Overeaters Anonymous: Abstinence, Fat Serenity, & Co-Dependency with Libby Supan, LMFT

In this episode of Shoulders Down Podcast, Leah talks with therapist and certified intuitive eating counselor, Libby Supan, about her 15 years in Overeaters Anonymous (OA) — and why she ultimately believes the program worsened her eating disorder rather than healed it. Libby shares how OA’s abstinence-based model, the idea of food and sugar addiction, and rigid sponsorship dynamics fueled binge eating, shame, and co-dependency. Together, Leah and Libby unpack the concept of “fat serenity,” the fatphobia embedded in the OA ethos, and why abstinence backfires. Libby also explains how eating disorder treatment and intuitive eating helped her rebuild trust with her body, move away from restriction, and find a more sustainable path to recovery. You’ll hear about: What Overeaters Anonymous (OA) is and how it works The link between abstinence, restriction, and binge eating Why the Food addiction model is inherently flawed Sponsorship, power dynamics, and co-dependency in OA -Fat serenity” & fatphobia in the OA community How Libby left OA after 15 years and found true healing How intuitive eating supports eating disorder recovery and self-trust Mentioned in the episode: https://leahkernrd.com/are-you-addict... More From Libby: https://www.libbysupan.com/ More From Leah: Listen to the podcast: https://pod.link/1616910063 Apply to 1:1 coaching: https://d7salcpkhwn.typeform.com/to/V... Enroll in my self-paced course, The Return: https://leahkernrd.com/course/?kuid=4... Check out the blog: https://leahkernrd.com/blog/ Join the LKN newsletter: https://leahkernrd.com/newsletter/ Subscribe to my personal writing Substack: https://leahkern.substack.com/ Check out my Instagram:   / leahkern.rd   Email me: [email protected] Listen to the podcast: https://pod.link/1616910063 Apply to 1:1 coaching: https://d7salcpkhwn.typeform.com/to/V... Enroll in my self-paced course, The Return: https://leahkernrd.com/course/?kuid=4... Check out the blog: https://leahkernrd.com/blog/ Join the LKN newsletter: https://leahkernrd.com/newsletter/ Subscribe to my personal writing Substack: https://leahkern.substack.com/ Check out my Instagram:   / leahkern.rd   Email me: [email protected]