Eating Disorders

When asked about her motivation behind treating eating disorders, Colleen responded: 

“My goal is to help teenagers and young women navigate their way through our culture which, I believe, diminishes the value of women and all of our gifts.  We are bombarded with images of unrealistic beauty. Often we are taught to value the feelings and needs of others before our own… restricting our voices and distilling our spirits into a pretty package.  I envision a world where women feel joyful about living their lives knowing their beauty and power lies within them.”

Individual therapy with me can help you to:

· Improve upon relationships with self, friends, family and others

· Learn new ways of dealing with depression, anxiety and stress

· Handle situations and food without feeling out of control

· Learn how to have a healthy relationship with food

· Explore beliefs about your own body

· Eliminate feelings of resentment and guilt

Our work together is designed to teach you how to identify and express the needs that have not been met in your life in order to be able to give up the eating disorder, which, in many cases, has taken the place of fulfilling and life-serving ways of meeting these needs.

Individual therapy can foster growth using a variety of tools: goal setting, guided imagery, positive affirmations, needs-based work, problem solving techniques, anger work, looking at judgments, media literacy, self-nurturing, improving communication, boundary setting and positive body image work.

I have been helping people recover from eating disorders for the last 10 years, and I can help you too.  I do not use a “cookie cutter” approach to treating eating disorders because I have found that what works for one client doesn’t necessarily meet the needs of another client, which is one of the reasons I offer home visits and phone support in between sessions.

Beyond an Eating Disorder

The inner voices of anorexia and bulimia whisper that you’ll never be happy until you lose weight, that your worth is measured by how you look. But the truth is that happiness and self-esteem come from loving and accepting yourself for who you truly are. It may seem like there’s no escape from your eating disorder, but recovery is within your reach. With my treatment, support, and practical tools, you can overcome your eating disorder and gain true self-confidence.

The good news is that the eating disorder behaviors you’ve learned can be unlearned. That doesn’t mean the process is smooth, quick, or easy, but you can do it if you’re motivated to change and willing to ask for support. However, eating disorder recovery is about more than giving up unhealthy eating behaviors. Overcoming an eating disorder is also about rediscovering who you are beyond your eating habits, weight, and body image.