Eating Disorder Treatments

Comprehensive & Individualized
Eating Disorder Treatment Plans

Eating disorders, including Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, Binge Eating Disorder and Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder are life threatening illnesses that require comprehensive medical and psychological care. We work with patients and families to create treatment plans that are tailored to patient’s individual needs.

What is an eating disorder?

According to the National Eating Disorders Association:

“Eating disorders are serious but treatable mental and physical illnesses that can affect people of every age, sex, gender, race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic group. National surveys estimate that 20 million women and 10 million men in America will have an eating disorder at some point in their lives. While no one knows for sure what causes eating disorders, a growing consensus suggests that it is a range of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors.”

Family Based Treatment

Family Based Treatment (FBT) is a method that utilizes all members of a family to assist their loved one in restoring their health. FBT has been shown to be most effective with children and adolescents, who have been ill for less than three years and are under age 18, with between 50-70% of patients achieving recovery after a year of treatment.

FBT works to empower parents to manage their child’s eating disorder through a firm, compassionate focus on renourishment efforts. The treatment emphasizes the importance of parental efforts at renourishment, then focuses on the transition of control back to the adolescent. The treatment concludes ensuring that the adolescent has returned to their developmental trajectory in terms of eating and daily life.

FBT is organized into three phases, and the duration of treatment is typically one year.

Family Based Treatment

Family Based Treatment (FBT) is a method that utilizes all members of a family to assist their loved one in restoring their health. FBT has been shown to be most effective with children and adolescents, who have been ill for less than three years and are under age 18, with between 50-70% of patients achieving recovery after a year of treatment.

FBT works to empower parents to manage their child’s eating disorder through a firm, compassionate focus on renourishment efforts. The treatment emphasizes the importance of parental efforts at renourishment, then focuses on the transition of control back to the adolescent. The treatment concludes ensuring that the adolescent has returned to their developmental trajectory in terms of eating and daily life.

FBT is organized into three phases, and the duration of treatment is typically one year.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Enhanced for Eating Disorders

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a highly individualized outpatient treatment. The treatment has four stages.

In the first stage, the focus is on understanding the eating problem and helping to establish a pattern of regular eating. During stage one, there is also a focus on education.

Stage two reviews the progress and changes made and sets the plan for the remainder of therapy.

The third stage addresses the maintaining processes of the eating disorder, and the final stage focuses on preventing relapse and maintaining positive changes.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Enhanced for Eating Disorders

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a highly individualized outpatient treatment. The treatment has four stages.

In the first stage, the focus is on understanding the eating problem and helping to establish a pattern of regular eating. During stage one, there is also a focus on education.

Stage two reviews the progress and changes made and sets the plan for the remainder of therapy.

The third stage addresses the maintaining processes of the eating disorder, and the final stage focuses on preventing relapse and maintaining positive changes.

Emotion Focused Family Therapy

Emotional Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) supports caregivers to increase their involvement in their loved one’s mental health recovery.

EFFT encourages caregivers to support their loved ones behaviorally while also using communication skills that focus on validation and emotion processing.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy-AR (CBT-AR)

CBT-AR supports individuals and their caregivers to work together to target different challenges related to eating, including fear of aversive consequences, low appetite/enjoyment of eating, and sensory issues related to eating.

Emotion Focused Family Therapy

Emotional Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) supports caregivers to increase their involvement in their loved one’s mental health recovery.

EFFT encourages caregivers to support their loved ones behaviorally while also using communication skills that focus on validation and emotion processing.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy-AR (CBT-AR)

CBT-AR supports individuals and their caregivers to work together to target different challenges related to eating, including fear of aversive consequences, low appetite/enjoyment of eating, and sensory issues related to eating.

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