We had the good fortune of connecting with Melody Pierce and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Melody, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Starting my own business as extremely challenging but I saw the need for a resource and coach for eating disorders/body acceptance in our community and knew I couldn’t give up in providing people that.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I am an eating disorder recovery and body acceptance coach through my business, S.T.E.P.S. Recovery. I lead my clients with a intuitive eating approach and believe in health at every size. I help people heal their relationships with their bodies and provide them with resources to overcome their food or body image issues.

When I was 16, I was sitting alone in an auditorium and silently battling an eating disorder. A woman came on stage and shared with my high school the message of “You Matter” and I couldn’t have felt farther from that truth. That night, I did the bravest thing any kid could do and I asked for help. It took months to find resources and it ended up being my attendance at the local National Eating Disorder Association Walk that saved my life. I now run this same walk in Arizona and am fully recovered from my eating disorder. I started my business to make sure that no one feels alone in their fight.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
As a born and raised Arizonan, I have a lot of favorite spots! For activities I would say we have to go hiking in Sedona because the red rocks are magnificent. And then a day trip to flagstaff would be on the schedule to eat at Beaver Street Brewery, their enchanted forest pizza is incredible, and then we could make our way back to the Valley and spend some time shopping around Scottsdale or volunteering with one of the many nonprofit organizations.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I want to dedicate my shoutout to the National Eating Disorder Association, without their resources I probably would have succumbed to my eating disorder and would not be the role model and advocate I am today.

Website: Stepsrecoverycoach.com

Instagram: Melodyyfaith

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/melody-pierce

Image Credits
Jenn Cady Photography – headshot Amy Weirr- food photos

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