Episode 024

A Different Kind of Back to School: Supporting Your Student Through Eating Disorder Recovery

In this episode, Jenni Gaines and Laura Cohen talk through what the back to school season actually looks like when a child is in eating disorder recovery, drawing entirely on their own experience as caregivers. They cover slow re-entry plans and partial schedules, the school services many families never learn about until they ask, and the specific problem of school lunch — why a lunch monitor is not meal support, and what creative workarounds families have used to protect a third of the day's nutrition. Laura walks caregivers through the 504 plan in detail: what it is, what it is not, how to request one, and what to do when a district refuses. Both hosts spend time on the emotional side too — the exhaustion of navigating social noise all day, the grief of a social life on hold, and the permission to change the plan when it stops working. Listeners will come away with practical questions to bring to their school and a reminder that this season is now, not forever.

00:00 Introduction and Disclaimer

01:00 Why Back to School Feels Different in Recovery

02:30 Laura's Story: A Senior Year Interrupted

05:00 It's Not All or Nothing: The Slow Re-Entry Plan

06:40 School Services Families Don't Know Exist

09:40 Jenni's Story: Six Weeks of Homebound School

14:00 School Lunch: Why It's the Hardest Part of the Day

17:30 Getting Creative with Lunch and Snacks

20:20 Finding a Safe Person at School

24:50 Social Noise and Why They Come Home Exhausted

28:20 Adjusting Expectations: Sports, Activities, and Milestones

33:00 The 504 Plan: What It Is and How to Request One

41:00 When a District Says No

42:20 Validation, Collaboration, and Flexibility

SUPPORT & RESOURCES - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

FEAST website:

https://feast-ed.org/

FEAST programs and services:

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

Episode 023

Trust & Treatment: How Outpatient Teams Support Lasting Recovery (with Melanie Lehman)

In this episode, Laura Cohen sits down with Melanie Lehman, a registered dietitian and licensed dietitian nutritionist. Laura and Melanie unpack how caregivers can build and get the most out of an outpatient treatment team: how to tell an eating disorder specialist from a general dietitian, what questions to ask a prospective provider, and how the dietitian, therapist, and medical provider roles overlap and collaborate. Melanie explains why outpatient care is the long haul rather than a quick fix, how she builds rapport with kids who won't engage, and why the caregiver is the most important member of the team.

Listeners will come away with concrete language to use (including asking a doctor for orthostatic vitals), red flags that signal the wrong fit, and reassurance that they have every right to advocate and be treated as a partner in their loved one's care.

00:00 Introduction and Disclaimer

01:20 Laura Introduces Melanie Lehman

03:00 How Laura and Melanie Met: A Shared History

05:30 Choosing a Dietitian: Why Specialty Matters

08:00 Questions to Ask and Trusting Your Gut

13:00 Building an Outpatient Team and What It Includes

15:00 The Purpose of Outpatient Care: The Long Haul

19:30 Roles of the Dietitian, Therapist, and Medical Provider

27:00 Orthostatic Vitals and Additional Team Members

30:30 Building Rapport with Kids Who Won't Engage

36:00 The Caregiver's Role: Communication and Advocacy

43:30 Handling Disagreements, Weight Goals, and Three Takeaways

SUPPORT & RESOURCES - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

FEAST website:

https://feast-ed.org/

FEAST programs and services:

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

MEDA (Multi-Service Eating Disorders Association):

https://www.medainc.org/

Lehman Nutrition (Melanie Lehman's practice):

https://www.lehmannutrition.com/

Guest Bio:

Melanie Lehman is a Registered Dietitian and Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist in private practice. She specializes in supporting individuals struggling with eating disorders, disordered eating, and body image concerns. She studied nutrition at the University of New Hampshire, and went on to complete her dietetic internship at Massachusetts General Hospital. From there, she began her career at the Cambridge Eating Disorder Center and subsequently was the Assistant Director of Clinical Services at Van Dusen Nutrition, a private practice group. Two years ago she took the leap to start her own private practice and recently hired her first dietitian, and hopes to grow Lehman Nutrition in the years to come. She is a member of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and MEDA (Multi-Service Eating Disorders Association).

Episode 022

Safe to Play: Returning to Sport After an Eating Disorder (with Megan Hellner and Katherine Hill)

In this episode, Jenni Gaines and Laura Cohen sit down with Dr. Katherine Hill, a board-certified physician and former NCAA Division I swimmer, and Dr. Megan Hellner, a registered dietitian and researcher, the co-founders of AthleatMD, to talk through one of the questions caregivers ask most: when is it safe for an athlete to return to sport after an eating disorder? Katherine and Megan explain what makes athletes a unique population, why weight suppression and stress fractures so often get missed, and how RED-S (Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport) overlaps with eating disorders across all genders and sports. They walk through early warning signs, the medical red flags that warrant pulling an athlete from training, and how to tell an athletic heart from a malnourished one. Laura also shares her own lived experience as a dietitian who missed the signs in her gymnast daughter. Listeners will come away with a hopeful, practical roadmap for a low-and-slow return to sport, guidance on working with coaches and athletic staff, and specific tools, including the SEES return-to-activity guidelines, to bring to their own care team.

00:00 Introduction and Disclaimer

01:40 Guest Introductions: Katherine Hill and Megan Hellner

04:00 What Makes Athletes a Unique Population

08:00 Higher-Risk Sports and Early Warning Signs

12:30 Laura's Lived Experience: Stress Fractures and Weight Suppression

16:40 What Is RED-S and Low Energy Availability

20:00 Low Testosterone and Missed Signs in Male Athletes

24:00 ARFID, Underfueling, and Overtraining

28:00 Bradycardia and Medical Red Flags to Stop Training

32:45 Deciding Whether to Step Away from Competition

37:15 Coaches, Schools, and How Much to Share

47:15 Returning to Sport and the SEES Guidelines

SUPPORT & RESOURCES - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

FEAST website:

https://feast-ed.org/

FEAST programs and services:

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

AthleatMD:

https://www.athleatmd.com/

FEAST webinar — Helping Parents of Athletes Navigate Return to Sport While Battling RED-S and/or Eating Disorders:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIpNYWqMkB0

SEES — Safe Exercise at Every Stage guidelines:

https://www.safeexerciseateverystage.com/sees-guidelines

Guest Bios:

Katherine Hill, MD, is a board-certified physician, eating disorder specialist, and co-founder of AthleatMD. She completed her undergraduate degree, medical degree, and clinical training at Stanford University, where she later joined the faculty in Adolescent Medicine. She went on to serve as the lead physician at Equip Health for four years before launching AthleatMD with Megan Hellner. A former NCAA Division I swimmer, Dr. Hill brings both clinical expertise and lived athletic experience to her work with athletes navigating eating disorders, RED-S, and the pressures of sport.

Dr. Megan Hellner is a registered dietitian, researcher, and co-founder of AthleatMD, where she specializes in helping athletes and individuals recover from eating disorders and Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S). For more than two decades, she has served as the founding dietitian for some of the nation's leading eating disorder treatment programs. She is passionate about giving caregivers the knowledge, tools, and reassurance they need to confidently support their loved one's recovery journey.