Find An Eating Disorder Therapist in Yaletown Vancouver, BC.

Making the first appointment to treat an eating disorder takes courage. It can feel overwhelming to talk about the problem and discover ways to change. I create a safe environment to talk about the fears and worries connected to eating disorders. Some common eating challenges include anorexia, bulimia, over eating, emotional eating, binge eating and over exercising. My practical approach will help you discover new ways of coping and promote long term change.

Eating Disorders can impact someone as negatively as any type of serious addiction. However, unlike addiction treatment plans, food must continue to play a role in your life. My basic goal is to stop further development of any eating problem you may have, and assist you in returning to a healthy lifestyle. The most successful focus is on harm reduction as an overall principle in addressing eating disorders, with the end goal of moving towards complete recovery. I also typically want to establish effective coping skills to reduce the possibility of relapse and sustain the progress you make in therapy.

If you’ve struggled with disordered eating, you are all too familiar with compulsive behavior, obsessive thoughts and a disconnect from the body. You may also have a constant need for control while at the same time feeling a frightening and exhausting loss of all control. Please know that none of this is your choice, but rather is a state of stress and overwhelm while you do your best to feel better. I have nothing but compassion for the distress that comes with food-related challenges, and you have my commitment to help you care for the difficult underlying emotions involved. Together, we will create a safe space to move towards healing and a safe relationship with food and the body.

Eating disorders are often related to trauma, and they are often also related to not feeling in control due to ongoing traumatic events and stress. This is because trauma is not always caused by a major single incident but can instead be can caused by smaller but daily or regularly-experienced trauma such as what might occur within family dynamics or bullying at school. Because they are commonly rooted in trauma and because they can be hard to treat with just talk therapy, EMDR Therapy is an option which can effectively address these devastating conditions and the suffering attached. If you would like further information about this, I encourage you to contact me.

I am able to help clients dealing with anexoria, bulimia or binge eating. By helping clients look at how and why they use food for control, reward, stress management or to deal with other emotions they can begin to change their maladative relationship with food. With some in office techniques and some out of office homework clients can have radical change in their lives. Enjoying food is one of life pleasures.

In helping the clients who struggle with Eating disorder, I benefit from concepts and tasks from internal Family Systems approach . I assist clients explore the different parts of themselves, including those parts that may be driving disordered eating behaviors (e.g., a part that uses food to soothe emotional pain). Through IFS, clients learn to identify and understand these parts, rather than being controlled by them. In addition , Clients with eating disorders often experience internal conflicts, such as feeling simultaneously driven to restrict food and to binge. Clients encouraged to access these conflicting parts, engage with them compassionately.

As an experienced therapist in the area of eating disorders, I have found that often the greatest healing occurs through re-connectiong with the body, developing a trusting and loving relationship with it, and discovering its wisdom. When one begins to trust that that far from being one's enemy, the body is one's constant friend and guide, one's whole experience of self can be transformed. One lives from one's own core rather than focusing on food, body image, and others' evaluations, and therefore one becomes more confident and life becomes richer and freer.

At Yaletown Counselling, we approach eating disorders with compassion, curiosity, and a deep respect for each person's relationship with food, body, and self. We understand that disordered eating is rarely just about food. It is often connected to deeper experiences around control, identity, emotion, and worth. Our trauma-informed counsellors work collaboratively with clients to explore the underlying factors driving these patterns, build a more attuned relationship with themselves, and move toward healing at a pace that feels safe and sustainable.

Eating Disorders are single issues problems and as such should not be treated with a single minded approached to only address ones 'eating'. The whole person's experience, environment, and goals must be taken into consideration in order to create true lasting change. This is why I use Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT) when supporting individuals with ED. Teaching tools to identify and support unique thoughts, emotions and behaviors - while building success on towards attainable goals that are important to the individual. You can take back control over your life.

Eating Disorders develop as a way of navigating deep unresolved emotional pain and trauma. All our emotions and trauma are stored in our bodies. Working with eating disorders involves not only navigating the behavioural symptoms of disordered eating but more importantly developing a compassionate relationship to the body by connecting in, to where the emotional pain is stored. Together, with compassion and understanding we work on lifting the shame connected to body image and the external ways that has been created, then facing the deeper internal emotional issues at the root. It is possible to fully heal from disordered eating.

Eating disorders are difficult because food is such an integral part of our survival and it can be a source of comfort as well as nourishment. We learn our relationship to food as young children and unconscious messages may continue to play a part in our eating habits as we grow older. Strong emotions often play a part as well since "emotional eating" is an attempt to keep our emotional balance. To develop a healthy relationship with food we need to take stock of all the elements of our lives and our culture to find a way to relate differently. You may be overlooking your strengths and be in need of a new perspective to assist in this process. Help is here - you don't need to do this alone.

When it comes to working with clients who are experiencing disordered eating, the first thing to understand is that rarely is it about food itself, and it can affect anyone from all genders, ages, classes, and abilities. I personally understand the amount of stress and anxiety that can arise around eating and body image and want to work with you to pinpoint what is triggering for you about eating. My goal is to help you create and maintain a healthy relationship with food, not a fearful one. By using open, supportive, and non-judgemental dialogue, we can break down the shame and stigma of eating disorders together.

Eating disorders include anorexia, bulimia and even over-eating. Discovering the underlying emotions and beliefs is a key part of this therapy. Issues of control, self-esteem, self image and aloneness are often a part of what is behind this disorder. My goal is to help you uncover these, and then help you accurately define who you are, find new and healthy ways of coping and interacting in your world.