The New Maudsley Approach - Support Eating Disorder Carers with Jenny Langley
"We felt like we were in this great big bath and somebody had pulled out the plug – we were just being sucked down and there was nothing we could do about it".
In this week's episode, Hannah is joined by Jenny Langley, an advocate in the eating disorder community. After supporting her son through anorexia 20 years ago, Jenny has dedicated her life to making sure families feel informed, empowered, and never alone.
For over 15 years, Jenny has worked with the Eating Disorders Research team at the Institute of Psychiatry and is trained in the New Maudsley Model, where she now coaches carers, trains clinicians, and delivers practical skills workshops. She is co-author of the New Maudsley Skills-Based Training Manual and writer of Boys Get Anorexia Too, a book that has helped countless families feel seen.
This week, we discuss:
- What it’s really like to support a child through anorexia as a parent
- The shock, guilt, shame many carers describe
- Early inpatient treatment, trauma, and learning on the job as a family
- The New Maudsley approach for supporting family dynamics
- The animal metaphors (rhino, kangaroo, jellyfish, terrier, ostrich, dolphins, St Bernard)
- Why carers’ self-care isn’t selfish, it’s essential
- The unique role of dads and male carers
- Relapse, “safety behaviours” and why recovery often looks more like discovery
Carers matter. Families matter. And with the right support, they can be powerful allies in recovery – not by being perfect, but by staying, learning and loving through the mess.
Timestamps:
01:20 – Jenny’s Story
05:30 – Emotions Felt By Parents and Carers
11:00 – Externalising the eating disorder as “Rex”
16:40 –The New Maudsley Approach
28:20 – Animal Metaphors and Carer Styles
41:00 – Treatment Trauma, NG Feeding and Post-Discharge
55:10 – Dads, Male Carers and Keeping Communication open
Resources & Links
- Connect with Jenny visit her website
Connect with Us:
- Subscribe to the Full of Beans Podcast here
- Follow Full of Beans on Instagram here
- Check out our website here
- Listen on YOUTUBE here
⚠️ Trigger Warning: Mentions of eating disorders. Please take care when listening.
If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and share the podcast to help us spread awareness.
Sending positive beans your way, Han 💛
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