The Squarepeg Podcast 105. Bonus: Eating disorder recovery, autistic self discovery and releasing ourselves from labels that limit us
Livia Sara is an eating disorder survivor, mental health coach, autism advocate and author from the Netherlands.
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Diagnosed autistic at 20, she now helps other neurodivergent people recover from disordered eating through learning to embrace their unique traits.
She takes a holistic approach to health and healing, supporting each individual on their own journey to recovery and living life to their fullest potential.
She shares autism and eating disorder related content on her popular YouTube and Instagram accounts, hosts her own podcast, the Liv Label Free podcast, and is publishing three books in 2023 - one of which is coming out next month. I was lucky enough to get a sneak preview before we recorded this episode.
In our conversation we talk about:
➡ Her experiences of developing an eating disorder as a preteen
➡ How autistic traits can be mistaken for eating disorder ‘behaviours’, and how this can make treatment and recovery harder
➡ Labels, stigma and diet culture, and why discovering she was autistic has helped her in her recovery
➡ The work she does now, her book, and how she has been able to use her experiences to help others
CONTENT WARNING
This episode contains discussion of disordered eating and eating disorders from the start.
Squarepeg is a podcast in which neurodivergent women, and trans and nonbinary people, explore navigating a neurotypical world and share their insights, challenges and successes.
I hope that these conversations will be inspiring and thought provoking, open you up to new ways of thinking about being neurodivergent, and help you feel more connected to a worldwide community of people with similar experiences.
I’m Amy Richards, and after being diagnosed autistic at the age of 37 I’m now on a mission to learn more about different perspectives and issues around being a neurodivergent adult in a world that feels like it doesn’t quite fit.
EPISODE LINKS:
Website: https://www.livlabelfree.com
Podcast: Liv Label Free https://www.livlabelfree.com/podcasts/liv-label-free
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/livlabelfree
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/livlabelfree/
Information on eating disorders and autism from the National Autistic Society: https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/topics/mental-health/eating-disorders
If you'd like to connect or get in touch with Squarepeg, you can find me on:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/squarepeg.community/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/squarepegautism
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/squarepegautism/
Or on my website: https://squarepeg.community/
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THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS!
A HUGE thank you to my amazing patrons, who support my work on the podcast:
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