Fat activist and writer Juliet James joins us to discuss helpful and unhelpful behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic, weight-loss surgery and its complications, the role of childhood trauma in her eating disorder, fatphobia on the upper end of the weight spectrum, and so much more. Plus, Christy answers a listener question about dealing with food cravings during COVID-19. 

Juliet James is a queer, bisexual, fat babe who writes about mental health, eating disorders and the social and emotional challenges of being fat in a thin-centric culture. Born in New Jersey, she spent six years living in New York City, where she completed a BA in anthropology at Hunter College. She currently resides with her husband and their dog in the mountains of Colorado. Her hobbies include traveling with her husband, spoiling her dog, reading, music and makeup. You can read her work on Medium, or find her on Instagram and Twitter under the username @IAmJulietJames. Find her online at IAmJulietJames.com.

We Discuss:

• Juliet’s exposure to the restrict-binge cycle early in life

• How her traumatic childhood contributed to her eating disorder

• Social media, and its role in her recovery

• The messy, non-linear process of recovery

• Hoarding behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic

• The parallels between COVID-19 and 9/11

• Juliet’s path of letting go of dieting

• How fatphobia affects people of all sizes

• “Pre-diabetes,” and why it is a bogus diagnosis

• Juliet’s negative experiences with Metformin side effects

• Why she decided to have weight-loss surgery despite believing in body liberation

• How folks on the upper end of the weight spectrum experience fatphobia

• The physical and mental health complications Juliet experienced after weight-loss surgery

• The cognitive dissonance she experienced around weight-loss expectations compared to reality

• How weight-loss surgery can affect appetite and hunger cues

• Her advice for people considering weight-loss surgery

• What she hopes people will take away from COVID-19

• Her thoughts on Christy’s book, Anti-Diet

Resources Mentioned

Some of the links below are affiliate links. Affiliates or not, we only recommend products and services that align with our values.

• Submit your questions for a chance to have them answered on the podcast!

• My online course, Intuitive Eating Fundamentals

• My book, Anti-Diet: Reclaim Your Time, Money, Well-Being, and Happiness Through Intuitive Eating

• Help spread the anti-diet message by subscribing to the podcast

• “This Is What Life Is Really Like When You Weigh Over *** Pounds” (Juliet’s Huffington Post article; CW: Weight numbers, o-words, weight-loss surgery)

• “Things they don’t tell you before WLS” (Juliet’s Medium article about some of her weight-loss surgery complications; CW: Weight-loss surgery, medical complications, o-words)

• SmartGlamour

• Juliet’s website, Medium, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and email

Listener Question of the Week

What can a person do in response to changes in their eating habits during COVID-19? Why is it OK to be craving and eating more comforting and pleasurable foods at this time? What are some signs that a person might not be completely eating intuitively? What are some key principles of intuitive eating, beyond honoring hunger and fullness cues?

Resources Mentioned: 

• Anti-Diet: Reclaim Your Time, Money, Well-Being, and Happiness Through Intuitive Eating

• The Intuitive Eating Workbook by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch

• Intuitive Eating, 4th edition by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch (available June 23)