PDA Society Q&A Live – Eating Challenges and PDA

The PDA Society is delighted to be able to offer a series of live Q&A sessions on different topics to support PDA people and their families.

Join us for a live Q&A session exploring the complex relationship between eating challenges, and Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA).

This Q&A will take place on Thursday 16th October, 8 - 9pm

Our guest speakers for this event will be:

Asher Jenner

Asher has experienced major mental health issues, including an eating disorder where she became extremely ill and needed a 14 month stay in an inpatient eating disorder unit after being classed as life in danger. She’s experienced a devasting lack of support and it wasn’t until she entered Ellern Mede that this improved. She is well into her recovery now and beginning a career as an inclusive dance teacher, giving dance classes to younger children with additional needs. Asher now supports Ellern Mede hospitals and trains in PDA and eating disorders in combination. This knowledge is now being used to help others. She’s also been involved in the writing of a self-help book for Autistic teenagers with eating issues, she’s assisted her local NHS to improve their care for Autistic and PDA youngsters and been nominated for awards for volunteering and helping others.

James Harrison – Lead Nurse for Autism at the Ellern Mede Group (https://ellernmede.org/). James is a Registered Learning Disabilities Nurse and dual qualified as a Social Worker. He has worked with autistic people for 17 years initially as a support worker in a residential school for autistic children with behaviour, and communication challenges. This led James to study further concentrating all elective studies on Autism. Since qualification in 2013 James has worked in a range of settings from Low and Medium secure hospitals, a Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit for Adolescents and within the Prison service, each role adding to his experience with Autism until he moved to Ellern Mede. Initially working at their Moorgate Hospital in Rotherham, James identified that there was a gap in services working with young autistic people. In addition to this, James worked with a small number of patients who also had a PDA profile of autism. James works hard to improve knowledge and understanding of both Autism and PDA across the group whilst working directly with young autistic people who are struggling with eating disorders.

This session will provide insight into how demand avoidance, sensory sensitivities, anxiety, and autonomy needs can all contribute to eating difficulties in PDAers – and offer practical guidance on how to respond supportively.

What to Expect:

• Live answers to your questions from experienced guest speakers
• Practical suggestions for home, school, or care settings
• A safe, supportive space to reflect and share experiences

Whether you're a parent, carer, educator, or professional, this session will help you better understand the unique dynamics around food, eating, and demand in PDAers.

Note: This is not a formal clinical training, but a live, informal session designed to answer your questions and offer practical insights.

Questions:

Do you have a question you’d like to ask our guest speakers? We’d love to hear from you. Please share your question when you register, that way when we download attendee list the questions will be submitted as they register.

We’ll answer as many as we can during the session. If time allows, there may be an opportunity for live questions – but sending yours in advance is the best way to make sure it’s included.

Whether you’re new to PDA or looking to deepen your understanding, this is a chance to hear real stories, learn together, and connect with others.

This event will be warm, informal and inclusive. You can join in as much or as little as you like – there’s no pressure to have your camera or mic on.

Reserve your place now and receive a reminder before we go live.

It may not be possible to answer all questions depending on the numbers attending and the amount of questions asked. Also it won’t be possible to answer specific questions on personal situations within these Q&A sessions – if you require support please contact our support team:

Recording:

The Q&As will be recorded and you will be registered for our training hub after the session to access the recording. You will then have access to the recording for 14 days.

For privacy and confidentiality, please don’t share personal information in your questions.

Cost:

£6 a ticket for Q&A live including recording access (plus Eventbrite fees).

You will be able to enable captions during the session, however if you have any additional needs that may require assistance, please do let us know at the time of booking so that we can discuss arrangements in advance.

After booking please remember to check your e-mail (messages may be forwarded to your spam/junk folder) for a confirmation receipt from Eventbrite sharing a link for registration.

For greater reliability and functionality we recommend selecting the 'join via Zoom' tab. Eventbrite will also send reminders prior to the session taking place.

Please join the Zoom webinar 5-10 minutes prior to the start time to check your technology is working as we’re unable to delay the start, due to the number of delegates we anticipate attending.

Please also familiarise yourself with both the chat and Q&A function so that you can ask questions.

Please note:

• We are unable to refund tickets (Eventbrite fee is non-refundable) within 7 days of the event taking place or make transfers to a different course within 24 hours of the start date.

• If you have any additional needs that may require assistance during the session, please do let us know at the time of booking, in order that we can discuss arrangements in advance. Thank you.

• All content and slide decks shared as supporting materials are copyright PDA Society and are for personal use of the course attendees only. They may not be replicated or shared outside of the training session or be used to provide training delivered outside of the PDA Society

• FAO iOS users: In Oct 2023 Apple issued new App Store Guidelines that limits registrations for paid online events on the Eventbrite Attendee app. This means that while attendees can view paid online events on Eventbrite’s iOS app, attendees may need to purchase their ticket from a web browser on desktop or mobile. Please use the Event URL below to purchase your ticket if you are unable to do so via the Eventbrite App. This is out of our control however we do apologise for any inconvenience caused by the changes to Apple’s guidelines. link to event: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1480272487859

• The PDA Society reserves the right to substitute published speakers should unforeseen circumstances arise. Any education, legislation or healthcare practices discussed are related to England and delegates joining from other locations will need to consider their own local education, legal and healthcare requirements.

• Safeguarding children and adults at risk is a priority for the PDA Society and is a fundamental practice within our charity. Information shared with us will be treated confidentially unless there is a cause for concern in relation to safeguarding. If you share information that leads us to believe that a child or adult at risk is suffering significant harm or is likely to do so, then we will need to report our concerns to the relevant authorities. If you have any questions in respect of this please direct them to training.support@pdasociety.org.uk

• The PDA Society run separate training events for professionals and educators, please contact us direct for further information.