The Full of Beans Podcast

by Hannah Hickinbotham

Season 2

A Mother’s Story of Navigating ARFID, Choking Fears and PEG Feeding with Michelle Jacques

In this week's episode, Han is joined by Michelle Jacques. Michelle is a devoted mum of two who has lived with ARFID since her son started weaning. Through her own experience of supporting her son with ARFID, she has become a passionate advocate, working tirelessly to raise awareness and support others navigating life with this complex food intake disorder. She is the founder of @arfid_life_uk, where she raises awareness of ARFID by sharing her family's experience. This episode holds space for the grief, the guilt, the fight, and also the hope, including the unexpected shift Michelle has seen as her son’s body becomes nourished again. This week, we discuss: What ARFID can look like and how it can go beyond “picky eating.” How sensory differences, autistic eating, and ARFID can overlap How illness can trigger choking fears and a trauma response that reinforces food avoidance What it’s like when a child’s intake drops to just a couple of “safe” items What a PEG (gastrostomy tube) is and how PEG feeding can support ARFID The emotional impact of PEG decisions for parents, including grief andguilt Why nutrition can change anxiety, rigidity, and capacity The role of advocacy in ARFID awareness How to document ARFID symptoms to report to a doctor Timestamps: 03:10 Sensory differences, autism, and how ARFID developed over time 07:40 Illness, choking fears, and how trauma can collapse food intake 09:15 Hospitalisation: constipation and appendix surgery 18:30 What a PEG is (and what people often misunderstand about it) 29:40 How PEG feeding can support ARFID 41:30 Guilt, grief, and learning to let the feelings exist 45:10 ARFID Advocacy work Resources & Links Follow @arfid_life_uk on Instagram Listen to the 3Mums1Mission ARFID Podcast Connect with Us: Subscribe to the Full of Beans Podcast Follow Full of Beans on Instagram Check out our website Listen on YouTube ⚠️ Trigger Warning: Mentions of eating disorders, ARFID, NG tube feeding. Please take care when listening. If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help us spread awareness. Sending positive beans your way, Han 💛

S2 · E254

Jan 26, 2026

55:02

Voices of Experience in Eating Disorders with Kel O'Neill

Kel O’Neill is a UK-based counsellor, educator, researcher, and lived-experience advocate specialising in eating disorders. She is the founder of Mental Health Bites, creator of The Eating Disorder Recovery Companion, and the curator of VOXED – Voices of Experience in Eating Disorders. Kel’s work focuses on ethical, trauma-informed practice, challenging stigma, and bridging the gap between lived experience and professional knowledge. This week, we discuss: What VoxED is and why Kel created it. Why eating disorder education often feels inaccessible, and what VoxED is doing differently. How VoxED broadens “lived experience” to include clinicians, carers, researchers and community voices. Why lived experience shouldn’t be tokenistic, and how it can be valued as expertise. Why the eating disorder field needs shared spaces for nuanced, difficult conversations. How recovery goes beyond food and weight to identity, meaning and living. Timestamps: 00:00: What is VoxED? 02:10 :Where did the idea began (EDAW 2021) 05:10: Who's speaking at VoXED 06:40: Moving beyond “tick-box” lived experience 08:10: The purpose of VoxED: shared space + shared power 14:40: Why change has been slow in eating disorders (and what’s missing) 21:10: Recovery beyond food and weight: identity, meaning, and living 42:10: VoxED details: date, access, recordings, and low-cost tickets VoxED conference details: Date: Friday 13th February Format: Fully online (9:00–18:30, with breaks) Tickets: self-select pricing options £20 / £37 / £50 Resources & Links Follow Kel on Instagram (@kel_mhb) Visit Kel's website (www.counsellingandtraining.co.uk) to find out more about VOXED Subscribe to the Full of Beans Podcast Follow Full of Beans on Instagram Check out our website Listen on YouTube If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help us spread awareness. Sending positive beans your way, Han 💛

S2 · E253

Jan 19, 2026

46:55

Season 1

Eating Disorders, Relationships and Finding Your Way Back to Each Other with Charlotte Jefferson

When an eating disorder enters a relationship, it doesn’t just affect one person; it changes the space between you. This episode explores how. In this week’s episode of Full of Beans, I’m joined by Charlotte Jefferson, psychotherapist and founder of CRJ Therapy, to explore how eating disorders impact relationships, communication, intimacy, and trust. In this conversation, Charlotte brings a relational lens to eating disorders, something that can quietly shape connection, closeness, and the way we show up with one another. We explore what happens when fear takes over in relationships, how communication can begin to break down, and why connection can feel so hard to hold onto during recovery. Because eating disorders don’t just affect the individual, they affect the relationship, too. In this episode, we discuss: How eating disorders impact romantic relationships, families, and friendships Why food is deeply tied to connection, culture, and social life The role of fear, silence, and “getting it wrong” in relationships How partners and parents can slip into caring roles Why communication can break down during eating disorder recovery The impact on intimacy, closeness, and trust The importance of curiosity and honesty in difficult conversations Why wider support networks matter when supporting someone with an eating disorder What relationship disconnection can look like Gentle ways to begin rebuilding connection and trust Connect with Us: Subscribe to the Full of Beans Podcast Follow Full of Beans on Instagram Check out our website Listen on YouTube Connect with Charlotte via CRJ Therapy or on Instagram (@crjtherapy) ⚠️ Content Note: This episode includes discussion of eating disorders, relationship challenges, and emotional distress. Please take care while listening.

S1 · E274

Jun 15, 2026

38:42

Finding Your Way Through Social Media, Fitness Culture and Plant-Based Eating in Recovery with Sophie Macfie

Have you ever found yourself struggling to navigate social media in recovery, comparing, doom scrolling, and falling into patterns you thought you'd left behind? This episode is for you. This week on the Full of Beans Podcast, I'm joined by Sophie Macfie, founder of Soph's Plant Kitchen, cookbook author, and personal trainer, who shares her own experience of disordered eating and how she's built a life that genuinely nourishes her in every sense of the word. We also talk about the complicated relationship between wellness culture, the fitness industry, and recovery, and why it can be so hard to tell the difference between what's helping and what isn't. In this episode, we explore: Sophie's own experience of disordered eating and what helped her turn a corner Why social media can feel so triggering in eating disorder recovery How plant-based eating can be a genuine expression of values, and when it isn't The fitness industry, body ideals and why aesthetics can be a trap The "strong not skinny" movement, where it lands and where it falls short Why what you're drawn to on social media can signal where you are in your recovery Responsibility for harmful content online: the person posting or the person scrolling? Why defining yourself by one thing, however healthy it looks, can keep you stuck The importance of rest and slowing down in eating disorder recovery Please note that everyone's recovery journey is completely individual. The topics we discuss in this episode may not be appropriate for everyone and should always be explored as part of your own personalised recovery journey, ideally alongside your treatment team. We are all at different stages, and that is something to be honoured, not rushed. Connect with Us: Subscribe to the Full of Beans Podcast Follow Full of Beans on Instagram Check out our website Listen on YouTube Connect with Sophie via Instagram (@sophsplantkitchen) and order Soph's book, 30 in 30, here! ⚠️ Content Note: This episode includes discussion of eating disorders, plant-based eating and exercise. Please take care while listening.

S1 · E273

Jun 8, 2026

50:28

Hope, Belief, Freedom and Forever After 40 years of Anorexia with Andrea Stroud

Have you ever thought you've spent too long ill with an eating disorder, that there's just no way you can recover from an eating disorder? If that's you, this episode is for you. This week on the Full of Beans Podcast, I'm joined by Andrea Stroud, mum to Joshua, Jacob and Tommy who has lived with anorexia, in secret, for over 40 years. Andrea hopes that by sharing her story and the reality of living with an eating disorder and its impact on family life, she can give others hope that it’s never too late to recover. We also talk about years of missed red flags from medical professionals, the moment Andrea said "I am actually quite unwell," and what has made eating disorder recovery feel different this time around. In this episode, we explore: How growing up in a weight-focused family left Andrea feeling different from everyone around her How gymnastics, dance and athletics brought an early focus on appearance and comparison The missed red flags across years of medical appointments, from gynaecology to gastroenterology How dismissal by healthcare professionals reinforced the belief of not being sick enough The study day that finally gave Andrea permission to say she was actually quite unwell How Andrea opened up to her son Josh after 40 years of silent struggles Going back into treatment, and why this time felt different Why rigid meal plans can work against the very thing eating disorder recovery needs What mental hunger is and how it can be misunderstood in treatment Opposite actions as a practical tool for challenging eating disorder thoughts Why food is about more than fuel, it is connection, presence and belonging Why Andrea's word for long-term anorexia recovery is connection Connect with Us: Subscribe to the Full of Beans Podcast Follow Full of Beans on Instagram Check out our website Listen on YouTube Connect with Andrea on Instagram (@andreainrecovery), as well as her son Joshua (@joshuahillsnutrition) ⚠️ Content Note: This episode includes discussion of eating disorders, anorexia and disordered eating. Please look after yourself as you listen. If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and share to help us spread awareness. Sending positive beans your way, Han 💛

S1 · E272

Jun 1, 2026

1:00:28

The Intersectionality of Eating Disorders, Neurodivergence & LGBTQIA+ with Dr Lauren Lovegood

Have you ever felt like you’re constantly trying to "fit into a box" that just wasn't made for you? This week on the Full of Beans Podcast, Han is joined by Dr. Lauren Lovegood, a psychologist who specialises in the intersection of Eating Disorders, Neurodiversity (ADHD/Autism), and the LGBTQ+ community. We talk about the "internal sense of difference" that so many of us feel growing up and how, sometimes, an eating disorder can sneak in as a way to find control, "mask" our true selves, or even seek out that much-needed dopamine. In this episode, we explore: The Treatment Spectrum: Why anorexia is actually a much smaller piece of the ED puzzle than society thinks. Identity & Belonging: The unique challenges faced by the LGBTQ+ community and how gender-affirming care can coexist with a healthy body image. The Neurodivergent Brain: Why "Executive Function" makes university transitions so tricky and why your "fidgety brain" might be driving your food behaviours. Gender Affirming Care: We discuss the desire to align our physical bodies with our internal identity. The Glorification of Weight Loss: Exploring the challenges of restrictive behaviours in the queer community to cause a more "feminine" or "masculine" look. Identity Roles & Stereotypes: How to find where we belong without fuelling obsession with our appearance. ARFID & Sensory Safety: Understanding why "beige foods" feel safe and how to branch out without the fear and force gently. The Low Self-Esteem Trap: How external pressure to be "disciplined" can fuel the eating disorder voice. Connect with Us: Subscribe to the Full of Beans Podcast Follow Full of Beans on Instagram Check out our website Listen on YouTube Connect with Lauren via her website ⚠️ Content Note: This episode includes discussion of eating disorders, body image, neurodiversity, gender and sexuality. Please look after yourself as you listen. If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and share to help us spread awareness. Sending positive beans your way, Han 💛

S1 · E271

May 25, 2026

44:44

Navigating Exercise During Eating Disorder Recovery with Dr Amit Mistry

We often view exercise as the "golden ticket" for mental health, but for those navigating eating disorders, the line between movement and compulsion is incredibly thin. In this week’s episode of Full of Beans, Han is joined by Dr. Amit Mistry, a Consultant Sports Psychiatrist at the Nightingale Hospital. Amit brings a unique dual perspective to the table, advocating for the robust mental health benefits of physical activity while managing the high-stakes clinical risks of over-exercise in inpatient eating disorder settings. We explore why exercise shouldn't be a "black or white" conversation and how we can reintroduce movement without falling back into the trap of rigidity. In this episode, we talk about: The Biopsychosocial Model: How sport serves as "fertiliser for the brain" while providing self-mastery and social connection. The Social Media Myth: Why we need to challenge the "exercise is all you need" narrative and replace it with a multi-pronged approach to mental health. Inpatient Realities: The difficult balance of prioritising physical stability (cardiovascular status and refeeding) while introducing social exercises like yoga or swimming. Exercise as a Spectrum: Identifying when recreational movement crosses the line into a systemic, "drug-like" addiction that impacts bone health and fertility. Red-S vs. Depression: The clinical challenge of distinguishing between relative energy deficiency in sport and primary low mood. The "Elite" Trap: Why 99% of us aren't elite athletes and shouldn't be following the regimented, high-intake/high-output diets we see in our feeds. Diagnostic Switching: Understanding the shift into Orthorexia and why being "high functioning" doesn't mean you aren't in distress. Something that really stayed with me from this conversation was the idea of Identity vs. Performance. When we strip away the sports and the training, who are we? Recovery isn't about stopping forever; it’s about regaining the autonomy to choose rest without guilt. Connect with Us: Subscribe to the Full of Beans Podcast Follow Full of Beans on Instagram Check out our website Listen on YouTube Connect with Dr Amit on Instagram (@dramistrypsych) ⚠️ Content Note: This episode includes discussion of eating disorders, anxiety, restrictive eating and medical trauma. Please look after yourself as you listen. If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and share to help us spread awareness. Sending positive beans your way, Han 💛 Thank you to Nightingale Hospital for sponsoring Full of Beans.

S1 · E270

May 18, 2026

35:31

New Research: The Suicide Risk Nobody Talks About in Eating Disorders with Dr Una Foye

Anecdotally, we know there is a correlation between eating disorders and suicide, yet until now, there has been no published research to show that. This week on the Full of Beans Podcast, Han is joined by Dr Una Foye, a Research Fellow at King's College London, who is leading the qualitative arm of an MQ-funded study exploring why people with eating disorders are at higher risk of suicide and self-harm. We talk about the groundbreaking, and long overdue, research that finally puts lived experience voices at the centre of this conversation, why the data has always been harder to read than it should be, and what the findings mean for the way we think about treatment, recovery, and care. In this episode, we explore: The research gap: Why there has been almost no qualitative work asking people with lived experience about the link between eating disorders and suicidality, until now. The hidden statistics: Why deaths connected to eating disorders and suicide are so often recorded under other causes, and what stigma and the historic criminalisation of suicide have to do with it. The complexity of risk: How the eating disorder itself, identity loss, social isolation, and the function it serves can increase suicidal thoughts. Recovery as a risky period: How the removal of support at the point of weight restoration can leave people more vulnerable, not less. Intersectionality and invisibility: How being male, from a minoritised ethnic background, living in a larger body, or being autistic or neurodivergent can compound the risk, and the silence. Siloed services: Why being told "you can't be treated here if you're also self-harming" misses the point entirely, and what holistic, joined-up care could look like instead. Asking the question: Why clinicians are often frightened to ask about suicidality, and why not asking is far more dangerous than asking. Hope in small things: The realisation that support doesn't need to be dramatic - but simple changes and communication can help. Lived experience at the centre: Why Una is so passionate about lived experience and how it is the thing which shapes everything she does. Connect with Us: Subscribe to the Full of Beans Podcast Follow Full of Beans on Instagram Check out our website Listen on YouTube Connect with Una via the KCL website ⚠️ Content Note: This episode includes discussion of eating disorders, self-harm and suicide. Please look after yourself as you listen. If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and share to help us spread awareness. Sending positive beans your way, Han 💛

S1 · E269

May 11, 2026

45:53

The Overlap No One Explains Between ADHD, Eating Disorders, and Hypermobility with Dr Jessica Eccles

In this week’s episode of Full of Beans, I’m joined by Dr Jessica Eccles, an award-winning researcher and neurodevelopmental psychiatrist specialising in the links between brain and body, particularly as they relate to hypermobility. Jessica is an Associate Professor in Brain-Body Medicine at Brighton and Sussex Medical School. Also, she works in the Sussex NHS Neurodevelopmental Service, where she and colleagues have set up the world’s first Neurodivergent Brain Body Clinic. She has been exploring the intersection between hypermobility, neurodivergence, and mental health since 2009, and is passionate about challenging stereotypes and encouraging curiosity. In this episode, we discuss: What hypermobility actually is, and why it is about more than being “bendy” The links between ADHD, autism, hypermobility, anxiety, and eating disorders How gut issues, autonomic dysfunction, and interoception may play a role Why body sensations can sometimes be misread as anxiety The connection between proprioception, body awareness, and emotion regulation Why neurodivergent people may be more vulnerable to restrictive eating patterns The importance of looking at the full picture, rather than separating the brain and body Connect with Us: Subscribe to the Full of Beans Podcast Follow Full of Beans on Instagram Check out our website Listen on YouTube Connect with Jessica via her LinkTree ⚠️ Content Note: This episode includes discussion of eating disorders, anxiety, restrictive eating and medical trauma. Please look after yourself as you listen. If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and share to help us spread awareness. Sending positive beans your way, Han 💛

S1 · E268

May 4, 2026

48:06

ED Prevention in Schools: Inside the Parliamentary Roundtable with Dr. Hannah Lewis

In this week's episode of Full of Beans, we are joined by Dr. Hannah Lewis, a Postdoctoral Researcher at Queen Mary University of London. Hannah’s work sits at the vital intersection of eating disorder prevention and school-based body image interventions. We step inside the halls of Westminster to discuss a recent Eating Disorder & Education Roundtable convened by the APPG on Eating Disorders and the Dump the Scales campaign. Key Discussion Points Inside Parliament: What actually happens at an APPG roundtable? We break down the meeting between researchers, MPs, and stakeholders to push for better school resources. The Evidence is Ready: We have over 20 years of research supporting cognitive dissonance-based interventions (such as the Body Project), yet they are still not standard in the UK curriculum. What the Science Says: A look at why "media literacy" alone isn’t enough to prevent eating disorders and why we need more active, group-based challenges to appearance ideals. Prevention vs. Treatment: Clarifying that prevention isn't about asking teachers to "treat" disorders; it’s about addressing risk factors like body dissatisfaction, perfectionism, and appearance anxiety. The 2017 Training Gap: Why a major hurdle remains the lack of specific body image and eating disorder training for Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) during their qualification. The "Sick Enough" Threshold: Discussing how clinical barriers are moving into schools, often preventing young people from getting help until they reach a crisis point. Diversity & Intersectionality: Why "standard" interventions can fail marginalised groups. We discuss the Brown is Beautiful project and the need to adapt the Body Project for South Asian girls. Current School Programmes: Routine weighing in PE lessons, calorie counting as a maths exercise, the policing of "high sugary foods" in lunchboxes and weight loss adverts at school are policies we can change. Neurodiversity & ARFID: Acknowledging that not all eating disorders are driven by body image. We explore the link between Autism, ADHD, and sensory-based eating struggles. The Future: Moving toward an open letter to Parliament and ensuring the outcome of these discussions leads to tangible policy action. Connect with Us: Follow Full of Beans on Instagram Check out our website Listen on YouTube Follow The Brown is Beautiful Project on Instagram (@thebrownisbeautifulproject) ⚠️ Content Note: This episode includes discussion of eating disorder prevention, body dissatisfaction, and mental health policy. Please look after yourself as you listen. If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and share to help us spread awareness. Sending positive beans your way, Han 💛

S1 · E267

Apr 27, 2026

45:53

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