Welcome back to Fierce Calling! In this important episode, host Doris Swift welcomes guest Heather Creekmore—a writer, speaker, coach, and the host of the popular “Compared to Who?” podcast—to talk about a struggle many women face but rarely speak about openly: body image. Heather shares her deeply personal journey, beginning in childhood and traveling through years of dieting, disordered eating, and the belief that changing her body would finally bring happiness. Even marriage and motherhood didn’t resolve her struggle—until a message about modern-day idolatry led to a powerful awakening in her heart. Heather unpacks how cultural messages fuel our obsession with appearance, how comparison steals our joy, and why true freedom comes from understanding our God-given identity—not from pursuing the latest health trend or fitting into a certain pair of jeans. She also dives into her work coaching women, The 40-Day Body Image Workbook, and her devotional Aging Gratefully. And you'll love the story about her memorable appearance on Netflix’s “Nailed It!”—and what it taught her about real freedom. Whether you’ve battled body image insecurities, comparison in any area of your life, or the pressures of aging in a looks-obsessed world, this honest and hope-filled conversation will inspire you to pursue joy, purpose, and your fierce calling right where you are. Get ready for truths, laughter, encouragement, and the reminder that you are so much more than a number on a scale or a face in the mirror. We're Talking About These Amazing Books & More! Florida Women's Ministry Leadership Conference mentioned in the intro: Episode Highlights and Takeaways ... 00:00 Unexpected Struggles with Eating Disorders 08:13 "Discovering Modern Idolatry Challenges" 14:37 "Overcoming Idolatry and Distractions" 19:11 Challenging Self-Worth and Body Image 22:48 Love Language Pitfalls for Women 28:05 Diet Trends Roller Coaster 38:01 Encouragement, Laughter, and Scale Reality 40:56 "Aging Gracefully Through Inner Beauty" 44:17 "Inner Beauty Over Outer Appearance" 51:51 "Wisdom through Experience and Guidance" 54:47 "Baking Show: Embrace Imperfection" 01:00:50 "Community and Connection for Women" Connect with Heather! You can connect with Heather through her website and social media links below: Website: https://www.improvebodyimage.com https://www.facebook.com/heathercreekmoreblog https://www.youtube.com/comparedtowho https://www.instagram.com/comparedtowho https://www.pinterest.com/comparedtowho/ Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/compared-to-who/id1448403677 Heather Creekmore writes and speaks hope to thousands of women each week, inspiring them to stop comparing and start living. She’s the host of the Compared to Who? podcast and the author of four books, including The 40-Day Body Image Workbook: Hope for Christian Women Who’ve Tried Everything and Aging Gratefully , a new devotional on aging for women in midlife. Heather has been featured on Fox News, Huff Post, Morning Dose, Church Leaders, For Every Mom, and dozens of other shows and podcasts. But she's best recognized from her appearance as a contestant on the Netflix hit show, Nailed It. Heather and her fighter-pilot-turned-pastor husband, Eric, have four children and live in Austin, Texas. Connect with Heather at: www.improvebodyimage.com What Threatens to Steal Your Joy? Check out Surrender the Joy Stealers: Rediscover the Jesus Joy in You 6-week Bible study rooted in John 15. You can find more info at https://dorisswift.com/book/ Let’s Stay Connected! Find my free resources including Fear Fighting Bible Verses, Simple Tips for Sharing Your Faith, Surrender the Joy Stealers, Step Out of Your Doubt and Into Your Calling ebook, and more on my dorisswift.com homepage! Love Fierce Calling? Did you know that following, rating, and leaving a review over at Podchaser or Apple Podcasts helps others discover the show too? I would so appreciate it, friend! Need a Speaker for Your Next Women’s Event? Now Booking for 2026! Check out my speaking page, grab my flyer, and let’s talk about me speaking at your next women’s event… Thanks for Listening! I hope this episode encouraged, inspired, and challenged you to cultivate community, live and walk in the value, purpose, and worth God gave you, and take action where your passion, compassion, and conviction intersect. If you're looking for a speaker for your next women's conference, retreat, luncheon, or workshop, reach out and connect with me on my speaker page at https://www.womenspeakers.com/florida/edgewater/speaker/doris-swift Let's have a chat about your next event! Stay tuned for more amazing content and remember to check the show notes for all the links mentioned. Thank you for being a part of our community. We are grateful for your continued support and encourage you to embrace the unique gifts that make you magnificently you. I hope you'll join me next time when I talk with another guest who is taking action where her passion, compassion, and conviction intersect ... Until then friend, have a blessed week, and I'll talk to you soon. With love and joy, Doris P.S. Don't forget to follow us on social media for bite-sized wisdom and inspiration from Doris and our incredible guests! Transcript Doris Swift [00:01:57]: What is threatening to steal your joy? What is it that feels so heavy right now that you could barely stand? God has a plan. And his plan is to surrender it. Surrender it to him. It might be a prodigal, it might be a relationship, a marriage, something with your job. So many things. We have so many amazing blessings, but there are so many things in our life that threaten to steal our joy. I'm Doris Swift, author of the award winning six week Bible study, Surrender the joy Stealers, Rediscover Jesus joy in you. Using personal biblical stories I share how you can identify your joy stealers, surrender them to God, reawaken the joy within and share the joy with others. Doris Swift [00:02:49]: You can do it on your own or with a group. Check it out, friends. Surrender the joy stealers, Rediscover the Jesus joy in you. It's available on all the online retailers. It's time to take your joy back, friends. Doris Swift Welcome back to the show. Today I'm very excited to welcome my friend Heather Creekmore. She writes and speaks hope to thousands of women each week, inspiring them to stop comparing and start living. Doris Swift [00:03:18]: And she's the host of the popular Compared to Who podcast where she presents a biblical approach to body image so that we really need to hear. And she's the author of four books including The 40 Day Body Image workbook: Hope for the Christian Women who've tried Everything and Aging Gratefully. And that is an amazing book. It's a devotional on aging for women in midlife. She's wife to Eric, who is a fighter pilot turned pastor husband. She's mom to four. They live in Austin, Texas. And she might be best recognized for her appearance on a popular Netflix show. Doris Swift [00:03:57]: Nailed it. So we're gonna maybe hear a little bit about that. So welcome to the show, Heather. It's great to have you on. Heather Creekmore [00:04:04]: Oh, it's so great to be here. Thanks for having me. Doris Swift [00:04:06]: Doris, I am so happy to have you here and talk about this because it's, it's really an important subject for women. I know men struggle with it too, actually, but primarily your, your ministry is to women. So I would love if you would share a little bit about your story and how you're taking action where your passion, compassion and conviction intersection. Heather Creekmore [00:04:31]: Well, Doris, I like to say that this is one place I never expected to take action, never hoped to take action, never wanted anyone to know the depths of my struggles with my body. I started struggling, I would say, in elementary school. By middle school, I was dieting with my mom. By high school, I had And I say this tongue in cheek and very sensitively, but I had become a quote unquote, better dieter in that I could go long periods of time without eating, didn't recognize that I had any kind of eating disorder. By the time I got to college, I had lost my period for about 9, 10 months and was told it was just stress. And this, you know, Doris, this is back in the early 90s. And so there was only a couple categories for eating disorders back then. And I wasn't severely underweight, so I didn't look like I had anorexia and I wasn't able to throw up, so I didn't fit the bulimia category. Heather Creekmore [00:05:30]: And so I just was a normal girl with normal girl problems and normal girl problems being. I had this compulsion, drive, need to always try to look better. And, you know, I mean, specifically looking better meant always trying to get thinner. Right? But it was, it was more than that, especially at various points in my life. And, and what I need you to hear and your listeners to understand is that I was raised in a Christian home. I went to Christian school, I went to Christian college. So I knew the God and Jesus answers. I knew I was fearfully and wonderfully made. Heather Creekmore [00:06:12]: I knew that God looked at my heart and not my gene size. Right? I. I knew all the things, but it didn't actually help me. I still struggled. I still very much kind of led a dichotomized life of, okay, I'm a good Christian. And really what the most important thing in my life is is to try to, like, fix this body of. And it really wasn't until. So I didn't get married until I was 31. Heather Creekmore [00:06:39]: I met my husband at 30. And so all through my 20s, I struggled, like, really to the point of I became a fitness instructor because I thought that would solve it. You know,