Welcome back to This Person I Met! My name is Kayla and I’m the host of this podcast.

Tucked in a quiet corner of Ann Arbor, Michigan, The Safehouse is a refuge for any who may be facing intimate partner violence. At the head of the Safehouse is Christine Watson, who has long been an advocate for the protection and understanding of victims of domestic abuse, sexual assault, and other forms of intimate partner violence. Despite resources like The Safehouse being readily available, many misunderstandings still plague our knowledge of how to approach victims, a topic that Christine and I dive into as she discusses the careful intersection between gender, race, sexuality, and more when it comes to her work. How do you ensure all feel heard, no matter their story and background? Can you acknowledge all sides of a spectrum while still realizing that one demographic may be disproportionately affected? How do you make room for nuance in a topic as sensitive as intimate partner violence? In this episode, Christine and I discuss how she navigates her own understanding of her work and its intricacies, and more importantly, how we can change the conversation surrounding intimate partner violence to better help those without a voice.

Without further ado, here’s Christine.

Welcome back to This Person I Met! My name is Kayla, and I'm the host of this podcast.

Following Judith, the founder of Center for Eating Disorders in Ann Arbor who starred in the previous segment, it seemed as if new perspectives could be incorporated in order to gain a better understanding of the increasingly prevalent issue at hand: disordered eating.

While many may know textbook knowledge based on internet think pieces and middle school health classes, it is all too often that when we are faced with helping someone struggling with an eating disorder, we do not know what to do. People cannot be read like articles on the internet or vague social media posts. Unfortunately, they cannot be treated and supported simply based on the quotes you see when you google “what to say if my loved one might be struggling with an eating disorder.” Eating disorders are different for everybody. Some may want advice and a shoulder to lean on during worse episodes. Some may just want an ear to listen. For parents of children with eating disorders, the issue of how to spot, help, and alleviate becomes increasingly difficult as they try to grapple with the nuance of the situation and the individuality of their child.

In this segment, a parent will share their perspective on how an eating disorder made its way into their daughter and the aftermath of its destruction.

Welcome back to This Person I Met! My name is Kayla, and I’m the host of this podcast.

About 28.8 million Americans are currently affected by an eating disorder. That’s about 9% of the entire US population. And yet, nobody seems to truly understand what they are unless they actually struggle with one. Even then, stigma prevents many from ever reaching out and seeking support, or even realizing that they might have one. As you’ll be able to tell by my comments during this segment, the topic of eating disorders is a little personal to me. Not because I suffered from one, but because one of my close family members did, which eventually led to her hospitalization. And so, this episode is dedicated to one simple question: defining an eating disorder. Talking to Judith Banker, the founder and president of Center for Eating Disorders in Ann Arbor, Michigan, felt like I was in a counseling session myself. Even as somebody who witnessed the spiral in somebody else in such close proximity, I quickly realized through our conversation that the complexity of an eating disorder is not something that can quickly be unpacked. Today, I still struggle to understand what happened to my family member and why it did. Despite this complexity, it remains ever important for further treatment, research, and support to be developed for the millions that need it. Treatment is a necessity for saving millions of lives, people that could potentially be your parent, sibling, or neighbor…eating disorders do not discriminate, and they are unafraid to tear through one’s life and harm them in ways that are still misunderstood.

Without further ado, here’s Judith.