The Dear Body Podcast

Trigger Warning: In this episode, we may cover topics related to eating disorders, suicide and other mental health challenges. While we do talk about issues relating to food and body, some episodes may be more emotionally challenging or difficult and may make you uncomfortable. If the podcast feels triggering in any way, please turn it off and get the appropriate help. Remember, I am not a doctor,...

For so many of us, food is used as a means for comfort. This can cause anxiety to a lot of people, especially when you feel unable to control that urge to numb out by indulging in your favorite foods. Today Jessi talks about how to empower yourself to stop using food for comfort and how to retrain your brain’s thoughts around food. She goes over why you don’t want to create excess rules for yourse...

Confidence comes in all shapes and sizes. No matter where you are in your journey to food freedom and self-love, you can start to build your own confidence. Today Jessi had the pleasure of talking to her good friend Ariel about embodying confidence whether or not you fit the “ideal body image”. They chat about how Ariel got into fitness and ended up opening her own gym, how to navigate the pressur...

One of the best things to know about your struggle to healing your relationship with food is this: you DON’T have to go it alone. Today Jessi is joined by two FFM alums, Joyce and Brenda. At the start of their journey, the two were total strangers but after joining the program, they became accountability partners and instantly clicked. In this episode, they chat about how the FFM has changed their...

You’re in for a treat with today’s guest, Samantha Skelly. Samantha is a speaker, best selling author and wellness coaching expert who trains people across the globe to become masterful food and body coaches. She opens up about her past struggles with food and body and why she started her business, Hungry for Happiness. Samantha and Jessi chat about using your pain as a catalyst for growth and mov...

How do you make sure you’re going into the new year ready to take on all that life throws at you? Today you’ll hear Jessi’s process for reflecting on the previous year and what she does to set intentions for the new year. She shares a few personal stories of what lessons she learned in 2019 and what stood out to her the most from the year. She dives into why you need to set realistic goals and the...

The guest on today’s episode has a remarkable story to share, after over 54 years of struggling with a disordered relationship with food and her body, she has finally conquered binge eating. Julie is an FFM client who opens up about her story and how her struggles with food and her body image began. Julie and Jessi chat about retraining how your brain thinks about food and stair-stepping your way...

Decluttering your life can have a profound impact on your sanity and mental well-being. Today, Jessi is joined by Allie Casazza, a minimalist who helps women declutter their hectic homes and lifestyles through her work. Allie and Jessi chat about Allie’s struggles with food and body and how a perspective shift finally helped her overcome these struggles. They discuss the therapeutic impacts of dec...

Today’s guest, Julie began to struggle with food and body image issues at a very young age. When she started to get comments from others about her body, things started spiraling for her and she began to become obsessed with tracking food. She shares her experience with purging, food and body issues and how she finally started to recover. Julie and Jessi chat about some of her most pivotal breakthr...

For so many of you, the struggle with food and body image trails back all the way to when you were a child. On today’s episode, you’ll hear from FFM client Kylie, about what it was like growing up as the “fat kid” in her family. She shares how comments from others affected her self esteem and in turn how this then caused her to feel shame and become secretive with her food choices. They discuss ho...

You’re much more equipped to heal from binge eating than you give yourself credit for and on today’s episode, Jessi and her guest Michelle will be discussing how to get back in tune with your body. Michelle Chalfant is a licensed therapist, holistic life coach, author, speaker and podcaster. They discuss Michelle’s journey of struggling with her relationship with food and body and how she navigate...

026 - From Self-Hatred to Body Confidence with @choosingchelsea   Have you ever wondered if there would come a day when you’d be confident in your own skin? Today’s guest Chelsea is all about body confidence and how to get to this place of being okay with yourself exactly how you are. Jessi and Chelsea discuss Chelsea’s struggle with self-hatred toward her body and how she finally decided to be ok...

If there are aspects in your life where you’ve ever struggled with feeling worthy, whether that be in friendships, relationships, or even the bedroom then you need to hear this episode. Today Jessi is joined by guest, Mary Jelkovsky. Mary is a former bikini competitor turned self-love advocate who hosts worldwide retreats to help people with their own self-love journey. They discuss eating disorde...

In today’s episode, Jessi discusses something that is so incredibly important on your journey to food freedom. This is something that everyone is guilty of doing on a day-to-day basis and it impacts the way you feel, the way that you show up and it can even influence your behavior without you realizing it. She shares the role that identity plays in your life and why you need to claim what you want...

If you’re struggling with addiction - whether its addiction to food, drugs, alcohol, , gambling or whatever else it may be,  what is going on in the brain is very similar. Inside this episode, Jessi shares some takeaways that she had from a conference she went to with her mom. She talks about understanding the science behind behavior change and addiction. She shares how to hone your energy on fait...

Eating intuitively doesn’t have to be a one-way street. When you give yourself the freedom and permission to eat what you crave, you’ll find yourself not feeling as obsessive over food choices and having less worry around the possibility of binging. On today’s episode, Jessi shares why you should operate in balance instead of extremes. She shares some of the meal combinations she uses to help her...

Have you been considering a reinvention of yourself? On this episode, Jessi shares the 5 steps to reinventing yourself and why she’d rather feel fear for stepping into the unknown than to feel the disappointment of being 5, 10 or 20 years down the road and realizing that she had settled for mediocrity. She discusses what made her realize that she wanted to put herself out there and help others. Sh...

Have you heard the news? Weight Watchers created a new app called Kurbo, which was designed for kids as young as 8-years-old. It teaches children a traffic light system to categorize foods under green light, yellow light and red light. This might seem like a good idea on the surface to help inform children about nutrition and help them make smarter choices with food. The problem is, this system mi...

Have you ever wondered if your struggles with food are even valid? If you’ve never been clinically diagnosed with an eating disorder or struggled with weight fluctuation, you may question if you actually have a disordered relationship with food. Your frustrations and struggles are valid and they do deserve your attention. In this episode, Jessi shares why your disordered relationship with food mig...

Is your relationship with food affecting your connections with your spouse, children, friends or coworkers? As much as we think we can hide and compartmentalize our struggles, the reality is that it seeps into and affects our mood, our thoughts, our life, how we show up on a day to day basis, how we interact with other people and so many elements of our relationships with others. Being aware of an...

Exercise and movement should be an act of self-care, not a form of punishment for the food you’ve indulged in. Today on the podcast, Jessi shares why exercise should be a reward for yourself rather than a penalty for what you’ve done wrong. She opens up about her past disordered relationship with exercise and how this came about from being a fitness competitor. She chats about what her relationshi...

When you’re working through a disordered relationship with food, it can be helpful to know how others who have gone through the same thing have learned to work through it too. Today Jessi is sharing what she eats in a typical day and how she and her husband navigate planning out their meals for the week. She shares why boxing yourself into a restrictive diet is a disservice to your body and brain’...

There is nothing sweeter than food and body freedom, feeling comfortable in your own skin and having an easy and effortless relationship with food. This episode is about being unafraid of pursuing recovery and healing. While it can seem scary and overwhelming to pursue, staying where you’re at in the pain of overeating, binging and being in the mental space where you’re all consumed with food and...

Have you ever felt guilt, shame or embarrassment after a binge where you overindulged with food? The weight of guilt can feel so heavy after letting yourself enjoy a long weekend, a holiday or celebration. It's an icky feeling that can weigh on you and distract you from other things in your life. Guilt steals our joy and our light and prevents us from moving forward. On today’s episode, Jessi shar...

Whether you’re headed to a 4th of July party or a holiday gathering with your family, there’s no doubt that there will be food involved in the festivities. This episode of the podcast is about being able to navigate through those difficult social situations without binging. Jessi shares why you should avoid the last summer mentality and how you can use the build a plate strategy in social settings...