37. Why Have Eating Disorders Become so Glamorous? with Robyn Goldberg, RDN, CEDRD-S

Understanding Disordered Eating

Unlike any other disorder in the DSM (diagnostic bible for mental illness), eating disorders have become glamorous and even enviable. “OMG how do you eat so little?” and “You’re so good. You work out at the gym all the time.” Robyn and I talk about how in the world this happened and what to do about it. Robyn also shares some possible impacts of restriction on the body.

Robyn is a Certified Eating Disorders Registered Dietitian and Supervisor in private practice in Los Angeles, CA and has been in the field for 25 years! She is a contributing author and is a nationally and internationally known registered dietitian nutritionist. She has been quoted in The New York Times, The Huffington Post, Vogue, The Fix, Shape Magazine, Fitness, Oxygen, Pilates Style, Diabetes Forecast, BH Weekly, and Life & Style. She has been on national television as the eating disorder expert on The Insider. Robyn is the author of the new book The Eating Disorder Trap: A Guide for Clinicians and Loved Ones and the host of the podcast The Eating Disorder Trap Podcast.

[0:01-01:51] Introductions

• Introducing our guest speaker

[01:52 – 03:56] Why are eating disorders glamorized?

• How the media plays a role in this societal acceptance.
• How society downplays the effects of eating disorders.

[03:56 - 09:50] Eating Disorders: A Socially-Acceptable Form of Self-Harm?

• Robyn discusses what it's like to live with an eating disorder.
• The horrible yet familiar effects that people tend to downplay.

[09:51 - 11:20] What are Macronutrients and their Impact on the Body?

• Why does our body need macronutrients?
• Robyn illustrates how macronutrients help the body

[11:21 – 20:55] The Dangers of Restrictive Eating

• How do people find themselves in the depths of restriction?
• Why restriction is bad for you.
• The fad of restrictive eating in society.

[20:56 - 25:16] Offering Support and Understanding: How to Do It?

• Steps to take to offer support and understanding to family members or friends who are suffering from eating disorders

[25:17 - 26:40] Protecting Yourself and Creating Boundaries

• How to create boundaries for yourself and encourage a supportive environment

[26:41 - 29:09] Outro

• Where to find Robyn?

Resources Mentioned:

• Robyn’s Website
• Robyn’s Book

Tweetable Quotes

“If one food provided everything we needed, there wouldn’t be so many other types of foods out there.” – Robyn L. Goldberg

Listen, validate, ask questions, really understand the other person’s perspective and if you can’t do that, ask how you can better understand.” – Rachelle Heinemann

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