In this episode of the ALIGN33 Media Clinical Roundtable, host Robyn Shumer is joined by four clinicians — Sondra Kronberg, MS, RD, CEDS-C; Ilene V. Fishman, LCSW-R, ACSW, FAED; Hayley Charles, MS, PLPC; and Tara Wells, LCSW-QS — for a conversation about identity, recovery, and what happens when someone has spent years being known primarily as a patient.
The panel explores how repeated treatment can shape identity, why recovery can feel frightening even when someone deeply wants it, and how clinicians can help people build a sense of self beyond symptoms, diagnoses, appointments, and body image. The conversation also covers treatment fatigue, the impact of labels like “chronic” or “treatment resistant,” the role of family and support systems, and the unique challenges athletes face when self-worth becomes tied to performance.
At its core, the episode asks a question that is both simple and deeply complex: if your eating disorder is no longer defining you, what do you want your life to be about?
This episode is presented in partnership with Balancing Act: Life and Struggles of a Teenage Girl, a mental health and wellness podcast made for teens, by a teen.
Originally published on morgandiprimo.substack.com.
