Julia Besner, Dietitan and Mental Health Therapist

03/05/2026

I am happy and proud to share, that I am now able to practice as a Licensed Counselling Therapist in New Brunswick. This has been a very long journey, with much personal growth, self-reflection and a healthy dose of self-doubt. I felt like my professional development as a Dietitian had stalled, especially when it came to eating disorder care. I knew, there was more I had to learn to close a gap between helping clients cope with an eating disorder vs overcoming it and reconnecting with life.
After being in practice as an intern for almost one year, I feel assured that I took the right turn in my journey, and that I am able to help fill a significant gap in eating disorder care in NB.
Thank you to my past and present clients who taught me so much, and thank you to my mentors and loved ones for all their support along the way.

02/18/2026

A free workshop for parents and caregivers/carepartners of individuals with an eating disorder.

The Eating Disorder Foundation of NL is offering an Emotion Focused Family Therapy Workshop for Families and Caregivers next month.

For more information, contact maureen@edfnl.ca

02/12/2026

Folks spend so much time/ resources "fighting" diabetes, we don't realize that the lifetime prevalence of eating disorders (ED) is actually higher than diabetes (DM). And so many of the behaviors encouraged in DM contribute to ED risk.

When people think of eating disorders in diabetes, most folks think it only applies to those with type 1. The reality is that the rate of EDs are far higher in those with type 2 diabetes. Due to providers not knowing what questions to ask, making assumptions, and encouraging restriction, EDs get missed and even promoted. Binge eating, night eating, atypical anorexia, and EDNOS are common!

--> Binge eating is not due to "lack of control." It is fueled by dietary restriction, excessive cognitive restraint (guilt / shame), emotion dysregulation / coping response, and elevated insulin levels (in folks with insulin resistance). Encouraging restriction exacerbates condition (and makes people feel like crap about themselves).

--> Atypical anorexia is not someone with "great control." It is a mental health condition not dependent on BMI, fueled by fear, guilt, and shame related to food, body, and movement. It shows up as fear of weight gain / obsession with weight loss, dietary restriction, and sometimes compulsive movement.

As professionals, please ask questions before you "congratulate" or make assumptions:
* How do you feel about your body?
* Have you experienced any weight changes? Has anything changed in your life? (I can't tell you how many clients have been "congratulated" for weight loss secondary to depression, anxiety, grief, anorexia)
* How do you feel about movement?
* How often are you eating?
* How often do you ever feel "out of control" when you eat?
* How often do you feel guilt or shame for what or how you eat?
* How often do you feel like you are unable to eat what you want or need due to financial concerns or transportation challenges?
* How do you feel about hunger?

Folks, if you work in diabetes, you are seeing folks with eating disorders, whether or not you realize it. Please learn the signs, symptoms, and how to support so you can help, not harm.

End rant. References in comments :)

12/22/2025

12/04/2025

07/07/2025

Julia has had some spots open up!

Julia is part of our low-cost therapy program and has a fee of only $40 per session. With her decades of experience prior to becoming a graduate student, Julia has a unique, experiential understanding that helps guide her when providing effective care for her clients.

For more information, or to book, reach out to info@seenheardfound.cc or book at this link:

https://seenheardfound.janeapp.com/locations/chesley-drive/book #/staff_member/12

05/12/2025

New beginnings 😊

Have you ever wanted to try counselling/therapy, but the cost to find a counsellor that is right for you doesn't fit your budget?

Julia, our newest team member is offering 6 free sessions to 6 people! This is an opportunity to really decide if your counsellor is a good fit for you.

Head on over to https://seenheardfound.cc/promotions or message us at info@seenheardfound.cc today!

04/03/2025

My availability will be significantly reduced in the coming months. If you are interested in working with me, I can either:
1) Add you to my wait list, or
2) Help you get connected to another provider.

04/03/2025

We’ve been sold this idea that shrinking is strength. That control is found in eating less. That our worth is tied to our size.

But who is benefitting from that narrative?

Because eating less does not make us more powerful—it makes us weaker. It steals our focus, our energy, our sense of self. It keeps us small in every way.

Real power isn’t in deprivation. It’s in nourishment. In listening to your body. In reclaiming your energy, your clarity, your truth.

You were never meant to live a life half-fed or half-satisfied.

I know it’s hard when the world is invested in the opposite narrative. I know it’s hard to feel at home in a body when it feels like you’re being promised something else.

I also know that shifting this narrative doesn’t just shift our experience — it will change the course of the our culture. We have to stop equating restriction and smallness with success. We have to disrupt the passing down of these beliefs. We have to remember: true power comes from honoring, not depriving, our body.♥️

What do you remind yourself on hard body days? Do you have a simple word or sentence that helps? I’d love to hear it in the comments.🙏🏼

03/17/2025

02/26/2025

Great points on when behaviours are disordered?

01/02/2025

Here is to a kind and calm 2025. Happy new Year! 🥳