Let me introduce you to Ollie Aplin, designer and author of This Book Will Make You Stronger. We’re talking about mental health. Like, really talking about it. We cover deep issues like bipolar disorder, suicide, and drug use. If you, or someone you know is affected by any of these issues then please head to my site for resources to help you. Otherwise listen to this important conversation, share it with a dude in your life who needs to talk about some stuff. In this episode Ollie teaches us all a lesson in vulnerability, and shows us it’s a superpower, not a weakness. #1in4

Since not all of you can come to my talk at Balance Festival this week I wanted to cover some of the concepts of Intuitive Eating in a dedicated episode and I have my girl and friend of the podcast Pixie Turner here to help me. We talk about some of constructs of intuitive eating and the problems with dieting, and how lots of us are stuck in the diet mentality because of diet tools and diet culture. I'm also sharing some tips to help you break out of the diet mentality because without this step, intuitive eating becomes just another diet. 

Today I'm taking about handling your ish when it comes to anxiety with Chloé Brotheridge, author of The Anxiety Solution, a new book that promises to help you become calmer, happier and more confident (sign me up!). I'm not going to lie, I got Chloé for totally selfish reasons, but I think there's going to be lots in here to help you out too! We talk about how to stop playing the comparison game,  staying in your lane (but waving at the people in the lane next to you), and how to cultivate more happiness, which will ultimately lead to more success. Chloé shares loads of little nuggets of wisdom about dealing with anxiety and even sets you a little homework challenge (see my Instagram @laurathomasphd for deets). 

I figured you could use a fun mini-sode to welcome you back to work after the bank holiday. Dr. Anita Mitra aka Gynae Geek is giving us the low down on the vaginal microbiome; what's it for, why is it important, and how do we keep it healthy, what do we do when something goes wrong, and should we take probiotics. Also how evolution screwed up when it comes to sperm :-/ 

In this episode we're getting up close and personal with the Gynae Geek, Dr. Anita Mitra. I'm asking those 'down there' health care questions that we usually feel a bit too weird and awkward asking when it comes to our lady parts. In this episode we're talking labia (never symmetrical), pubes (cushioning), HPV (we all have it) and discharge (totally normal). Ohhh yeah. But don't be freaked out, Anita is way cool and somehow makes the whole business fun and interesting, and there's a great story involving a disco ball. P.S. did you know your vagina was self-cleaning? I know, so cool, right??

And we're back! In a week where mental health is dominating the national conversation and I sat two rows behind Prince William at a screening of the new BBC1 doc I'm involved with (Mind Over Marathon) about removing the stigma of mental health, I figured we'd check in with Chartered Psychologist, Bake Off Babe, and all round supercool genius Kimberley Wilson. We talk about her work with EDs, how mental health isn't 'all in your head', and she gives her top evidence based self-care tips for looking after your mental wellbeing. 

This week I'm talking to Rosie Spinks, a freelance journalist and creator of the Mouthy Women project. We talk about a whole bunch of things in this episode, the LA wellness scene (where Rosie grew up) versus London, the fear of bread and the nocebo effect, we talk about the culture of over exercise, and of course we talk about Mouthy Women and our shared obsession with fat acceptance activist and goddess Lindy West. Loved this conversation - let us know what you think @laurathomasphd @dontsaltmygame @RoJoSpinks

Here's a little bonus ep to tide you over until the next main episode. It's a excerpt from my interview with Liz Riley where we go deep on figuring out who you are and, asking what you want from life, and thinking about how you want to be remembered and why periods of alone time are so important for figuring that stuff out. This is something I've experienced and I think that's why it really resonated with me. I also thin it's relevant to the whole wellness world as so much of our identities get tied up with being the 'healthy one', but what's left when we strip that all away? Expect some serious real talk, and fodder for thought. Some of the sound is a little weird in places but stick with it, it's all good.

TRIGGER WARNING: This episode may not be suitable for people with active eating disorders or those who are vulnerable.

Buckle up kids because this is a really emotional episode. Laura Dennison and Eve Simmons, the brilliant geniuses behind Not Plant Based (a website for troubled eaters) are sharing the stories of their eating disorders. Both have completely different perspectives and share the own stories of struggle and recovery. We also talk about some of the problems with social media and the wellness industry. Plus where you should turn for help. I couldn't be more grateful to Laura and Eve for being so open and honest about this difficult subject. If you suspect you or someone you know is suffering from an eating disorder, please go to laurathomasphd.co.uk or notplantbased.com for further help and resources.

Shut the front door. You guys, it's Jessica Murnane, author of the One Part Plant cookbook, host of the One Part Podcast, and all round cool lady. We talk about all the things in this episode; writing a cookbook, endometriosis, connecting people, celebrating other people's wins, and getting to the point. Plus Jessica gets the award for most crazy things you can fit into one year. We talk favourite TV (Jessica explaining Bake Off is the cutest), and she can't help but ask me a question too! 

Shut the front door. You guys, it's Jessica Murnane, author of the One Part Plant cookbook, host of the One Part Podcast, and all round cool lady. We talk about all the things in this episode; writing a cookbook, endometriosis, connecting people, celebrating other people's wins, and getting to the point. Plus Jessica gets the award for most crazy things you can fit into one year. We talk favourite TV (Jessica explaining Bake Off is the cutest), and she can't help but ask me a question too! 

She's back! Friend of the show Pixie Turner aka Plant Based Pixie is here to tell us about the paper she recently published on the relationship between social media use (specifically Instagram) and orthorexic tendencies. Learn what orthorexia is, how it relates to other eating disorders, the connection to social media, and why it's so tricky to treat and diagnose. We also play a round of SBS, have a LOT to say about scope of practice for professionals (nutrition & otherwise), and generally set the world to rights.

This week's guest is photographer Liz Riley - she shares her struggle with bulimia, binge/purge behaviour, and reaching rock bottom. Then when she got a handle on the purging, her eating disorder manifested itself as restriction and over-exercise. Find out how she managed to pull herself out of it with the help of intuitive eating, and changing the way she saw herself.

This week I'm joined by special guest host, Pixie Turner aka Plant Based Pixie. We're answering your questions on iron, calcium, and talking about the problem of reducing foods & diets down to their individual components. Plus we get real about what's wrong with 'Sugar Free Feb', how 'eat real' is the new 'eat clean', and stuff that went down at Fare Healthy earlier this month. Plus Pixie has a weird thing with olive oil - check it out!

Today I'm joined by weight inclusive researcher and Health at Every Size author, Dr. Linda Bacon. Linda challenges us to reassess the assumptions we hold regarding the relationship between obesity and health, and describes some of the evidence that suggests we should focus more on health behaviours and less on weight loss if we really care about people's health. This can be a challenging concept to get your heard round if you're used to the dogma that fat is bad, so I've linked to some important research papers in the show notes so you can read them for yourself. Finally, this topic is so important, please share this episode and help spread the message.

Ok team, it's time for some real talk. There's an enormous amount of privilege and a dearth of diversity in the blogging & wellness game. What gives? And why is no one speaking about it? Everyone too busy counting their macros to give a damn? Chidera and I go deep on this issue, and how it's being reflected on a global level. We also get into the business of figuring out who you are, learning to love yourself, and how your value extends wayyyy beyond how your body looks (and I would add how swole you are, how much you work out, what you eat or how much you weigh - just sayin'). Chidera is an incredible woman and this 'sode delivers so many lessons - LEAN IN AND LISTEN CAREFULLY. 

This week we're switching things up a bit and talking to designer and small business mentor Lola Hoad about how she created her own business out of necessity for her mental health and wellbeing. Plus she tells us how she gets her inner critic to STFU, and talks about the importance of self-care when you're a boss. Lola tells us about how 'busyness' is actually a sign of burnout and she gives some great advice on how to work smarter and more efficiently so you don't ever have to get to the burnout stage. 

Today I'm joined by two of the coolest dietitians in the game: Helen West & Rosie Saunt of The Rooted Project. These two are turning the wellness world on its head with their themed nutrition events that connect the public with experts; researchers, professors, registered nutritionists and dietitians. Not an Insta-celeb in sight. We talk about which credentials to look out for to make sure your nutrition info is legit, and some red flags telling you to AVOID. Plus the reason people who know relatively little about nutrition give the impression of authority, when actually real experts know the limits of their knowledge. Plus find out what they think is the most offensive nutrition myth out there. 

So if you’ve listened to the pod for a while now you'll recognise Dom & Elsie from Clean Beauty Co – these two women are really doing awesome things in the natural beauty space – their MO is to empower people to take control over what they put on their skin, so they give the recipes to all their products freely on their website. And they’re just about to release their first book which is pretty much everything they’ve learned on their natural beauty journey to help make natural beauty accessible. What I love so much about them, BS. They’re not like ‘aaargh chemicals’ or whatever other fear mongering crap a lot of other brands do; they’re just really cool, and let the products and the brand speak for themselves. Plus they’re making natural beauty not so crunchy and weird and foreign, they make it pretty dope with their sleek branding and general cool girl vibes. I recommend going back and listening to their first episode if you haven’t already – episode 8 – especially if you want more of the how tos and product recommendations and then coming back to this one for what I think is a really enlightened and evolved conversation about the industry and how they’re really moving it forward in their own way and redefining what a beauty brand is in 2017. I predict big things for these ladies, so just remember where you heard about them first!

Today I'm talking to gut health boss and all-round science babe, Dr. Megan Rossi of King's College London. We talk about her exciting career so far, then take a dive into all things gut health, focussing on IBS + Low FODMAP diets, plus pre & probiotics, fermented foods, and of course, all the science. 

I hear a lot of noise around Intuitive Eating without any real substance - "just eat more intuitively" with no understanding of the principles of intuitive eating or how to implement them. So I figured it was time for me to explain them and discuss how they'll be implemented in my Food Fight online course + community for intuitive eating. There you'll learn to ditch diets and dump emotional baggage around food for good. The course is now open for registration at laurathomasphd.co.uk/intuitive - use the code 'FOODFIGHT50' for a £50 discount. the course goes live 30th Jan 2017.