Middle East Eating Disorders Association Podcast

Arab Representation & Community with Ricardo Karam of TAKREEM

In this episode, MEEDA's VP Carine El Khazen receives Ricardo Karam. Mr Karam is a talk-show host, public speaker, writer and advocate of promoting Arab achievement and social causes.  In 2010, Mr Karam decided to take storytelling to the next level and use it as a means of creating impact. He created TAKREEM Foundation, which aims to honor Arab accomplishments and bring Arab achievers to the forefront of the global stage.With Carine, Mr Karam discusses about:- Changing the perception of Arabs worldwide and giving hope to young Arabs through various initiatives and excellent storytelling- The importance of using our voices and our platforms to do good- The stigma of mental health in the Middle East & why sharing our struggles is collective therapy- The role of media in creating more mental health awareness - What we need to support ED patients in the Middle East- The importance of community and continuous learning in wellbeingFind Ricardo Karam on Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin via https://ricardokaram.com/Please reach out with your questions, suggestions and feedback via media@meeda.meFor your free 15 mins assessment, please visit www.meeda.me 

Shame and body dysmorphia in the Gulf region with Daloo3a Series

In this episode, MEEDA discusses women's mental health with Nadia Al Sayed. Nadia Al-Sayed is a British-Kuwaiti-Palestinian anthropologist and cultural consultant. Born and raised in North London, she spent her teenage years in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. She currently lives between London and Kuwait. Nadia recently founded ‘Daloo3a series’, a platform to discuss issues and affairs that affect women of the SWANA region, their diasporas and beyond, and raise the literacy women have on their bodies, mental health and more. Together, they discuss 3aib/shame, body image, body dysmorphia, Toxic beliefs about beauty and health and the pressure to be body positive.To find out more about Daloo3a, please follow @daloo3aseries on InstagramPlease reach out with your questions, suggestions and feedback via media@meeda.meFor your free 15 mins assessment, please visit www.meeda.me 

Caring for the Carer Testimonials - World Eating Disorder Action Day 2022 Special!

Today, 2nd June 2022, is World Eating Disorder Action Day!The theme this year is "Caring for the carer"On this occasion, the MEEDA podcast interviewed 3 carers about their experience supporting a loved one recovering from an Eating Disorder: Leila helped her sister and husband, Atul his daughter and Carrie her daughter. They bravely share their intimate stories of diagnosis, treatment and recovery, their challenges as carers, how they managed to stay strong and focused, what they would say to someone who just discovered their child/sibling/partner has an ED and what their wish would be to prevent Eating Disorders in the Middle East.The whole MEEDA team extends their deep gratitude and recovery wishes to Leila, Atul and Carrie, but also thinks, today more than ever, about all the people suffering from an Eating Disorder and those around them helping them through this ordeal.Please share, repost, talk about Eating Disorders, today even more than usual, so we can break the stigma and get more people properly diagnosed and treated. For more on awareness and pledges this World Eating Disorder Action Day, please visit: http://www.worldeatingdisordersday.org/Please reach out with your questions, suggestions and feedback via media@meeda.meFor your free 15 mins assessment, please visit www.meeda.me

Skin health, Beauty Culture and Eating Disorders with Dr Natalia Spierings

In this episode, MEEDA interviews Consultant Dermatologist and author Dr Natalia Spierings about:- Skin health and disordered eating / eating disorders- Online imagery and how it impacts our vision of beauty- Cosmetic surgery- Who to trust when it comes to skin health online- The forces at play in our feeds and what creates our beauty insecuritiesYou can find Dr Natalia Spierings via @drnataliaspierings on Instagramor via www.drnataliaspierings.com: https://drnataliaspierings.com/Dr Spierings book, Skintelligent, is available for pre-order now and out on July 7th.Please reach out with your questions, suggestions and feedback via media@meeda.meFor your free 15 mins assessment, please visit www.meeda.me

Muscularity-driven Eating Disorders in Boys & Men with Dr Jason Lavender

In this episode, MEEDA VP Carine El Khazen meets Dr Jason Lavender. Dr. Jason Lavender, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) and the Deputy Director of Research for the Military Cardiovascular Outcomes Research (MiCOR) Program with the Metis Foundation. Dr. Lavender’s research broadly focuses on elucidating risk/maintenance factors for eating and weight disorders, particularly emotion and emotion dysregulation, personality and temperament, and neurocognitive functioning. His research additionally focuses on unique factors related to the manifestation and assessment of eating disorder symptoms among boys and men, including muscularity-oriented disordered eating.Together, Carine and Dr Lavender discuss: - Dr Lavender's work in the field to advance ED detection in men and change typical female-oriented evaluation tools- Prevalence of muscularity-oriented nature ED within the male US population - American College-age men's concerns and issues around their bodies - How to draw a line between a balanced relationship with fitness/food/body & concerning behaviours that might stay under the radar if these appear as “bio-hacking” or “gaining strength/performance”- Understanding and defining bigorexia, also called reverse anorexia- The problem with unrealistic male body ideals online and how they lead boys and men to muscularity-driven ED Find Dr Jason Lavender's research via www.researchgate.net or on Twitter @drjasonlavenderPlease reach out with your questions, suggestions and feedback via media@meeda.meFor your free 15 mins assessment, please visit www.meeda.me