Top Five Reasons to See an Eating Disorder Therapist

Ever wonder WHY it is important to work with an eating disorder therapist instead of a therapist who works with with more general issues, such as anxiety, depression, and couple/family challenges? I’ve asked three San Diego eating disorder therapists for their thoughts on the matter: Clinical Psychologist Dr. Jennie Wang-Hall, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Christin Conkle, and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Liz Bisarya. All three psychotherapists specialize in eating disorders in their San Diego private practices, and they have experience at higher level of care eating disorder treatment centers. I think you’ll find their responses very helpful!

Reason #1: They are specialists in treating the complexities of eating disorders.

Eating disorders are incredibly complicated. They encompass not only psychological and emotional issues, but relational/familial and physiological issues as well. It is important to see a therapist who feels competent to work on these multiple levels. Eating disorder therapists have to receive ongoing training in order to maintain these competencies. Christin Conkle, LMFT, stated, “eating disorder therapists have the most awareness of updated research and treatment models.”

Reason #2: They help you build skills to help eating disorder recovery.

Eating disorders don’t develop in a vacuum. There are significant genetic, biological, and temperamental components. Environmental factors also can trigger a predisposition to have an eating disorder. In order to combat this multifaceted condition, we need all the ammunition we can get! Developing coping skills is a KEY defense in this process. Liz Bisarya, LMFT, shared, “Eating disorder therapists can support you in learning skills to better manage and ultimately accept distressing situations, thoughts, body sensations, and emotions. Along the same line, Dr. Jennie Wang-Hall explained, “Eating disorder therapists guide you in exploring your emotions and learning how to cope with them skillfully.”

Reason #3: They know how to address family dynamics.

No matter what age you are, family issues can arise as a result of eating disorder symptoms. Sometimes you might not even realize these issues until you start eating disorder treatment. Sometimes going into treatment can even trigger challenging family dynamics. In every stage of recovery, an eating disorder therapist will help you navigate these rough emotional waters. According to Christin Conkle, LMFT, it is clear that “the effects on family dynamics” can be a vital component therapists can address. Liz Bisarya, LMFT, shared, “Eating disorder therapists can help you identify the kind of support you need from loved ones during recovery as well as learn skills to ask for your needs to be met or set boundaries with loved ones if needed.”  

Reason #4: They teach you how to use mindfulness.

Mindfulness means moment-to-moment, nonjudgmental acceptance. Learning how to use mindfulness can help you better manage your emotions, as well as deal with the various physiological experiences and changes you face when recovering from an eating disorder. Liz Bisarya articulated, “Eating disorder therapists can support you in creating a list of tools, mantras, mindfulness skills, and distress tolerance skills, to use when feeling triggered and overwhelmed by eating disorder thoughts so that you have a full toolbox to use between sessions.” Christin Conkle, LMFT, said that eating disorder therapists “are aware of . . . emotional dysregulation,” which implementing mindfulness helps. As Dr. Jennie Wang-Hall asserted, “eating disorder therapists help you practice mindfulness to increase your joy in daily living.”

Reason #5: They help you address body image issues.

Negative body image is an especially challenging symptom of most eating disorders. Fears of your body changing may get in the way of your recovery. Body image issues can feel intense at all stages of your eating disorder treatment. Many eating disorder professionals contend that body image issues can be the last component to heal—it’s because it’s so difficult to treat and overcome. That’s why you need an eating disorder therapist who is trained and experienced in addressing negative body image. Liz Bisarya, LMFT agreed with me, stating, “Eating disorder therapists can support you in deep body image work that allows you to reclaim your sense of worth and value outside of your body’s size, shape, or appearance.”

Special thanks to these amazing San Diego eating disorder therapists who contributed to this blog! You can click on their names below to get their contact information.

Liz Bisarya, LMFT

Christin Conkle, LMFT

Dr. Jennie Wang-Hall, Clinical Psychologist

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Hey everyone, I really appreciate you reading my blog!  Have a wonderful day. :)  

Marianne 

If you are struggling to find eating disorder treatment in San Diego, schedule a free, 15-minute phone consultation using the online scheduler (just click on the orange button), and I will help you get where you need to be! 

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