Eating Disorders

Eating disorders are characterized by persistent food-related or eating behaviors that harm your health, emotions, or ability to function. They often involve an individual focusing too much on weight, body shape, and food. Most commonly, these take the form of anorexia, bulimia, or binge-eating. Anorexia involves excessively limiting calories and/or using other methods to lose weight (e.g. exercise, laxatives). People with anorexia often have an extreme fear of gaining weight and have an abnormally low body weight, along with a distorted perception of their weight or body shape. Bulimia involves periods of eating a large amount of food in a short time (bingeing), followed by attempting to rid oneself of the extra calories in an unhealthy way (such as forced vomiting). These behaviors are often accompanied by a sense of a total lack of control. Binge-eating disorder involves eating too much food, past the point of being full, at least once a week, and feeling a lack of control over this behavior. If you recognize any of these symptoms in yourself, a qualified professional therapist can help. Reach out to one of TherapyDen’s eating disorder experts for help today.

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By addressing the underlying emotional, psychological, and behavioral factors contributing to disordered eating, I guide clients toward developing healthier relationships with food, body image, and self-esteem. My goal is to empower individuals to break free from the destructive cycle of disordered eating, fostering lasting change and promoting overall well-being.

— Lauren Garza, Ph.D., Clinical Psychologist in , PA

As someone who's recovered from an eating disorder myself, I know that eating disorders can happen to otherwise totally normal people. In fact the research shows that the same things that make you a shining star in every other area of your like (being compassionate, tenacious, driven, strategic, disciplined, ect) make you more likely to develop an eating disorder. It's my passion to help people make peace with their bodies and fall in love with their life.

— Alyssa Williamson, Licensed Professional Counselor in Plano, TX
 

I view eating disorders as coping skills that many of us develop in a state of survival - they protect our bodies from things that are perceived as unsafe to know, feel, or embody. Though these patterns are maladaptive, they serve a real purpose and it's only when we can befriend these protective parts that we effectively let them go. Healing is viewing the disordered eating in a compassionate light and bringing the body back into safety.

— Elise Miller, Licensed Professional Counselor Associate

My practice specializes in working with eating disorders and disordered relationships with food/body. I spent the first 2 years post graduate school really focusing in on my specialty training in eating disorders, and I continue to learn more with each client. These experiences are often misunderstood, and can have origins in trauma, oppression, and difficulty in family dynamics.

— Grace Lautman, Licensed Mental Health Counselor in Seattle, WA
 

I have practiced as a clinical therapist in inpatient, partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient eating disorder programs. In addition to my clinical work, I provided eating disorder consults throughout a hospital program to assist physicians in assessing, diagnosing and making recommendations for eating disorder treatment and follow up care.

— Christina Sun Oo, Psychotherapist in Arlington Heights, IL

I frequently work with folks where family based treatment (FBT) was not a fit or you're wanting an in-depth , somatic based approach to recovery. I predominately use the Neuro Affective Relational Model (NARM) and Emotion Focused Family Therapy (EFFT). I'm Certified in Family Based Treatment (FBT) and practice this when indicated--often for young folks with new eating disorders and caregivers available to engage in the process.

— Katy Lackey, Licensed Clinical Social Worker in San Francisco, CA
 

Many of us feel disconnected from our bodies and frustrated with our relationship to food. You may be trapped in a cycle of restrictive and binge eating that leaves you feeling out of control and mistrusting of your body's intuition. I use a Health at Every Size (HAES) approach to create a safe space to help people of all sizes heal from disordered eating and negative body image.

— Maryann Bavisotto, Social Worker in Buffalo, NY

I work with individuals who suffer with anorexia, bulimia, binge eating, or other forms of dysregulated eating and body dysmorphia. Eating disorders are often birthed within traumatic experiences where we block intolerable feelings of fear and shame with obsessions around eating and body size/weight. I am a body positive therapist, and I help my clients learn to listen to and respect their body's wisdom. Learning to trust the body and learning self-compassion are keys to healing.

— Beth Holzhauer, Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Evanston, IL
 

For the past seven years, I have worked with clients struggling with eating disorders at the partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient, and outpatient level. After working as a milieu therapist, primary therapist, and group therapy facilitator at an eating disorder treatment center, I began working as an outpatient therapist in private practice specifically focusing on members of the LGBTQ+ community who struggle with body image and eating disorder behaviors.

— Zach Verwey, Licensed Professional Counselor in Denver, CO

I use a blend of evidence-based approaches to help people break free from Binge Eating Disorder, disordered eating, and body image issues such as Body Dysmorphic Disorder. As a HAES-aligned therapist, I support body diversity and utilize weight-neutral, evidence-based approaches including Intuitive Eating, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC), & Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).

— Regina Lazarovich, Clinical Psychologist in Scotts Valley, CA
 

I specialize in treating eating disorders, employing a collaborative approach by closely working with medical doctors and registered dietitians to provide comprehensive care. As a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor, I anchor my approach to addressing disordered eating behaviors, helping clients reconnect with their intuitive relationship with food. I am committed to incorporating discussions of privilege, socio-economic class, and trauma to provide a culturally sensitive treatment experience.

— Christina Arceri, Licensed Mental Health Counselor in New York, NY

I am a certified eating disorder specialist, trainer and educator

— Dr Stephanie Waitt, Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor Supervisor in Sherman, TX
 

I specialize in eating disorders as a result of specialized training that was engaged in while working at a partial hospitalization program for eating disorders. I work with the entire range of this population and utilize a Health at Every size approach.

— Kelly Price, Licensed Mental Health Counselor

Eating disorders can be difficult to manage and are not a sustainable coping mechanism, and they provide a sense of comfort because that's what you're familiar with. My goal through our work together would be to provide other coping skills that can replace your eating disorder while also working towards understanding the root cause of the eating disorder. I have worked through residential, PHP, and IOP centers of care and am also HAES (Health at Every Size) aligned.

— Nikkia Kline, Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor
 

Recovery is a spiral, not a destination. Treating EDs only cognitively fragments us further from healing. My fusion: Embodied CBT, addresses the underlying trauma, including the Inner Critic (fight part). After my own recovery, I studied Somatic Psychology because of the clear benefits to recovery. Getting out of the mirror and back into the body is how I help people across ED diagnoses get their lives back.

— S. L. McIntyre, Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in San Francisco, CA

I use an eclectic approach to help individuals recover from disordered thoughts and patterns of behavior related to body image and eating. Eating disorders are caused by a multitude of factors and we will work together to re establish trust.

— Lauren Sharpe, Clinical Social Worker
 

I work with clients to heal their relationship to food and body. I believe in body neutrality and body liberation. In other words, I don’t think bodies need fixing — rather, they need healing from a society that makes them feel wrong for existing. I support clients through Health at Every Size, Body Trust, and Intuitive Eating frameworks.

— Paige Sparkman, Counselor in Grosse Pointe Park, MI

Are you wishing you had more peace with food, your body, yourself, and those people who are important in your life? We will work together collaboratively to help you discover who you are at your core, heal what hurts, and engage genuinely with your true self, your relationships and your life. Deep conversation, deep listening, and deep connection for your healing and transformation. Together we can work on lasting change.

— Sabrina Samedi, Associate Marriage & Family Therapist in Westlake Village, CA