Welcome to this episode of NeurospicED, Eating Disorders Neurodiversity Australia’s podcast.

Our 10th episode features Kai Schweizer (they/he). Kai is a qualified sexologist with interests in sexuality, gender, and trans health. They were working as a youth worker before starting a PhD recently at the University of Western Australia in Perth.

During this episode, Kai shares their experiences related to being a trans individual and receiving a late AuDHD identification (Autism and ADHD combined), and how these have influenced their eating disorder journey. Kai was initially diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and their disordered eating behaviours have been misattributed to this diagnosis instead of an eating disorder. As such, Kai’s eating disorder diagnosis (avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder/ARFID) was delayed. However, Kai was able to find neurodiversity-affirming healthcare providers that have helped him tremendously. Kai also expresses how much being diagnosed as neurodivergent has been instrumental in gaining the level of self-awareness and self-acceptance that are particularly crucial for eating disorder recovery.

We would like to remind you that this episode discusses topics that may be distressing for some. Therefore, we would like to emphasise the importance of accessing support services if required:

- The Butterfly Foundation helpline: 1800 33 4673

- The Beyond Blue helpline: 1300 22 4636

- Call 000 in an emergency

Music extracts: Illenium, Fractures ©