Picture Blurrfect

Dec 10 2023
Picture Blurrfect Podcast artwork

A podcast that explores all things related to negative self-image, body insecurities, and mental health. The host, Naomi Charalambakis Wilkerson, PhD, discusses how we can find freedom again in a world full of triggers and unattainable standards of beauty. As a neuroscientist working in policy, she explores both her personal journey with anorexia nervosa as well as the science and policy implications of mental health disorders.

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Hope for the Holidays (& Our First Mailbag!)

Dec 10 2023 36 mins  
Naomi closes out Season 3 by reflecting on the interviews and experiences over the last year and for the first time, shares some questions she's gotten from you--the audience! How does one prepare for the holidays when in recovery? How do you approach someone you fear is struggling with an eating disorder? *Note: Picture Blurrfect will be taking a hiatus until June-July 2024 as Nao

Can AI and Chatbots Help Eating Disorder Treatment?: Ellen Fitzsimmons-Craft, PhD

Oct 29 2023 59 mins  
Dr. Ellen Fitzsimmons-Craft of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis joins the podcast to share her vision for how technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be used to improve accessibility of eating disorder treatments. Naomi and Dr. Fitzsimmons-Craft discuss her work with Tessa, a rule-based chatbot that the National Eating Disorders Association recently use

Overcoming Food Guilt

Oct 15 2023 27 mins  
Yours truly takes the microphone to share her thoughts on how to overcoming "feeling guilty" after eating certain foods or meals while in eating disorder recovery. Just because you FEEL guilty doesn't necessarily mean there is something you SHOULD feel guilty about. Book Naomi Mentions:1. The Weight of Beautiful by Jackie GoldschneiderNote: Please do not read until you feel strong

The Association Between Adolescent Weight Perception and Disordered Eating: Sam Hahn, PhD, MPH, RD

Sep 17 2023 49 mins  
Dr. Sam Hahn of Central Michigan University joins the podcast to discuss one of her recent papers that examines how weight perception--how one personally views themselves in terms of overweight, normal weight, underweight--and its potential changes throughout adolescence could predict disordered eating patterns in young adulthood. The episode also touches on Dr. Hahn's interest in

How the Prefrontal Cortex is Involved in Food-Related Decision Making: Rachel Ross, MD, PhD

Aug 27 2023 63 mins  
Time to geek out a little bit this week because who doesn't love to talk about the brain!? Naomi sits down with Dr. Rachel Ross of Albert Einstein College of Medicine to chat about her latest publication in Physiology & Behavior that examines how a specific receptor in the prefrontal cortex--the very front part of our brain--influences food-related decision making. Dr. Ross sha

Eating, Activity, & the Impact of Weight-Related Problems: Dianne Neumark-Sztainer, PhD, MPH

Aug 06 2023 51 mins  
Naomi sits down with Dr. Dianne Neumark-Sztainer of the University of Minnesota to chat about how she became interested in weight-related problems among young people, and how this work culminated into her now thriving research lab, "Project EAT" (Eating and Activity over Time). Topics that emerge from the discussion include: yoga and mindfulness and its connection to eating disorde

Why Do We Overlook Disabilities in Eating Disorder Research?: Ruth Knight, PhD

Jul 02 2023 52 mins  
Naomi sits down with Dr. Ruth Knight of York St. John University to explore why we often forget to talk about disability when it comes to eating disorder/disordered eating research. As we strive to be more inclusive and representative in our research, are we making the effort to ask individuals with lived experience what they are going through and adjust research instruments/method

A Rant About Our Healthcare System

Jun 18 2023 43 mins  
Naomi lets it rip about her views on the healthcare workforce and their treatment of eating disorders/mental conditions after her recent experience at the doctor. The lack of insurance coverage for mental conditions (and especially eating disorders) and the nonstop news about Ozempic/Wegovy were also thrown in the rant for good measure. If you have faced discriminstration at the do

Project Body Neutrality & Scalable Mental Health: Jessica Schleider, PhD

May 29 2023 43 mins  
The lovely Jessica Schleider, PhD of Stonybrook University (soon to be Northwestern!) joins the podcast to discuss her latest paper in the International Journal of Eating Disorders that focuses on data from Project Body Neutrality. Results are promising and indicative of the effectiveness of brief, accessible interventions in reducing mental health problems, including disordered ea

How the Fear of Being Judged Influences Body Image: Nora Trompeter, PhD

May 14 2023 44 mins  
You ever how the fear of people's perception of you changes how you see yourself, particularly when it comes to your weight and body image? Naomi sits down with Dr. Nora Trompeter (University College London) to discuss her latest paper on the bidirectional relationship between negative evaluation (e.g., the fear of being judged) and weight/shape concerns. Naomi and Dr. Trompeter di