About Eating Disorders - What We Treat

Finding Freedom from Food and Body Struggles.

Body image is one of the biggest stressors in our society.

Living With an Eating Disorder

Body image is one of the biggest stressors in our society. For many, food becomes a way to try to cope, control, or manage overwhelming feelings about appearance, self-worth, or life in general.

Like people, eating disorders don’t look just one way.

While anorexia and bulimia are widely known, eating disorders can also include:

Binge eating
Over-exercising
Rigid food restrictions
Nighttime eating
Using laxatives or diet pills
Constant body-checking or seeking cosmetic procedures

These struggles are about much more than food – they can take a serious toll on your emotions, relationships, and physical health, sometimes even becoming life-threatening.

A woman with long hair in a ponytail wearing a matching blue sports bra and shorts looking at herself in a full-length mirror, standing barefoot near a window with blinds, sunlight casting shadows on the floor.

How Therapy Can Help:

Eating disorders thrive on silence, shame, and secrecy. Therapy provides a safe space to begin breaking that cycle. Together, we’ll work on:

Challenging the negative thoughts that fuel shame and guilt
Reducing harmful behaviors around food and body image
Building healthier coping strategies to handle urges and triggers
Strengthening self-esteem and self-compassion

CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) is especially effective for eating disorders because it helps you change the unhelpful thought patterns driving unhealthy behaviors. The goal isn’t simply to “eat differently”, it’s to heal your relationship with food, your body, and yourself.

Eating disorder warning signs:

- Sudden weight loss or weight fluctuations
- Dizziness, fatigue, or fainting spells
- Gastrointestinal problems
- Menstrual irregularities
- Damaged teeth, gums, or throat from purging
- Cold intolerance or hair loss
- Strict rules around food or exercise
- Avoiding social situations involving meals
- Repeated dieting without medical need
- Eating in secret or late at night
- Excessive checking of body weight or shape
- Intense fear of gaining weight
- Guilt or shame after eating
- Irritability, anxiety, or depressed mood
- Low self-esteem tied to body image
- Feeling “out of control” around food

Eating disorders can affect every part of life and does not discriminate amongst genders. If you notice several of these signs in yourself or someone you care about, therapy can provide a safe first step toward healing. Some common red flags include:

Type of Eating Disorders

Marked by extreme food restriction, fear of weight gain, and distorted body image. This can lead to serious health risks and emotional distress. Therapy focuses on challenging distorted beliefs, rebuilding a healthy relationship with food, and addressing the underlying anxiety or perfectionism that often drives restriction.

Unlike anorexia, ARFID is not about body image or fear of weight gain. Instead, it involves highly selective eating or avoidance of certain foods due to sensory sensitivities, fear of choking, or low appetite. It can lead to nutritional deficiencies and social challenges. Therapy supports expanding food variety, reducing fear-based avoidance, and addressing the underlying anxieties.

Characterized by cycles of binge eating followed by compensatory behaviors such as purging (vomiting), laxative use, or over-exercising. Therapy helps break the cycle, reduce harmful behaviors, and address the guilt and shame that often fuel it.

OSFED is a diagnosis for individuals who don’t meet the full criteria of another eating disorder but still experience significant distress and impairment. Examples include “atypical anorexia” (weight may be within or above normal ranges but restriction is still severe) or “purging disorder” (purging without binge eating). Therapy validates these struggles and helps build healthier, sustainable patterns.

Involves consuming large amounts of food in a short time while feeling out of control. Often followed by shame or guilt, but without compensatory behaviors. Therapy helps address emotional triggers, break the binge cycle, and create healthier coping strategies.

You Don’t Have to Do This Alone

Struggling with food or body image doesn’t mean you’re broken, it means you’re human and in pain. With the right support, healing is possible. Therapy can help you let go of shame, reclaim your voice, and find freedom from the cycle of control and guilt.

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