Who We Are.
Hi, I’m Jo.
I’m an eating disorder recovery coach, advocate, speaker, wife, mom of two teenage daughters and someone who knows firsthand that recovery can give you a life far bigger than the one your eating disorder allows you to imagine.
My path here wasn’t exactly linear.
For more than a decade, I built and ran a successful social media agency, helping brands find their voice, tell their stories, and connect with people. I loved the work and had an incredible run. But eventually, my own lived experience with eating disorder recovery and later experiencing recovery from an entirely different perspective within my family began pulling me toward something more personal.
I knew what it felt like to be inside an eating disorder. I also came to understand what it feels like to love someone through one. Those experiences changed the way I looked at recovery and ultimately, the work I wanted to do in the world.
So, I made a pivot.
Why Beyond Food Freedom?
I created Beyond Food Freedom because eating disorders are about so much more than food and recovery should be, too.
An eating disorder has a way of making your world smaller. It takes up mental space, steals experiences, complicates relationships and convinces you that its rules are keeping you safe.
Recovery creates room for something else.
More connection. More trust. More possibility. More of you.
As a recovery coach, my role is to meet you in the real-life moments between appointments the meal that feels impossible, the urge to return to an old behavior, the event you’re afraid to attend, or the day when recovery simply feels exhausting.
I bring lived experience, professional training, compassion, and a healthy dose of real life to this work. I’m not here to judge you, lecture you, or expect perfection. I’m here to help you strengthen the part of yourself that wants something bigger than the eating disorder.
Because recovery isn't just about getting your life back.
It’s about discovering how much more life there is to live.
How is coaching different than therapy?
Therapy focuses more on the why and underlying issues, while coaching focuses on the how and the day-to-day work of recovery. My job is to help clients reach treatment goals through real-life situations, support, appropriate challenges, and role modeling. Coaching is a complement to therapy, not a replacement for it.
As a coach, my focus is primarily on the here and now and the how of recovery. I am not there to diagnose, provide psychotherapy, or dig into underlying issues that are outside my scope. Instead, I help the client take what they are learning in treatment and actually practice it in their everyday life.
I can meet the client at the grocery store and help them buy foods they are afraid of. I can sit with them during a meal, help them through an urge to engage in a behavior, go with them to a restaurant, practice a body image exposure, or help them follow through on a goal between appointments.
I also provide accountability, encouragement, support, and appropriate challenges. I'm going to help them access their healthy self, remind them of their recovery goals, and support them while they practice doing the harder thing.
I help you take the work you are practicing in treatment and apply it to real life.