Today I’m joined by Julia, my former 1-1 coaching client and now my right-hand person behind the scenes at Liv Label Free! In this episode, Julia shares her story for the first time: from feeling misunderstood and struggling within the healthcare system to finding clarity, self-understanding, and a completely different way of relating to herself. Together, we talk about eating disorder treatment, neurodivergence, and what actually creates lasting change.

Key Topics Discussed:

• Julia’s journey and how she and Livia ended up working together
• Why traditional treatment often doesn’t work for neurodivergent people
• What MFT (Multi Family Therapy) is, and why it felt traumatizing for Julia
• The moment Julia discovered she’s autistic
• Why autonomy is so important for neurodivergent people in eating disorder recovery
• How 1-1 coaching with Livia changed everything for Julia

🫶 Work with Livia: https://www.livlabelfree.com/coaching

📚 Buy Livia’s books: https://livlabelfreebooks.com/

💗 Find us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/livlabelfree/ and https://www.instagram.com/juuls_healingjourney/

Most eating disorder professionals overlook autism. Yet even if they do recognize it, there’s a gap in understanding the nuances of just how autistic traits intertwine with eating disorder behaviors. For this reason, many autistic people are invalidated, traumatized, and stamped with countless labels including “hopeless,” “manipulative,” and “too complex” while trying to get help for their eating disorder(s). Just like me, they’re often told they’re never going to get better and that they’ll just have to “manage” an ED for the rest of their life.

If you or someone you care for is currently struggling with food, exercise, and their body, I’m here to tell you from the start that full recovery is 100% possible for ANYONE. But here’s the catch: you have to want it. In this episode, I share my story growing up undiagnosed autistic, how this led to the development of an eating disorder, and what I did to tip the scales (no pun intended) from being terrified of recovery to actually WANTING to do whatever it took to find freedom from my eating disorder.

It goes without saying that there’s only so much I can cover in a podcast episode, so if you want to dive even deeper into the complex connection between autism and eating disorders, be sure to grab a copy of my book Rainbow Girl: https://www.livlabelfree.com/rainbowgirl

Want to discover your unique version of neurodiversity-affirming freedom? Save your seat in the Autistically ED-Free Academy: https://www.livlabelfree.com/group

Blog post of this episode: https://www.livlabelfree.com/blog/autism-and-anorexia-my-ed-recovery-story

In this episode of the Liv Label Free Podcast, Livia discusses demand avoidance in autism and how it can influence eating behaviors and eating disorder recovery. She explains what Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) is, why basic needs like eating can sometimes feel like overwhelming demands, and how this can lead to avoidance around food and eating disorder treatment.

Livia also explores the shift from viewing PDA as “pathological” to understanding it as a Pervasive Drive for Autonomy, highlighting why language and perspective matter. Finally, she shares practical strategies for caregivers and individuals to support recovery in ways that respect autonomy, reduce pressure, and foster collaboration.

🌈 The Autistically ED-Free Academy is open! Save your seat here: www.livlabelfree.com/group
📚 Rainbow Girl: A Memoir of Autism and Anorexia: www.livlabelfree.com/rainbowgirl

Family-Based Therapy (FBT) is often hailed as the “evidence based” and “gold standard” treatment approach for anorexia patients. However, FBT can be severely traumatic for autistic individuals. In today’s episode of the Liv Label Free Podcast, Livia explores the harm of FBT, including theft of autonomy (especially harmful for individuals with PDA!) and the danger of prioritizing weight gain above all other aspects of eating disorder recovery.

Livia also discusses how the core principles of FBT can unintentionally increase distress for neurodivergent individuals, whose eating disorders are often tied to needs for predictability, safety, and autonomy. Through both lived experience and insights from working with families, she highlights why one-size-fits-all treatment models may fall short and why more neurodiversity-affirming approaches are needed.

🌈 The Autistically ED-Free Academy is open! Save your seat here: www.livlabelfree.com/group
📚 Rainbow Girl: A Memoir of Autism and Anorexia: www.livlabelfree.com/rainbowgirl

Season 3 of the Autistically ED-Free Academy is OPEN! 🎉 In this special group podcast, previous Academy participants share their experiences, including:

• Why traditional eating disorder treatments can be traumatizing
• How respecting autistic traits transformed parent-child relationships and saved lives
• What it looks like to unmask and discover who you are beyond the eating disorder identity
• How reframing eating disorders as “adaptations” creates compassion instead of shame
• The power of authentic connection with people who truly understand you and your loved ones

If you’re ready for an approach that helps you rebuild trust by honoring neurodivergence, save your seat in the Academy today 👉 www.livlabelfree.com/group

This is one of my favorite conversations on PDA to date! Livia Sara and Allyson Inez Ford sit down to discuss the connection between demand avoidance and eating disorders in neurodivergent folks, highlighting the importance of autonomy and purpose on the discovery journey.

Key Topics Discussed:

• Why traditional eating disorder treatment fails people with PDA
• The need for meaning and purpose beyond abstract recovery goals like “food freedom”
• How eating disorders create boundaries in a boundless world and serve as distractions from existential overwhelm
• Why shifting “recovery” to “discovery” helps remove the pressure that healing has to look a certain way
• How the “why” for discovery must be self-defined, not externally imposed

📚 Read my books! https://livlabelfreebooks.com
💗 Work with Livia: https://www.livlabelfree.com/coaching
🌿 Work with Allyson: https://www.eatingdisorderocdtherapy.com/

In this vulnerable episode, Liv opens up about how her OCD has resurfaced since moving back home. Liv and Sharon also discuss how traditional treatments for OCD and eating disorders fail neurodivergent people when the approach isn’t person-centered.

📚 Read my books! https://livlabelfreebooks.com
💌 Sign up for my newsletter! https://livlabelfree.com/join
👯 Liv Label Free Membership: https://livlabelfree.com/membership

My episode on Sharon’s podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CUp3I6AqyQ

Connect with Livia: https://www.livlabelfree.com/contact
Connect with Sharon: https://www.instagram.com/unmaskingsocial1/

How much of your existence is shrouded in resistance?

Something a lot of us gifted autistics feel resistance towards is the needs of the human body.

Food, water, sleep, bathroom…

Every bodily demand feels like an interruption, a violation of autonomy. As Kathi shared in today’s group podcast, her father literally says “I want to decide when I want to eat. I don't want my body to tell me when to eat!”

If you have PDA (officially “Pathological Demand Avoidance” but I prefer the term “Pervasive Drive for Autonomy”), rejecting bodily needs is an attempt to preserve autonomy.

Through this lens, the eating disorder – the ultimate rejection of bodily needs – can almost be seen as an extreme manifestation of PDA.

Of course, the paradox is that the ED itself is a violation of autonomy…because when your every next move is decided by the ED force, well you ain’t so much “in control” anymore, eh?

In today’s episode of the Liv Label Free Podcast, we dive DEEP into eating disorders and PDA, as well as:

• How diagnoses help validate our struggles
• Intergenerational patterns of resisting bodily needs
• Why mental hunger is a legitimate hunger signal (Kathi shares a great metaphor!)
• Franz Kafka’s “A Hunger Artist” and existential loneliness
• Why recovery requires surrender before proof

I know how “claustrophobic” it can feel to be an infinite soul contained in a human body costume. But as I’ve been reminding myself lately, suffering is amplified by resisting what is.

XO Liv

P.S. Want to join these live group calls and connect with other neurodivergent beings on this discovery journey? The Liv Label Free Membership includes 3x monthly group calls, 24/7 WhatsApp support, my extreme hunger course, continued access to the Autistically ED-Free Academy, and hours of previously recorded coaching calls. 🌈 Join the Autistically ED-Free Membership: https://www.livlabelfree.com/membership

🎙️ Listen to my free audiotraining on Autism and Eating Disorders https://www.livlabelfree.com/free-audiotraining