Regular bloggers (past and present) for The Health At Every Size® Blog are listed below. Also included are our regular contributors to the “HAES Matters” posts. Biographical information about guest bloggers appears below each individual post.
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inda Bacon, PhD, is a researcher on the inside track of weight regulation science – a scientist whose three graduate degrees, research, and clinical expertise uniquely prepare her to understand and translate the physiological, psychological, and socio-cultural underpinnings of weight control. An internationally recognized authority on weight and health, Dr. Bacon has published her work in top scientific journals as well as the highly acclaimed popular press book, Health at Every Size: The Surprising Truth About Your Weight.
Deb Burgard, PhD, a psychologist specializing in eating disorders and sexuality, is one of the founders of the Health at Every Size® (HAES®) approach. Deeply interested in both stigma and body image, and how people find ways to cherish the bodies they were taught to distrust, she uses these lessons in her clinical work with people suffering from various forms of body estrangement. She has written and done research on these topics and co-chairs the HAES® SIG for the Academy for Eating Disorders, serves on ASDAH’s Public Policy Committee, and on NAAFA’s Advisory Board.
Jenny Copeland, PsyD, is a licensed psychologist and licensed professional counselor working with Ozark Center in Southwest Missouri. Dr. Copeland has conducted studies on weight stigma among healthcare providers, and developed programming rooted in the Health At Every Size® model to guide others toward positive lifestyle improvements. Her work has earned awards including the Research and Evaluation Fellowship at The School of Professional Psychology at Forest Institute and the inaugural NAAFA Health At Every Size Scholar Award. Dr. Copeland currently serves as the chair of ASDAH’s Education Committee. You can find Dr. Copeland on Twitter at @DrJennyCopeland.
Jeanette DePatie (The Fat Chick), MA, ACE, is a certified aerobics instructor, personal trainer and veteran fitness professional with over 10 years experience training students of all sizes, shapes ages and abilities. Using techniques gleaned as a teacher, producer, marketing professional, wife, musician, marathoner and triathlete, DePatie specializes in creating fitness programs that allow students to feel successful the first time and every time they participate. Ms. DePatie has held fitness certifications from the YMCA, ACE and AFAA. She is author of the newly released book and DVD The Fat Chick Works Out! Jeanette previously the Vice President of ASDAH. See her website The Fat Chick (www.thefatchick.com) for more information.
Fall Ferguson, JD, MA, is the Program Chair of the Health Education Program at John F. Kennedy University in Pleasant Hill, California. She teaches courses on health policy, community health, health coaching, educational methods, and body acceptance, among other subjects. Fall served as the President of ASDAH from 2012 through 2015, and currently chairs ASDAH’s Public Policy Committee.
Amy Herskowitz, MSc is a senior program consultant in Ontario’s Public Service, in Toronto, Canada. For the past 10+ years, she has worked specifically in adult mental health program implementation and health service resolution for children and youth with complex, special needs. Her work in these areas have afforded her opportunities to witness both the gaps, and pockets of excellence in the province’s health and social service sectors, hone negotiation and stakeholder management skills, and develop political acuity to act strategically, appropriately and responsively in critical situations. Joining ASDAH in 2007 was a logical choice for her, since her work experience and graduate research prior to government was focused specifically in the area of eating disorders. She was the primary contact for individuals in crisis or in search of information, referrals and support at the National Eating Disorder Information Centre for five years and spent eight years facilitating a free support group for women in north Toronto who struggle with disordered eating, self-harm, and histories of abuse and trauma.
Marsha Hudnall, MS, RDN, CD, is a registered dietitian and co-owner and president of Green Mountain at Fox Run, a pioneering women’s health retreat in Vermont. Green Mountain was founded over 40 years ago to help women stop dieting and learn how to truly take care of themselves regardless of their body size. A voice of reason for the last three decades in helping people move away from weight loss diets, Marsha speaks frequently and has written extensively for the public and professionals about the impact of dieting on eating behaviors, including binge eating and emotional eating. She serves on the boards of the Center for Mindful Eating and the Binge Eating Disorder Association. You can find Marsha on her website as well as on Twitter @MarshaHudnall and Green Mountain’s page on Facebook.
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Judith Matz, LCSW, is co-author of two books on the topics of eating and weight issues: The Diet Survivors Handbook: 60 Lessons in Eating, Acceptance and Self-Care and Beyond a Shadow of a Diet: The Therapist’s Guide to Treating Compulsive Eating. She is the director of the Chicago Center for Overcoming Overeating, Inc. and has a private practice in Skokie, IL. Judith is a frequent presenter at local and national conferences. Descriptions of her work have appeared in the media including the LA Times, Fitness, Good Housekeeping, Self, Shape, Today’s Dietitian, Diabetes Self-Management, Psychotherapy Networker, and NBC News Chicago with Nesita Kwan, and she appears in the documentary America The Beautiful 2.
Michelle May, MD, is a recovered yo-yo dieter and the founder of the award-winning Am I Hungry?® Mindful Eating Workshops and Facilitator Training Program. She is the author of Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat: How to Break Your Eat-Repent-Repeat Cycle that guides readers to eat fearlessly and mindfully. Michelle has been featured on the Discovery Health Channel and Dr. Oz and quoted in Body+Soul, CNN Health, Self, TIME.com, US News & World Report, Vim & Vigor, Washington Post, WebMD, Woman’s Day, and others.
Jonathan Robison, PhD, MS, holds a doctorate in health education/exercise physiology and a master of science in human nutrition from Michigan State University where he is Adjunct Assistant Professor. Dr. Robison is also Adjunct Associate Professor at Western Michigan University where he teaches in the Holistic Health Care Program. He has authored numerous articles on a variety of health-related topics and is a frequent presenter at national and international conferences. He has served as co-editor of the journal Health At Every Size and has been helping people with weight and eating-related concerns for more than 20 years.
Dana Schuster, MS, is a Health & Fitness Instructor with a Masters in Rehabilitation Counseling. She co-taught the Kaiser Permanente Great Shape exercise class for thirteen years, co-founded Women of Substance Health Spa (open 1997-2001), and currently teaches exercise classes at Every Woman Health Club in Redwood City, California. Since 2005, Dana has been involved in School Wellness Policy development and implementation as an avid promoter of the Health At Every Size® model. She is the married mother of two adult (and fabulous) sons, has a terrific daughter-in-law, and prefers to describe herself as a “Freelance Agitator & Advocate for Integrity.” She is currently the Vice President of ASDAH, chairing the Internal Policy Committee and serving on the membership and blog committees.
Dr. Deah Schwartz, clinician, educator, and author, specializes in Expressive Arts Therapies, Eating Disorders and Body Image. Deah is the author of Dr. Deah’s Calmanac: Your Interactive Monthly Guide for Cultivating a Positive Body Image, co-author of the NAAFA award-winning Off-Broadway play Leftovers and its companion DVD/Workbook Set, and author of the syndicated blog Dr. Deah’s Tasty Morsels. An outspoken “New Yawkuh,” Deah now resides in Oakland, California and has a private practice. Deah believes it is everyone’s responsibility to point out and eliminate size discrimination even when it means battling the mainstream media, healthcare professionals, and well-meaning family members or co-workers. To find out more about Dr. Deah’s work or to book a session, visit her website at www.drdeah.com.
Jessica Wilson, MS RD, is the owner of My Kitchen Dietitian, LLC, a dietetic practice devoted to the HAES® principles. She sees private clients in the San Francisco Bay Area, and has expertise in helping those healing from chronic dieting, eating disorders and disordered eating. She assists clients in regaining trust of and appreciation for their bodies by using mindfulness and movement. She has a keen interest in how the concepts of health, fat oppression, thin privilege, and size acceptance are influenced by different socio-cultural experiences and identities. To expand the HAES conversation about intersectionality, she runs a monthly discussion for people of color in the Bay Area.
