eating disorder and navigating body acceptance as a Disabled Person with chronic conditions. In this episode, we chat about: - Imogen’s relationship with her body as a queer Disabled Person and how this evolved over time, - Why she didn’t think she was on a diet when she really was, - What was so hard about recovering from an eating disorder and what those first few months of navigating intuitive eating were like,  - Imogen discusses the differences of what it was like to live as a person with thin privilege and as someone in a fat body,  - Why she rejects the idea of body love and says it only creates more standards for marginalized people to fail, - What body acceptance means for her, - How to find acceptance and appreciation for your body when you have impairments or chronic conditions, - Why it’s problematic that the paleo community makes it feel like you should be able to “cure” y

I am interviewing Thais Sky, speaker, author and women’s leadership coach. We chat about worthiness, how to heal our “worthiness wound,” the problem with mantras and positive thinking, the importance of feeling feelings to heal and more. In this episode, we chat about: - Thais’ story of recovering from binge eating and using food to numb emotions, - What the “worthiness wound” is and why it’s not our fault that we have this,  - How the “worthiness wound” is formed and what we’re really craving when we desire a sense of worth,  - The difference between self-love and self-worth, - How we’re not taught how to deal with our emotions and why this creates internal stress and a desire for coping mechanisms,  - The various ways the “worthiness wound” manifests in our behaviour,  - The importance of feeling emotions and how to start to do that, - The two problems Thais sees with how we typically try to work on self-worth, - The first step towards exploring and healing your “worthiness wound,” - What is possible for

I’m chatting with DeAun Nelson and Sarah Thompson, HAES Practitioners. We talk about what factors influence our health, how to stop blaming yourself for not being able to lose weight and how to advocate for your health at the doctor. In this episode, we chat about: - Sarah and DeAun’s very different paths to finding health at every size and what inspired them to start the Do No Harm podcast,  - How to understand and believe the truth about weight and health,  - Their advice to people who hold resentment or blame themselves for not being able to lose weight,  - How to find your own definition of health and why focusing on “healing over health” might be a more useful and compassionate strategy, - What to do at the doctor to communicate your needs and advocate for better care, - How to find a health at every size practitioner, Plus, so much more! 

I’m chatting with Tiana Dobson, a fat certified holistic health coach, about the role activism played in her journey, why body acceptance will always be an uphill battle and the importance of language and self-compassion in healing. In this episode, we chat about: - How Tiana was a chronic dieter who eventually found fat acceptance and health at every size,  - Her experience becoming a health coach and the transformation that happened for her during this time,  - Why she needed permission to be happy and fat before she could accept it herself,  - Why health is so much more than our bloodwork, - Her explanation as to why “if you don’t like yourself fat, you won’t like yourself thin,” - Why accepting your body will always be an uphill battle, - Why Tiana doesn’t use “body positive” in her work, - The importance of language in cultivating body acceptance, - How to cultivate a practice of self-compassion to facilitate self-worth, - Why everyone can be an activist by radically accepting themselves,  Plus, so much