Open help menu
Live Webinar

You Don’t Have to Know Someone to Be Heard: The Power of Peer Support in Eating Disorder Recovery: NJCA Eating Disorder Awareness Week

Sarah Callazzo
|

Pricing

Information

Date & Time

Description

Eating disorders thrive in isolation — and many people struggling aren’t ready or able to ask for help from those closest to them. This webinar explores the unique power of peer support and why being heard by someone outside of your immediate circle can feel safer, lighter, and more accessible. Drawing from lived experience, professional training, and the creation of a national peer-support helpline, this session unpacks the realities of eating disorder recovery, the limitations of traditional support systems, and the impact of compassionate, nonjudgmental listening. Participants will also be introduced to the thought of "what you look like is the least interesting thing about you" and Love, A Stranger, a nonprofit working to ensure no one has to face an eating disorder alone.

Learning Objectives

Participants will be able to:

  • Identify common emotional and psychological barriers that prevent individuals from seeking help for eating disorders

  • Describe the role of peer support and why support from a “stranger” can sometimes feel safer than support from loved ones

  • Recognize how listening without fixing, advising, or judging can be a powerful tool in recovery

  • Explore ways communities, campuses, and individuals can reduce isolation and create more accessible pathways to support

Educational Goal

The educational goal of this workshop is to identify the role of peer support in eating disorder recovery, explain how peer-based, nonjudgmental listening can reduce isolation and barriers to help-seeking, and recognize the limitations of traditional support systems. Participants will also describe lived-experience–informed approaches to recovery, including reframing appearance-focused narratives, and summarize peer-support models such as national helplines and nonprofit initiatives designed to increase access to support.

Target Audience

  • Addiction Professional
  • Counselor
  • Marriage & Family Therapist
  • Psychologist
  • Social Worker

Presenters

Sarah Callazzo
Sarah Callazzo is a public speaker, author, and the founder of Love, A Stranger, a peer-support helpline for individuals struggling with eating disorders and body image. With lived experience in recovery and a background in social work, Sarah is passionate about creating spaces where support feels human, accessible, and rooted in connection. She travels nationwide speaking to college students about recovery, resilience, and the power of showing up for one another.

Financially Sponsored By

  • New Jersey Counseling Association (NJCA)