Johanna Kandel (She/Her) founded the National Alliance for Eating Disorders (formerly The Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness) after recovering from a ten-year-long battle with various eating disorders . Since founding The Alliance in October 2000, Johanna has brought information and awareness about eating disorders to hundreds of thousands of individuals nationally and internationally. In addition, she facilitates weekly support groups, mentors individuals with eating disorders and their families through their treatment and recovery, and helps thousands of people to gain information and find the help they need. As a passionate advocate for mental health and eating disorders legislation, Johanna has spent a lot of time meeting with numerous members of Congress, and was part of the first-ever Eating Disorder Roundtable at the White House.

Johanna is a proud member of the Interdepartmental Serious Mental Illness Coordinating Committee (ISMICC) Meeting under the Department of Health and Human Services, a member of the Board of Directors for the Eating Disorders Coalition, and a member of the Eating Disorders Leadership Summit. She has received many awards for her ongoing outreach and advocacy work, including the Jefferson Award for Public Service©, Academy for Eating Disorders’ Meehan/Hartley Leadership Award for Public Service &/or Advocacy, and Harlequin Enterprises’ More Than Words Award. Johanna has appeared on national television programs including NBC Nightly News and The Today Show, and profiled in the New York Times, Cosmopolitan Magazine, and Glamour Magazine.

Johanna’s book, Life Beyond Your Eating Disorder, was released by Harlequin Nonfiction in September 2010.

CLICK HERE to email Johanna.