Disordered Eating · Adults · Telehealth Therapy
The relationship with food is never just about food.
Whether you're bingeing or living in a cycle that doesn't have a clean name this work is nuanced, non-judgmental, and built on understanding what the eating behavior is actually doing.
You don't need a diagnosis to deserve support.
Disordered eating exists on a wide spectrum. Most people in the middle of it don't recognize themselves in clinical language they're not sure they're sick enough, not sure the label applies, not sure what category they fall into. None of that matters as a prerequisite for care.
What matters is that the relationship with food is causing distress, affecting your body, taking up more mental real estate than you'd choose, or driving patterns you've tried to change without success. That's enough. You don't need to have a diagnosable eating disorder to deserve thoughtful, specific treatment.
What I work with.
Binge eating, including binge eating that comes with restriction, which is different from binge eating alone and requires a different treatment approach. The restrict-binge cycle particularly when it's driven by ADHD biology rather than by traditional eating disorder mechanisms.
When ADHD food patterns become disordered eating.
Not every ADHD-related food pattern meets criteria for an eating disorder. But ADHD food patterns can develop into clinical eating disorder presentations binge eating disorder, restriction, or a cycle that carries elements of both. The ADHD complicates the eating disorder treatment and the eating disorder complicates the ADHD treatment, which is why they need to be held in the same clinical frame rather than addressed by separate providers who aren't talking to each other.
I also work with the OCD-eating disorder overlap when it's present the rigid food rules, the compulsive quality of restriction, the checking behaviors that look like OCD because they are OCD. When more than one mechanism is driving the eating pattern, treatment needs to account for all of them.
How the treatment works.
Eating disorder treatment here starts with understanding what the eating behavior is doing- what it's regulating, protecting, communicating, or organizing and addresses that directly alongside the behavioral piece. Telling someone to eat differently without understanding the function of their eating pattern is why so much eating disorder treatment produces limited results.
The approach is evidence-based. For restriction and binge eating I draw on CBT-based frameworks adapted to the specific presentation. For ARFID I use CBT-AR the evidence-based approach for avoidant and restrictive eating. For presentations that overlap with OCD I incorporate ERP into the treatment framework.
This work is non-judgmental and non-diet. I'm not orienting the work around weight or food quantity. I'm orienting it around function, pattern, and the experience of the person in the room.
When appropriate I coordinate with a registered dietitian particularly when a client's nutritional situation requires attention that goes beyond the psychological and behavioral work. The best eating disorder outcomes typically involve coordinated care between the therapist and dietitian, and I treat that coordination as part of my clinical responsibility.
When eating disorders and OCD overlap.
Some disordered eating presentations have an OCD mechanism driving them the food rules with a compulsive quality, the restriction rituals, the checking behaviors that escalate over time and require more effort to produce the same relief. When this is present, treating the eating disorder without treating the OCD cycle underneath it is why so many people plateau.
I work with the overlap between OCD and eating disorders specifically not as two separate problems treated in sequence, but as an integrated clinical picture that requires a therapist who understands both.
Common questions.
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A: Eating behavior is maintained by psychological, behavioral, and biological factors that willpower and self-discipline alone don't address. Most people who have been trying to change their eating without success aren't lacking motivation — they're missing an accurate map of what's actually maintaining the pattern. Therapy identifies the function of the eating behavior and addresses it directly, which is different from trying harder at the same approach that hasn't worked.
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A: Binge eating exists on a spectrum. Binge Eating Disorder is a diagnosable condition, but binge eating that doesn't meet full criteria is still worth addressing particularly when it's causing significant distress or physical harm, or when it's part of a restrict-binge cycle. What matters clinically is understanding what's driving the pattern, not whether the label applies precisely.
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A: Yes. The ADHD-eating disorder overlap is one of the presentations I work with most specifically. ADHD biology drives eating patterns in ways that standard eating disorder treatment doesn't account for, and the eating disorder treatment needs to address the ADHD mechanism alongside the eating behavior for meaningful change.
The pattern makes sense in context.
Whatever the eating behavior is doing, it's doing something. Understanding what that is and addressing it directly is what changes it. The consultation is free and a good place to start.
Virtual · Licensed in CO · ID · SC · Currently accepting new clients