Therapy for Eating Disorders in Philadelphia, PA
Eating disorders are serious mental illnesses that affect a person’s relationship with food, body image, and overall well-being. Eating disorders can impact individuals of all ages, genders, and backgrounds. Common eating disorders include anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), and other specified feeding or eating disorders (OSFED).
Wildflower Therapy provides in-person therapy for eating disorders in Philadelphia, PA, as well as Swarthmore, Radnor, Ardmore, Bryn Mawr, Haverford, Villanova, Wynnewood, Pittsburgh, and more. We also provide virtual therapy for anyone in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Virginia, Massachusetts, Vermont, and Florida!
What Are the Main Symptoms of Eating Disorders?
While symptoms of eating disorders vary depending on the specific eating disorder, individuals with an eating disorder may experience one or some of the following symptoms (as indicated by the DSM-5):
Intense fear of weight gain or obsession with body size
Denial of the seriousness of low body weight
Restriction of food intake or extreme dieting
Binge eating episodes (large amounts of food within a 2 hour period), a sense of lack of control
Eating alone or in secret to avoid embarrassment
Eating until uncomfortably full
Compensatory behaviors such as self-induced vomiting, excessive exercise, or misuse of laxatives
Distorted body image and preoccupation with appearance
Physical symptoms such as fatigue, dizziness, hair loss, and changes in menstruation
Limited range of preferred foods that becomes even more limited (“picky eating” that gets progressively worse)
Severe restriction of types or amount of food eaten
This list is not a comprehensive list of all eating disorder symptoms for each eating disorder, but it provides an overview of the warning signs that you or someone you love may be struggling with an eating disorder. If you are ready to seek treatment, we can help!
What Does Therapy for Eating Disorders Look Like?
At Wildflower Therapy in Philadelphia, we provide specialized, compassionate care for those struggling with eating disorders. Our approach combines evidence-based treatments tailored to each of our client’s needs, including:
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): CBT is a type of therapy that helps you to understand the connection between your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. CBT involves unearthing core beliefs that we may have held since childhood that keep us stuck. CBT also provides solutions for how to shake these core beliefs loose, and eventually change the way we think, feel, and behave.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): DBT is a type of therapy that also involves recognizing the connection between our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. It also incorporates a strong emphasis on being able to hold several truths at once (dialectics), and an emphasis on interpersonal effectiveness.
Interpersonal and Feminist Relational Therapy: We help clients address and understand the many parts of their life and surroundings that can impact body image, behaviors, and self-esteem: relationship dynamics, societal influences, and even the impact of oppression. Feminist relational therapy is an integrative approach to therapy that focuses on the challenges that women face as a result of bias, stereotyping, oppression, discrimination, and other factors, and how those stressors can negatively affect their mental health.
Family-Based Treatment (FBT): At Wildflower Therapy, we offer Family-Based Therapy for Children and Adolescents with Eating Disorders. Family-Based Therapy is an evidence-based form of therapy with a strong body of research behind it. The core of family-based treatment is the assumption that parents/caregivers are capable of helping a child recover from an eating disorder.
How Wildflower Therapy Can Help
Our therapists at Wildflower Therapy in Philadelphia, PA specialize in helping children, teens, and adults recover from all kinds of eating disorders. You can get to know a little bit more about them here. Our eating disorder specialists have experience working across all the levels of care, and most of us have recovered from our own eating disorders!
If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, reach out to our team at Wildflower Therapy in PA by filling out our contact form or by calling us today at 215-668-9356 to learn more about our services and how we can support you on your recovery journey.
By: Erika Muller, Assistant for Wildflower Therapy LLC
All images via Unsplash
Other Mental Health Services Provided by Wildflower Therapy, Philadelphia, PA
Life is a unique and sometimes messy journey for each of us; we all have our own individual battles to fight. Our therapists know there is no one-size-fits-all approach to any of life’s challenges and because of that, we offer many unique perspectives and approaches to help meet you where you are with our Philadelphia, PA Therapy services.
We offer services for eating disorder therapy, services for anxiety, and depression, and have practitioners who specialize in perinatal mental health , maternal mental health, therapy for college students and athletes. As well as LGBTQIA+ Affirming Therapy. As you can see, we have something to offer just about anyone in our Philadelphia, PA office. Reaching out is often the most difficult step you can take to improve your mental health. We look forward to partnering with you on this journey!
