Episode 010

A Personal Recovery Journey: Insights for Caregivers (with Hannah Hickinbotham)

In this episode, Jenni speaks with Hannah Hickenbotham, founder of the UK-based "Full of Beans" podcast about eating disorder awareness. Hannah shares her personal journey through atypical anorexia, body dysmorphia, and the late ADHD diagnosis (after 14 years of struggling) that finally unlocked her path to recovery. This conversation offers caregivers rare insight into what recovery looks like from the inside: why resistance happens, what support actually helps, and how to find "glimmers" of hope even in the darkest moments.

00:00 Introduction to the Podcast

06:19 What Caregivers Can Learn from Lived Experience

10:03 Hannah's Journey: Diet Culture and Feeling Different

15:53 Atypical Anorexia: The Pain of "Not Quite There"

17:22 Eating Disorders as Emotional Regulation

26:33 Advice for Parents: What Helped and What Didn't

34:21 Understanding Resistance: "Facing Your Worst Nightmare"

44:46 Thanking and Releasing the Eating Disorder (EMDR)

47:32 Supporters Who Made a Difference

54:41 Finding Daily Glimmers: Advice for Struggling Families

SUPPORT & RESOURCES

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FEAST website:

https://feast-ed.org/

FEAST flyer:

https://feast-ed.org/programs-and-services/

Hannah’s website:

https://www.wearefullofbeans.com/

Listen to Hannah’s podcast on your favorite app: The Full of Beans Podcast

Guest Bio

Hannah Hickinbotham is the founder of Full of Beans, an eating disorder awareness podcast all about reducing stigma and amplifying lived experience. Through inspiring conversations with people with lived experience of an eating disorder, alongside clinicians and researchers, Hannah creates a space where listeners can feel understood, validated, and a little less alone.

Hannah has lived experience of atypical anorexia, body dysmorphia, and ADHD, and found her path to recovery after finally receiving an ADHD diagnosis 14 years later. Passionate about widening the conversation beyond stereotypes, she reminds people that recovery is possible, even when it doesn’t look how you expected.