The Dietician in Your Road to Recovery
Having a dietitian on your eating disorder treatment team helps to keep a separation between the food and therapy pieces of treatment, which is vital for recovery. While classified as psychiatric illnesses, eating disorders encompass several nutritional and medical aspects which require the knowledge of a registered dietitian. For example, eating disorders involve abnormal eating behaviors that need to be normalized with an individualized meal plan. You will work with your dietitian to set goals and establish a plan to help you achieve those goals. You will also receive valuable education about body weight regulation, energy balance, misconceptions about dieting and weight control, and the physical effects of eating disorders.
While eating disorders stem from emotional issues and are not about food, nutrition therapy is essential to your physical recovery. As you regain your health, you may be surprised at how more effective your therapy sessions become. A dietitian can help you achieve a healthy weight range in a slow, reasonable way and can work with you in breaking difficult cycles often associated with an eating disorder.
When deciding to add nutrition therapy as a component to your treatment team, it is important that you find a dietitian who is a good match for you. A dietitian who specializes in the treatment of eating disorders is knowledgeable of how difficult it is to recover from an eating disorder, but knows that it is very possible and will be dedicated to help you achieve recovery. It is the dietitian’s goal to help you achieve this normal relationship with food without the fear, obsession, guilt, or anxiety which is associated with an eating disorder. When combined with psychotherapy, nutrition intervention is invaluable for effective treatment of eating disorders.