Show Notes
Welcome to our 2025 Summer Short Series! We're back with bitesize episodes showcasing recent work from our team at the Centre for Appearance Research!
In this episode, we are joined by Dr Maia Thornton, Senior Research Fellow at CAR, who tells us about her recent paper entitled: The Visible Difference Parenting Toolkit: development of an ACT-based intervention to improve the well-being of parents and caregivers of children with appearance-affecting conditions and injuries.
Maia discusses a support intervention for parents of children with visible differences, which she developed during her PhD.
In this episode, we also introduce two new podcast hosts. Dr Kat Schneider and Dr Ella Guest are both Senior Research Fellows at CAR who will be joining the podcast team.
Read Maia's open access paper: https://academic.oup.com/jpepsy/advance-article/doi/10.1093/jpepsy/jsaf054/8205549
Find out more about the Visible Difference Support Hub https://visibledifferencesupporthub.com/
Cover image by Trevor James Music by Sian Evans & John Landau: toplinefilm.com Episode developed and produced by Maia Thornton & Ella Guest
More from Appearance Matters: The Podcast!
How does supporting a child with a visible difference affect parents and carers?
What's it like growing up with a visible difference? In the second episode of our Visible Difference Matters mini-series, Professor Diana Harcourt and Dr Ella Guest talk about what it's really like to have a visible difference as a young person, and the support available to help young people navigate it.
What support is available for adults living with a visible difference? In the first episode of our Visible Difference Matters mini-series, Dr Maia Thornton and Dr Emma Waite discuss support for adults with a visible difference. This includes free, evidence-based interventions developed at the Centre for Appearance Research, from apps to podcast-based programmes.
In this month’s episode, we bring you Phyllida Swift’s Keynote speech from the Appearance Matters 11 Conference, which took place in Bristol in June 2026.
Welcome back to Appearance Matters: The Podcast.