In this episode, Katy sits down with Dr Rachel Evans, PhD psychologist and founder of Nourish, a private eating disorder practice. Rachel shares her own experience of developing an eating disorder during her studies, why she walked away from the NHS model entirely, and how she built a practice that actually fits the people she works with. They get into the link between perfectionism and disordered eating, the patterns she sees in ambitious women, and why knowing all the tools doesn't mean you always want to use them.
Key Takeaways:
Perfectionism and fear of failure often run on the same fuel.
Rachel's eating disorder and perfectionism fed each other throughout her studies - the fear of criticism, the need for good grades, the sense that achievement was the only thing she was good at.
There's a difference between adaptive and maladaptive perfectionism.
Adaptive perfectionists have high standards and the self-compassion to handle it when they fall short. Maladaptive perfectionists beat themselves up, or avoid doing the work entirely because it might not be perfect.
The NHS model isn't built for everyone, and Rachel built her practice around that.
Three-hour intakes, support between sessions, no mandatory weigh-ins. She knew from her own experience as a client that one size doesn't fit all, so she built something that doesn't pretend otherwise.
High-achieving women often use food control as the only place the mask comes off.
When you put everything into presenting an in-control business persona, something has to give somewhere. Rachel describes how that release can show up as binging or restricting in private, in a way that doesn't show on the outside.
Having the tools doesn't mean you always want to use them.
Rachel is a psychologist who admits she doesn't always use her own tools. Sometimes something is just rubbish and you need to sit in it for an hour first. That honesty is the point.
Connect with Rachel on Instagram @Rachel.evans.phd and download her free ebook to start understanding your relationship with food here.
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