Hi, I'm body image coach, Tara Rothwell.

This is my story of God's grace.

I was raised in a God-loving, Christian home but struggled with anxiety and depression from a very young age. I became a competitive gymnast at an early age, and by the time I was 9, I began to struggle with body image. As my struggles with anxiety, depression, and body image worsened to the point of suicidal thoughts, I turned to therapeutic help at 14. Despite years of CBT, psychoanalysis, talk therapy, church attendance, and Christian youth groups, I still felt tormented by my inner world. I started using alcohol, and eventually drugs, throughout my teen years to escape the mental torment I experienced daily.

By my early 20's, my alcohol and drug use had turned into full-blown addiction. I entered recovery at 23 and through both in-patient and out-patient programs, I entered into sobriety. This began what would be a decades-long journey of discovering the unfathomable love of Jesus and the healing truth of the Gospel.

Through this journey of surrender in recovery, I was married and soon thrown into a new crisis--a baby who faced several life-threatening diagnoses in his first few years of life. With the birth of my second child, body image issues began to consume me. Once again I found myself hitting rock bottom, obsessed with all things diet, exercise, and body image. In my desperate plea for help, God brought me to Heather in January 2022.

After finding Compared to Who? working with Heather in group coaching and then working on my eating disorder issues with a non-diet dietitian, the Lord healed and called me to this work with a fiery passion! This passion was born out of the incredible, unfathomable freedom I received from, not just body image pain, but all areas of anxiety and fear in my roles as wife, mother, friend, and daughter.

Having now trained under both Heather and registered dietitian, Char-Lee Cassel, I serve as support in the 40-Day Journey, I lead the Freedom Framework coaching groups, and offer one-on-one support to my clients. I'm certified to help women with body image and food issues through the Non-Diet Christian Academy. 

I hold a BA in Psychology from Boston College and I live in the suburbs of Boston with my husband and two children.

Learn more about how to work with me in the Body Image Freedom Framework Course here.