On-Demand Course: Autism and Eating Disorders: Dying to be Thin

Description

Course Description:

Autism traits are high amongst people with Eating Disorders (ED) and many people that experience EDs may have diagnosed or undiagnosed autism. Despite the high prevalence, autistic neurology is not often accounted for in the ED treatment process. This results in many autistics being misunderstood and underlying needs overlooked—ultimately leading to unsuccessful treatment outcomes. This course will provide attendees with an overview of what the most current literature says about the intersection of autism and eating disorders and why understanding the autistic neurology is vital to successful ED treatment outcomes. Multiple ideas on how to adapt commonly used ED treatment strategies to accommodate the autistic neurology will be shared. Throughout,  Kim will detail her lived experiences of being autistic and having an eating disorder (anorexia purging subtype) for almost 2 decades. She will discuss dangers that occur when autism neurology is overlooked and how to work through autism traits to get into eating disorder recovery. During the talk, Kim shares personal accounts including:

1. How her ED developed
2. Learning how to differentiate between autism traits and eating disorder symptoms
3. Treatment challenges and ways to address them
4. Strategies to address ED and ASD symptoms and symptom overlaps
5. Self-made tools to work with autism differences while addressing eating disorder symptoms.

If you are ready to expand your knowledge regarding the intersection of autism and eating disorders and how to better help those affected, register today. We look forward to seeing you in the course!

Who this course is for:

• You are serving clients with ED
• You are an Occupational Therapy Practitioner, Nutritionist, Educator, Mental Health Provider, Speech and Language Pathologist, Behaviorist, or Caregiver who wants to help clients be better understood and supported.
• You have autism and an eating disorder
• You have a family member or friend with autism and an eating disorder
• You are interested in learning more about the intersection of autism and ED
• You want to remain on the cutting edge of practice and follow what the research states as the best evidence-based approach for supporting clients with ED

So, who are we?:

We are Kim Clairy and Kelly Mahler and have become fast friends since meeting at a conference 3 years ago. We love collaborating and have joined together for many different opportunities including writing articles, developing materials for large grant projects, co-speaking at international conferences and doing co-interviews for podcasts. If you ever eavesdrop on our private discussions you would quickly find that there is almost never a quiet moment. We share so much passion for the work we do together and our ideas are endless. Now only if we could find more time in the day to execute all of these ideas!

More about Kim: Kim graduated from Brenau University with a master’s in occupational therapy (OT). As an adult, she was diagnosed with autism (ASD). Kim learned to break through many personal and societal barriers, including navigating the healthcare system with ASD and an eating disorder (ED). Her experiences forged a passion for educating others about when these conditions intersect with the hope of helping give voice to those unable to articulate their inner worlds. Now in recovery, she is an autism advocate, international speaker, writer, and private consultant. Using personal and professional experiences Kim educates on many facets of autism across the life-span including eating disorders, trauma, mental health, ADHD, intimacy, relationships, self-awareness, problem-solving through challenging behaviors, and much more!