Eating Disorder Treatment
Overcome anorexia, bulimia, binge eating, and similar conditions with compassionate, empowering treatment for eating disorders.
When Eating Habits Become Dangerous
Maybe you started out with good intentions, wanting to diet and lose weight. Perhaps you’ve struggled with your body image throughout your life. No one ever intends to develop an eating disorder. Yet over 28 million people will experience an eating disorder at some point in their lives, according to the National Eating Disorders Association.
An eating disorder is a complex mental health condition that can negatively impact every aspect of your life. As a result, eating disorders can be difficult to treat, especially when treatment is focused only on visible behaviors and symptoms. But at Integrative Life Center, we address the root causes of your eating disorder, so you can find complete healing, approach food in a healthy way, and reclaim your life.
Ready to Achieve Lasting Recovery? Our Eating Disorders Treatment Program Can Help
What is an Eating Disorder?
An eating disorder is characterized by abnormal eating behaviors, which often stem from deep-rooted emotional issues such as anxiety, depression, or trauma. Preoccupation with food, your body weight, or your body shape can also indicate an eating disorder, shares the National Institute of Mental Health. Common eating disorders include anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating disorder.
Eating disorders can significantly impact your physical and emotional health, often leading to social isolation, relationship difficulties, and impaired functioning in various areas of your life. If left untreated, your eating disorder can lead to serious health consequences, including death.
Eating Disorders We Treat at Integrative Life Center
Our Nashville-based eating disorder treatment program is ideal for anyone who suffers from physical, emotional, or psychological symptoms of eating disorders but does not require hospitalization. Specific eating disorders we treat include:
Anorexia Nervosa
Associated with extreme weight loss, people with anorexia restrict their calorie intake by eating far less than a healthy amount of food.
Anorexia Nervosa Symptoms:
- Inability to maintain a healthy body weight
- Making regular comments about feeling ugly, fat, or unattractively shaped
- Showing concern about eating in front of others
- Developing brittle or thin hair, skin, and nails
Bulimia Nervosa
Due to a distorted body image, people with bulimia will eat large amounts of food and then attempt to purge what they eat to lose weight.
Bulimia Nervosa Symptoms:
- Leaving after eating something to go to the bathroom
- Engaging in binge eating, secretive eating, or stealing food
- Unnatural bloating
- Discolored or stained teeth
- Smells of vomiting or used laxative packages in bathrooms
Binge Eating Disorder
Associated with eating large quantities of food all at once, people with binge eating disorder often engage in a cycle of overeating and feeling guilt or shame as result, leading to obesity.
Binge Eating Disorder Symptoms:
- Feeling uncomfortable eating around others
- Hoarding or hiding food in strange places
- Extreme weight fluctuations
- Wearing baggy clothes
Pica
Associated with eating items not typically considered food, people with pica will eat dirt, hair, paint, metal, and other substances with no nutritional value.
Orthorexia
Those diagnosed with orthorexia will have an obsession with pure or healthy eating that leads to malnutrition and impaired well-being.
Rumination Disorder
People with rumination disorder will regularly regurgitate food for at least one month. Once regurgitated, the food may be re-chewed, swallowed, or spit out.
Other Specified Eating Disorder
When an eating disorder meets some, but not all of the criteria for anorexia, bulimia, or binge eating, this condition is called Other Specified Eating Disorder. Atypical anorexia nervosa would be an example of this type of eating disorder.
Disordered Eating
Sometimes a person’s habits and behaviors with food, diet, and exercise don’t fit neatly into the category of an eating disorder or meet all of its clinical criteria. Referred to as disordered eating, this situation can still cause significant pathological or distressing experiences.
Examples of Disordered Eating Include:
- Using food as a way to punish yourself
- Chronic dieting, crash dieting, or yo-yo dieting
- Disconnection to hunger or fullness cues that cause unhealthy eating patters
- Overly frequent use of food as a self-soothing tool
Addressing Any Co-Occurring Disorders in Eating Disorder Treatment
When someone struggles with an eating disorder, often there are also co-occurring disorders present below the surface. Frequently, those experiencing eating disorders may also suffer from:
- Depression or anxiety
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder
- Personality disorders
- PTSD or trauma
- Alcohol addiction
- Drug addiction
That’s why we take a comprehensive approach to treatment for eating disorders at Integrative Life Center, so you can address both issues at once. By healing all of your underlying struggles, you can be empowered to thrive well on your own long-term.
Get the Peace of Mind You Deserve With Our Holistic Eating Disorder Treatment
Finding Healing at Eating Disorder Treatment Centers: What to Expect at Integrative Life Center
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution to eating disorder treatment. Yet we believe trauma-informed care that addresses both the physical and mental aspects of your eating disorder gives you the greatest chance at recovery. Here’s what you can expect when you partner with us:
Medical Nutrition Therapy
We provide an intimate, relaxed setting for containing your eating disorder with supervised snacks and meals so you can restore your weight and eat healthy again. Using an all-fit-foods perspective, we meet you where you are, working with your food preferences to ensure you get the nutrition you need.
Trauma-Informed Care: Understanding the Why
We take time to uncover the root cause of your eating disorder so you can process your trauma and understand what led to your eating disorder. With greater awareness, you can learn what’s driving your habits and confidently develop healthy coping strategies and empowering skills for the long haul.
Experience Holistic Therapy Options at Our Eating Disorders Treatment Program
We take an integrated, holistic approach to our treatment for eating disorders, personalizing our care to meet your individual needs. This includes a variety of traditional and experiential therapy options, including:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy
- Dialectical behavior therapy
- Acceptance commitment therapy
- Psychodynamic therapy
- Individual and group therapy
- Breathwork
- Yoga
- Art and music therapy
- Brainspotting
Explore Our Women’s Inpatient Eating Disorder Treatment Program
Located on a sprawling West Tennessee estate, our women’s residential eating disorder treatment program offers intensive, 24-hour care in a safe, supportive, and healing environment. With our help, you can overcome the root causes of your eating disorder and create lasting change.
Researching Eating Disorder Treatment Centers? Begin Your Healing Journey Today
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