eating disorder treatment

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As a leading eating disorder treatment facility, the Victorian prides itself in being at the front lines of the latest eating disorder research and treatments. The more we understand about eating disorders and the several ways they manifest, the better we can treat our clients. Eating disorders are not simply Anorexia, Bulimia and Compulsive Overeating, sometimes they manifest into Exercise Bulimia where a client exercises for hours at a time to purge calories. Another new discovery is Pregorexia where a woman develops Anorexia while being pregnant. She goes on to withhold food from herself and her unborn child. These conditions are new and still being researched, but we have built relationships with specialists who can assist our client. The latest eating disorder discovery is Neophobia, a disordered in which a person is overly selective of their food due to being picky of foods texture and smell. This selectivity limits their diet to only a few foods, limiting nutrients and calories dramatically.

This may sound similar to the picky eating of some young children who resist sauces, spice and certain textures. Although Neophobia has not yet been officially recognized as a mental disorder, the American Psychiatric Association is considering its inclusion in the next edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), the official compendium of emotional and mental disorders.

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and Duke University are studying the problem of extreme picking eating, Nancy Zucker of Duke University first became aware of the disorder when adult picky eaters came to Duke's Center for Eating Disorders seeking help. According to Zucker, this is a real disorder. "People who are picky aren't doing this to be stubborn." Adults with selective eating disorder experience food differently from other people. Instead of avoiding one or two foods, they have such a limited list of acceptable food that their eating interferes with functioning in daily life. This is indicative of a mental disorder, such that it plays out in harming friendships, families and careers. Most people with this eating disorder are very embarrassed by their behavior in relation to food and do everything they can to keep it hidden. In addition to the embarrassment caused by this disorder, doctors are concerned that a limited diet of foods that are low in nutrition can lead to long-term nutritional deficiencies and health problems that can include heart and bone problems similar to the reprecussions of anorexia and bulimia.

One  theory for the causes of Selective Eating Disorder (SED)is that it may be linked to an extreme sensitivity to the smell or texture of food that is often associated with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder or autism.

Bob Krause, 63, of Virginia runs an online support group called PickyEatingAdults.com. Started in 2003, the site has more than 10,000 members that include picky eaters as well as concerned loved ones of the picky eaters.  Krause limits his own diet to milk, toast, crackers, popcorn, peanuts, French fries, grilled cheese sandwiches and plain milk chocolate bars.  Since childhood, Krause has avoided visiting friends at mealtime to avoid being offered food that he has an aversion to. Krause attributes the failure of two marriages to his eating disorder and says that if he could snap his fingers and change, he would. The loss of relationships is often a repercussion of eating disorders.

Nancy Zucker and other scientists at Duke University are developing treatment plans that include slowly introducing people with selective eating disorders to new foods. Treatment also focuses on helping picky eaters overcome their embarrassment about their food preferences and not letting their disorder interfere with personal and business relationships. 

A few years ago The Victorian, Eating Disorder Treatment had the pleasure of working with one exceptionally talented counseling intern, Maggie Baumann. The Victorian clients adored Baumann for her authenticity, insight and strength both in individual counseling and leading group sessions. Years later Baumann has gone on to establish her own counseling practice treating those with eating disorders, dual addictions and trauma therapy. She is also in the process of getting trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) trauma therapy. As well, she has brought light to the eating disorder Pregorexia; the eating disorder which causes a pregnant mother to limit the calories she is giving to herself and her unborn child.

The overwhelming response from those suffering from Pregorexia has led Bauman’s establish a Free Eating Disorder Support Group for women with Pregorexia in Southern California.

Beginning: February 9, 2012

Groups meets weekly: Thursdays • 6:30-7:30 pm

Location: 180 Newport Center Dr., Ste. 270, Newport Beach, CA

Facilitator: Maggie Baumann, MFT

RSVP or for more info: call (949) 439-2607 

or email at Maggie-Baumann@cox.net

Topic of discussion focuses on the impact of eating disorders on pregnant women (and their babies in the womb) and how moms with eating disorders who already have children work towards eating disorder recovery and achieving healthy family relationships.

If you have more questions please feel free to reach out to Maggie Bauman directly. 

Maggie Baumann, MA, MFT
180 Newport Center Dr., Ste. 270
Newport Beach, CA 92660
Tel: (949) 439.2607
www.MaggieBaumann.com

Happy Recovery,

Irvina

The below meetings are the latest and greatest eating disorder recovery meetings in Orange County. We have attended them all and can vouch they are awesome! Check them out!

Monday – 7 PM to 8 PM

@ The Victorian – 509 29^th Street, Newport Beach, CA 92663

This meeting focuses on Anorexics and Bulimic recovery. A speaker shares her experience, strength and hope for 15 minutes and then the meeting is open for response and sharing.

Contact Elyse R. for more info: (714) 316 - 3073

Tuesday – 5:30 PM to 6:30 PM

 @ The Grange - 2144 Thurin Ave Costa Mesa, CA 92627

This meeting is open to everyone struggling with food. A step or tradition from the The 12 Steps & 12 Traditions of Overeaters Anonymous is read and then the meeting is open for response and sharing.

Contact CT T. for more info: (949) 294-1496

Thursday – 7 AM  to 8 AM

@ The Costa Mesa Alano Club- 2040 Placentia Avenue, Costa Mesa, CA 92627

Open to everyone struggling with food issues. This one hour meeting includes 5 minutes of meditation and then the meeting is open for sharing .

Contact Sarah L. for more info: (310) 388-7716

Saturday – 9 AM to 10 AM

@ The Costa Mesa Alano Club – 2040 Placentia Avenue, Costa Mesa, CA 92627

This meeting is open to everyone struggling with food. A reading from the book, For Today of Overeaters Anonymous is read and then the meeting is open for response and sharing.

Contact CT T. for more info: (949) 294-1496

These meetings truly are where the eating disorder recovery is at! I hope to see you all there soon!

Happy Recovery!

Irvina 

The Victorian of Newport Beach is proud to be a leader in eating disorder treatment. The best counselors, therapist, art therapist, dietitians and support staff have put The Victorian on the map for outstanding treatment and recovery. Now, The Victorian is leading the way in eating disorder prevention. Last Saturday night The Victorian was a proud sponsor of the Rewrite Beautiful 1^st Annual Art Show TELEIOS. The Art Show was a fundraiser for the non-profit to continue their Street Art Workshops that change how girls see beauty in themselves and prevent eating disorders. All of the art work for the show was created with the Rewrite Beautiful vision in mind, “Beauty in women is found in ACTIONS of Creativity, Kindness and Strength.” Check out some of the art from the evening:

Gallery attendants were invited to 'Rewrite Beautiful' for themselves.... Check out some of their work....

A Poet Nomad Ali, Correy Adam's Rabble Family Band and Moonsville Collective put some awesome tunes through the gallery....

Rewrite Beautiful will be coming to The Victorian and Sober Living by the Sea in early September to do a Street Art Workshop with our women. Check back soon for pictures from the workshop. 

We hope it inspires you to know that there are artists, musicians, women, men, children and strangers off the street who are passionate about preventing eating disorders. You have a ton of people rooting for your recovery. We hope you join us at The Victorian get recovery for yourself and pass that recovery on and prevent eating disorders from happening to someone else.

Happy Recovery,

Irvina 

The growth process is a tricky, icky, sticky one. I’ve been around for 20 some odd years now and I’m still towel drying off gobs of growth.  A few years ago I met a little boy who had a severe form of Autism. His condition bothered me so much that I did some research on it. I found that Autism is predominantly found in boys over girls. One of the theories is that at conception the fetus is female for 8 weeks, then the Y chromosome develops distinguishing the fetus as a male. The transformation process is so dramatic that birth defects occur during this stage. This particular theory believes that autism takes root during this transformation.  

I thought about this theory as I watched Black Swan, starring Natalie Portman. Portman plays an innocent, sheltered, ballerina with one passion: attaining perfection in her art form. The movie follows Portman as she strives for perfection in her craft and also parallels the imperfection of her human character that reveals itself as she cheats, lies, steals and purges in order to get to the top of her game. Quite the dichotomy eh?

My friends weren’t fans of this movie. I thought the hot and heavy lesbian scenes would at least have made my male counterpart put a 9 on the scoreboard, but even his reaction was, “I’m sorry I suggested we see this and by the way chicks are still crazy.” Personally, I thought it was brilliant. Mostly because it reminded me of myself. [Cue eye rolls.]

I found it captivating because it felt like watching one of the deep, dark secrets of humanity be revealed to a wide eyed teenager. The secret being, not one of us is pure and perfect. Not one. Call me crazy (most people do) but I don’t remember anyone ever telling me this as a child. I remember the world being painted as a grand place with possibility and I was a princess that reigned in it. I remember being encouraged to maintain the perfection of the world. Certain phrases encouraged me:

“Practice make’s perfect”

“The world is a fine place and worth fighting for.”

“You can do anything you put your mind to.”

“You are the best and you deserve the best.”

But, I don’t remember anyone ever sitting me down and telling me.

“There will be a day that you’re so frustrated that you’ll cheat.”

“There will be a time when you want something so bad you’ll steal it.”

“There will be a day that you are so angry you’ll hit someone.”

“There will be a time you will be so disappointed in someone that you’ll gossip.” 

"There will be a day that you'll feel so ugly that you will starve."  

I pretty much figured that stuff out on my own. Well, I was told that lying, cheating, hitting and stealing were bad and not to do them. But, I don’t remember anyone ever telling me that just as much as I am good, I am equally bad and that’s a normal part of being human. It seems to me that as a society we believe it makes more sense to push our youth toward excellence and perfection than educate them on the dark side of humanity. I think that this leaves the entire human race ignorant because we start to hate ourselves for the dark parts of ourselves instead of learning from them.

So what does one do when the dark side starts to show? Like Portman, we try to ignore it so we dance and we dance exceptionally well. To humor you, we’ll just pretend that the crazy ballerina and I are the only people in the world who have ever danced the tango of a double life. Since you haven’t I’ll tell you one thing about it, as the cute British boys say, “It’s bloody hard.” The stark contrast between being pure, white and on the pedestal of perfection and the chaos of hunting, stealing and killing while trying not to get caught is mind rattling. Sometimes the dance between two worlds is so thrilling and fast that one forgets they are dancing at all. But, there is one thing we all know about every performance. Eventually the artist must stop and take a bow. Hopefully that artist can accept the applause with dignity of a job well done. Some (like me) turn around and say, “What did I do? Who are you? And where the hell am I?”

For many years of my life I danced this tango between party-harty-rock and roll and good girl who goes on mission trips with church. I quite arrogantly thought that I had everyone fooled until the dancing of the these two performances collided and left me with only pieces of each one left. Isn’t that what transformation is though? You take what you have; both good and bad, the black and the white and you make something new with them - you make something gray.

I have spent the last few years of my life trying to paint my life with gray. What I have discovered though is in spite of our affection for heather gray v-necks from American Apparel, our society does not like “gray”. We live in a culture of excellence and it doesn’t have the patience to watch a transformation and it certainly is not pleased with imperfection. If you say you’re going to do something, you better do it and you better do it well or dammit I’ll find someone else to dance, employ, date, make my coffee or walk my dog.

While painting the gray swan in me has realized that the applause from the audience only lasts for a few moments. Afterward some will send you flowers and some will tell you, “Beautiful girl, your form – sucks.” I could spend hours improving my form and living off the applause of others or I could accept that I am gray. I could accept that I am awkward, weird, confusing, but also funny, smart and pretty brave, I could applaud myself for that and call it a night. I have learned that being able to accept yourself with all of the slime that goes with it, is a painful transformation, but it can be even more thrilling than perfection. To be gray is to live with freedom.

Staying in the NOW with ED

because they have no thought connection to the binging and starving. They think, I want to be thin…don’t eat…exercise…don’t eat…exercise…” They never get the opportunity to pause and say, “Hey what is going on in this moment in my life. WHY do I want to be thin?” Eventually clients find that the lack of food or excess means something greater than their feeling at the moment.

and discover that they are a completely different person than they thought they were. Sometimes they have a new favorite color or favorite band, some even dabble with the thought of a new occupation. It’s the act of being still, listening to their inner dialogue that they are able to discover themselves and heal.

to be mindful of her feelings. To center herself and find what kind of role she want to play in the world she lives in.

When family members bring their loved ones to treatment for substance abuse and eating disorder issues, the hopeful anticipation is that at discharge, they will be ‘fixed’. Despite the fact that my magic wand holds a special place in my office, it seldom works the way family members want it to. Healing from substance abuse and eating disorder behaviors is a complex and complicated endeavor and requires more than simply work on the sufferer’s behalf. From my perspective, healing is a family affair revolving around the building of open and honest lines of communication. Getting to this point can be challenging and oftentimes the clinician has to overcome significant defenses inherent within the family system.

The goal of family healing is to subvert any notion of blame. Rather the intention is to move from self-absorption or self- flagellation to a place without guilt and shame – a place of openness focused on utilizing the past only for self-discovery and growth. The creation of substance abuse and eating disorder behaviors usually develops from multiple factors rather than one single cause. There is no need to expend time and energy on examining these factors ad infinitum. Most important is to begin with a willingness to create the open, honest lines of communication towards the development of new behaviors and discovery; a willingness to listen and tackle those issues in a significant enough way that allow for listening closely to the sufferer’s story.

There are many contributing factors to the rise of substance abuse and eating disorder behaviors. We live in a world where the media barrage of diet fads and obsessive attention to body image is excessive to say the least. We live in a world where family structures are dissipating which in turn leaves adolescents vulnerable to define their own acceptable sense of self. We live in a world where perfectionism is a common denominator between those who are born to believe they are capable and those who are not. Most importantly there are many exemplifying factors to consider such as stress, depression, socioeconomic positioning, and the list continues.

The most significant factor of all is that the identified sufferer gleans a new perspective on life as do those in the family system who come to the witness the metamorphosis. Oftentimes the metamorphosis is their very own.