SPECIALTY · DISORDERED EATING
Therapy for disordered eating, for teens, families, and adults
For anyone whose relationship with food takes up more room than it should, whether or not it has a name.
You do not need a diagnosis to deserve help.
YOU MIGHT RECOGNIZE THIS
What disordered eating feels like from the inside.
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You think about food, your weight, or your body more than feels comfortable, often throughout the day.
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You have a complicated history with dieting, restriction, or emotional eating that has never fully been resolved.
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Food feels like it carries a moral weight such as "good foods", "bad foods," "foods you should not have eaten."
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You eat differently when you are stressed, lonely, bored, or overwhelmed, and feel worse about yourself afterward.
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You have tried to change your relationship with food before, but it always drifts back to the same patterns.
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Your teen has become rigid about food in ways that seem small on their own but add up: no snacks, no dessert, no eating out.
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You have a feeling something is off, and you have been told you are overreacting.
UNDERSTANDING DISORDERED EATING
What is disordered eating?
Disordered eating refers to a range of irregular or unhealthy eating behaviors that cause distress or impairment but do not meet the full criteria for a diagnosed eating disorder. This includes chronic dieting, emotional eating, significant food preoccupation, and a troubled relationship with food that quietly diminishes your quality of life.
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It is estimated that far more people struggle with disordered eating than with clinically diagnosed eating disorders. These quieter struggles receive less attention, but they cause real suffering and they respond to treatment.
SYMPTOMS
Some common signs of disordered eating:
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Chronic dieting or yo-yo dieting​
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Significant food preoccupation
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Guilt or shame after eating
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Skipping meals or restricting
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​​​Emotional or stress eating
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Rigid "good food/bad food" thinking
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Eating past fullness regularly
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Using food to manage emotions
TREATMENT
How I treat disordered eating.
Disordered eating sits on the same spectrum as an eating disorder, and I treat it with the same seriousness. We start by looking at the patterns themselves: the rules, the skipped meals, the swings between control and its opposite. Loosening those is practical work, and we begin it early.
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We also look at what the patterns have been doing for you. Food rules often hold something in place, a sense of control, a way of managing feeling, a story about what you are worth. Understanding that is what stops the same patterns drifting back a year from now.
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For teens, this is often the stage where a parent can make the biggest difference, because things have not yet hardened into an illness. I will help you know what to say and what to leave alone. There are many factors behind an eating disorder, and your support is what will do the most to move things forward.
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Related: Binge eating disorder, Body image distress, Support for families and loved ones.
COMMON QUESTIONS
Frequently asked
questions
01
Is disordered eating serious enough to go to therapy for?
Yes. You do not need to be in crisis or have a formal diagnosis to benefit from therapy. If your relationship with food is affecting your quality of life, your mood, or your sense of self, that is enough reason to seek support.
02
That is exactly the kind of question we can explore together. In our first sessions, we will do a thorough assessment to understand your history and what is going on. Whatever we find, the work is worthwhile.
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Will you put me on a meal plan or tell me what to eat?
No. Prescribing what or how much to eat is the role of a registered dietitian, not a therapist. My work focuses on your emotional and psychological relationship with food. I can refer you to a dietitian if that would be a helpful part of your care.
04
Do you take insurance?
I am an out-of-network provider and do not bill insurance directly. A superbill is provided, which you can submit to your insurance for possible out-of-network reimbursement. I recommend contacting your insurance provider to understand your out-of-network benefits before we begin.
SESSION LENGTH
SESSION FEE
PAYMENT
INSURANCE
45
minutes
Out-of-Network
Credit & debit​​
$250
per session
cards accepted
Superbill provided