DR. ANITA JOHNSTON
"When a woman enters the labyrinth of recovery she follows a twisting, turning, winding path to her center where she reclaims her inner authority.  Finding the essence of who she is as a woman, she exits the labyrinth, integrating this vision with a new way of being in the world."

Fables, folk tales and legends have always played a crucial role in the life and work of psychologist Anita Johnston. As a child, growing up in a mulitcultural extended family on the island of Guam, she was nurtured by strong women who taught important values and lessons about life through the stories they told and the songs they sang. Her mother, an American who married a Chamorro man, was a librarian whose personal library was filled with legends of ancient peoples, accounts of early Spanish explorers, and heroic tales from World War II, including those about her paternal grandmother who led the underground resistance movement during the Japanese occupation of Guam. It was also the traditional tales told by the Chamorro and Filipina women who cared for D. Johnston and her six siblings that gave her a sense of the power of stories to enlighten and instill change.

Her interest in female psychology and the role of women in contemporary society sprang from her experience as a contestant in the Miss Universe contest when she was 18 years old. Her observations of what society dictated as feminine beauty and power, as opposed to the lessons learned from the women in her family, was a driving force in her decision to become a psychologist. After getting her B.A. and M.A. in psychology, she received her Ph.D. in clinical psychology in 1980.

As a response to the emergence of disordered eating among women, Dr. Johnston co-founded the Anorexia & Bulimia Center of Hawaii in 1982. In addition to her training as a psychologist she uses storytelling to teach her clients concepts about themselves that are difficult to explain. In 2001, she founded the 'Ai Pono Intensive Out-Patient Eating Disorders Programs in Honolulu. Currently, she conducts workshops on disordered eating across the country and lectures widely to professional organizations, medical institutions, and the community at large. 

 www.dranitajohnston.com