The Long & Winding Road to Interdisciplinary Research & Advocacy
One glance at my resume reveals an unusual background.
I began my academic career studying media/communication studies. What fascinated me about this research was how media impacts people during developmental years. I was also interested in why people use media. To boost my understanding of these questions I double majored in psychology.
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After finishing my bachelors' degrees, I completed a master's degree in media and communications from the University of Leeds in England. My research there explored how media narratives influence the health behaviors of adolescents. It was at this time that I realized just how complex our relationships with media are and the multifaceted nature of adolescent mental health.
So I started studying neuroscience to help me better understand the development of psychological disorders! With no neuroscience experience, I joined a molecular biology lab while completing my master's degree at Villanova University. Here, I focused on the use of fluoxetine to treat binge-eating behavior in serotonin deficient adolescent mice.
After completing my master's degree in experimental psychology, I accepted an offer to join the Neuroscience PhD program at Purdue, where I studied the neuroscience/biology of adolescent anorexia nervosa and related disorders. While at Purdue, I also helped organize and conduct research for a clinical trial looking at the effects of a ketogenic diet on mood.
With my extensive training in media, psychology, and neuroscience, I am excited to use my talents to further educate and advocate for children's and adolescents' mental health.
My Research
Anxiety Following Weight Restoration from Anorexia Nervosa Symptoms
My dissertation project is looking at the effects of adolescent AN symptoms (e.g., food restriction and excessive exercise) on the stress and immune systems and how these changes relate to anxiety. The project uses the rodent model of activity-based anorexia (ABA), as well as human surveys from young adult females.
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Using Fluoxetine to Treat Binge Eating in Serotonin Deficient Mice
SSRIs are one of the few drugs approved for treating binge eating in humans. This study explored if serotonin deficiency, a common occurrence for those who binge eat, interferes with this drug's efficacy. Such research can help create more individualized pharmacological treatments for binge eating.
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The Effects of a Ketogenic Diet on Mood: Clinical Trial
This 8 week clinical trial recruited human adult participants from the West Lafayette, Indiana community. Participants maintained a ketogenic diet while providing data on their ketone levels and food intake. At different timepoints, participants came into the lab to provide blood samples and qualitative data to determine hormone levels and mood after consuming a ketogenic breakfast.
Reward and Eating Disorders
This study explored relationships between eating disorder symptoms and different types of reward through survey analyses. Findings can be applied to better understand the neurological nature of reward in eating disorders for improved treatments.
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Health Behavior Promotion in Popular Music
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My thesis explored the ways female pop singers discuss and promote healthy eating, safe sex, body positivity, and drug avoidance, and how this promotion could impact the health behaviors of adolescent girls.