#187: Relapse in Eating Disorders, Substance Use, and Treatment Trauma with Sandi James, Psychologist

Sandi James — a registered psychologist and Certified Eating Disorder Recovery Coach — joins Abbie to talk about her lived experience with both eating disorders and substance abuse, and how her own healing has profoundly shaped her work.

Listen in for a compassionate conversation on:

- The overlap between substance use and eating disorders as coping strategies

- Sandi’s early experiences with hush-hush, shame-based treatment in Australia

- The impact of COVID, loneliness, and financial stress on relapse

- Harm in treatment: rigid meal plans, punishment, coercion, and being labeled “non-compliant”

- The contrast of supportive care that treats people like humans

- Why one-size-fits-all treatment approaches often fail

- The promise of harm reduction and meeting clients in their “window of tolerance”

- Using challenge meals over telehealth as a collaborative, supportive tool

This episode is for anyone who’s felt let down by treatment, struggled with co-occurring challenges, or wondered if there’s a gentler, more human way forward in recovery.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit abbieattwoodwellness.substack.com

About Sandi:

Sandi James is a registered Psychologist and Certified Eating Disorder Recovery Coach with more than 15 years working in mental health, eating disorder, and addiction treatment. She is a lived experience clinician and dedicates her career to working with clients who feel let down by current systems of care and treatment approaches. Her primary focus includes mental health and trauma recovery, with a particular emphasis on co-occurring presentations including substance use or food and compulsive exercise-related difficulties. Sandi has extensive experience working with individuals and families to heal and recover from trauma, addictions, eating disorders, and mental health conditions. She is dedicated to working with clients and families from an inclusive and person-centred approach to improve quality of life from a harm reduction perspective. She is a passionate and committed clinician, working alongside and guiding clients in the recovery process. Sandi is building a practice integrating joyful movement and somatic healing approaches to treatment as well as working towards her PhD, conducting qualitative research looking at experiences of eating disorder treatment: identifying, responding to, and addressing harm experienced throughout the treatment process.

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Podcast Cover Photography by Anya McInroy

Podcast Administrative Support by Alexis Glaubach

Podcast Editing by Brian Walters

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