Overcoming an eating disorder can feel like a long and intense emotional journey, full of ups and downs. It’s often a mix of relief, frustration, strength, and vulnerability. At Coastal Collaborative Care, we offer specialized therapy for eating disorders, providing the support and tools you need to develop a healthier relationship with food and your body.
Coastal Collaborative Care provides eating disorder therapy in Virginia and other states throughout the country.
How Therapy Can Help with Eating Disorders
- Identify and change negative thought patterns around food and body image
- Develop healthy coping mechanisms to manage emotions without resorting to disordered eating
- Improve self-esteem and body acceptance through compassionate, non-judgmental support
- Formulate a plan for cessation of disordered eating behaviors
- Create a support system of trusted friends, family, or support groups which can reduce feelings of isolation and provide encouragement during difficult moments
- Understanding the root causes to help identify the deeper emotional and psychological reasons behind the eating disorder
- Build a sustainable path to recovery, free from harmful eating behaviors and patterns, regardless of type
Taking the first step toward treatment is a courageous decision. With the right support, recovery is possible.
HAES-Aligned Eating Disorder Therapy
What is a Health at Every Size® (HAES) approach?
- Focus on health, not weight: HAES emphasizes overall well-being and health, rather than focusing on weight loss or achieving a particular body size.
- Respect for body diversity: It recognizes that bodies come in all shapes and sizes and that health is not defined by a specific body type.
- Intuitive eating: Encourages listening to your body’s hunger and fullness cues, instead of dieting or restrictive eating behaviors.
- Physical activity for enjoyment: Promotes movement for fun and health benefits, rather than as a means of burning calories or losing weight.
- Acceptance of all bodies: Advocates for body acceptance and challenges weight stigma and fatphobia.
- Holistic approach: Health is viewed as a balance of physical, mental, and emotional well-being, influenced by factors like access to resources, socio-economic status, and social support, not just the absence of illness or a particular body shape.
Our HAES therapists focus on:
- Inclusive, personalized therapy for all
- Body diversity and non-diet approaches to health
- Emotional self-care and self-acceptance over weight-focused treatment
- Empowerment through autonomy
- Challenging weight stigma and fatphobia
Types of Eating Disorders
Eating disorders affect both mental and physical health. Common types include:
Anorexia Nervosa
Extreme food restriction and intense fear of weight gain.
Bulimia Nervosa
Binge eating followed by purging behaviors.
Binge Eating Disorder
Episodes of consuming large amounts of food with feelings of loss of control.
Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID)
Extreme food avoidance or restriction often caused by lack of interest in food, sensory sensitivities, or food-related fears.
Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder (OSFED)
Disordered eating behaviors that don’t meet the criteria of just one diagnosis.
Body Dysmorphic Disorder
Not an eating disorder, this is an obsessive-compulsive related disorder. It is characterized by a preoccupation with perceived flaws in appearance. Very common among clients with eating disorders.
There are subtypes of eating disorders, as well as eating disorders that may not be listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), which is the manual used by psychotherapists to diagnose mental health conditions.
Subtypes of Eating Disorders
Anorexia Nervosa, Restricting Type: Involves severe restriction of food intake, leading to significant weight loss.
Anorexia Nervosa, Binge-eating/Purging Type: Individuals engage in binge eating episodes (consuming large amounts of food) followed by compensatory behaviors like vomiting, excessive exercise, or misuse of laxatives or diuretics.
Bulimia Nervosa, Purging Type: Involves recurrent episodes of binge eating followed by purging behaviors, such as vomiting or misuse of laxatives, diuretics, or enemas to “get rid” of the food.
Bulimia Nervosa, Non-purging Type: Similar to purging type, but instead of purging behaviors, individuals use methods like fasting or excessive exercise to compensate for binge eating.
ARFID, Sensory sensitivity: Individuals are extremely sensitive to the sensory characteristics of food, such as texture, color, or smell, which causes them to restrict their food intake or avoid certain foods altogether.
ARFID, Fear of aversive consequence: Often linked to emotional or traumatic events around food, such as fear of choking, food poisoning, or other negative associations.
ARFID, Lack of interest in food or eating: The individual has a very narrow range of foods they are willing to eat, often for reasons related to lack of interest in food.
ARFID, Plus: When a person with ARFID continues to engage in restrictive eating behaviors, it may eventually lead to symptoms that align with Anorexia Nervosa, particularly as the disorder becomes more focused on weight control, fear of gaining weight, or body image concerns
Non-DSM Eating Disorders
Orthorexia Nervosa: An obsessive focus on eating only healthy or “pure” foods, often to the exclusion of other types of food. People with orthorexia may experience anxiety, guilt, or self-punishment if they eat foods they deem “unhealthy.”
Bigorexia (Muscle Dysmorphia): A subtype of body dysmorphia, where individuals are obsessed with building muscle mass and believe their bodies are insufficiently muscular or too small. It often involves excessive exercise and could involve steroid use.
Compulsive Exercise: A condition where exercise becomes an obsession, and the individual may engage in excessive physical activity to control weight or shape, often at the expense of their physical and mental health.
Chronic Dieting: Disordered eating can also manifest in chronic dieting, skipping meals, or obsessing over “clean eating.” If these behaviors affect your well-being, therapy can help.
Effective Therapy for Eating Disorders
At Coastal Collaborative Care, we use evidence-based therapies tailored to your unique needs:
Exposure & Response Prevention (ERP)
This therapy gradually exposes individuals to challenging food situations in a safe and supportive way, helping to reduce anxiety and avoidance behaviors.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
CBT is one of the most effective treatments for eating disorders. It helps individuals:
- Recognize and challenge distorted beliefs about food and body image
- Develop healthier eating habits
- Learn coping skills to manage emotional distress
Accountability plans for eating disorders can help individuals set specific, measurable goals and provide structure for consistent progress toward recovery. They can include structured goals such as regular meals, tracking eating behaviors, or gradual exposure to feared foods, all while being held accountable by the therapist or support network.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
DBT is particularly beneficial for those struggling with emotional eating and impulse control. This therapy teaches:
- Mindfulness to stay present and manage urges
- Distress tolerance to cope with difficult emotions without turning to food
- Emotional regulation techniques to handle stress effectively
Internal Family Systems (IFS) Therapy
IFS therapy focuses on healing internal conflicts that contribute to disordered eating. By fostering self-compassion, this approach helps individuals understand and address the emotional roots of their eating behaviors.
With these therapies, we address co-occurring mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression, which often accompany eating disorders.
Family-Based Therapy (FBT)
We use a modified FBT approach, meeting the family system where they are and incorporating registered dietitians for nutritional support. In addition to involving the family, we offer one-on-one sessions with the adolescent, which is not part of traditional FBT.
This approach, especially effective for adolescents, empowers parents to take an active role in challenging the eating disorder and managing food reintroduction at home, while therapists support the family in fighting the disorder and promoting recovery.
Therapeutic Meal Support Sessions
For individuals recovering from an eating disorder, meals can be one of the most challenging parts of daily life. Therapeutic Meal Support Sessions provide a structured, supportive environment where you can practice eating in a way that aligns with your recovery goals. These sessions include real-time guidance from a therapist who can help you reduce anxiety around food, challenge disordered thoughts, and build confidence in making food choices.
Meet Our Virginia Eating Disorder Therapists
We offer both in-person and virtual therapy to make treatment accessible and personalized to your needs.
Our experienced eating disorder therapists in Virginia take an inclusive, evidence-based, HAES-aligned, and trauma-informed approach to treatment – no matter where you are in your healing journey.
We all have a background in working in eating disorder treatment centers. We have firsthand experience and knowledge of the severity and complexity of eating disorders and their treatment.
Take the Next Step Toward Recovery
If you or a loved one is struggling with an eating disorder, professional support can make all the difference. Our eating disorder therapists in Alexandria, Norfolk and Fredericksburg, Virginia are here to provide compassionate, evidence-based care.
Ready to begin your recovery journey? Contact Coastal Collaborative Care today to schedule a consultation and start building a healthier relationship with food and your body.