FREE Virtual Adult ARFID Support Group for people in California

Celebrating two years of this group on March 10!

The group meets EVERY Thursday at 5 pm unless we notify you otherwise. Contact hello@EDTLA.com for the link.

We are seeing more and more need for treatment for Avoidant Restrictive Intake Disorder (ARFID). Several of our clinicians have several years of experience in treating ARFID and have undergone training in CBT-AR with Drs Thomas and Eddy, the developers of CBT-AR.

The patients we see with ARFID are usually relieved to find a treatment that is tailored to them. They report not knowing other people with ARFID and not having people in their lives who understand what it is like to live with ARFID. They report feeling like they don’t fit in in other eating disorder recovery and support spaces.

So, here we have it, a space just for adults with ARFID. Open to anyone in California, age 18 and up with ARFID. Come for support and education.

This group is ongoing (since March 2021) and is held online on Thursday evenings, 5 to 6 pm. Run by Dr. Muhlheim.

Call 323-743-1122 or email hello@EDTLA.com to reserve a spot. More info (including all weeks the group is canceled) is available on the ARFID group page.

 

Teen Recovery Group

Our teen group is open to teens of all genders in California, ages 13 to 18, who are in Phase 2 of FBT and are weight recovered and abstinent from eating disorder behaviors. It’s also open to teens not treated with FBT but who are at a similar place in recovery. Teens who are not in treatment with us, but who show similar signs of recovery will be assessed for readiness for our group.

The group meets weekly for 6 weeks and is held on Tuesdays from 4:30 to 5:45 pm. The group aims to help teens in recovery develop connections and build a strong anti-diet HAES (R) stance. In this six-week online group, we will explore how to bolster recovery through flexible eating and strengthening coping skills. Members will be able to share and connect through discussion, advocacy, and art while developing strategies to promote empowerment and body acceptance.

The group is led by Lauren Barker, LMFT who has a lot of experience with this population. Contact us now to get on the waiting list. hello@EDTLA.com. Space is limited. This group is offered several times a year.

Pricing: $270 for 6 weeks. Or in-network for teens with Anthem, Aetna, Beacon Partners, and Anthem medi-Cal insurance

To register or for more information, email hello@EDTLA.com  and put “teen group” in the subject line. For more information, visit the teen group page.

ARFID Parent Support Group

We welcome parents of youth 10 to 20 with Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) to our virtual support group.

Parenting a young person with ARFID is challenging. Feeding a child or teen or young adult with ARFID is extremely challenging. Meals may feel like a constant struggle. You have likely been given conflicting advice about whether to cater to their food preferences or not. You may feel like you’re running ragged searching for their preferred brand of yogurt or chicken nuggets or having to bring home the exact right fast food every night. You may have run out of ideas for what to serve them. They may be eating the same eight foods over and over again and the list of foods they are willing to eat only seems to get smaller over time. You feel worried about their health and you know they are not getting enough nutrition.

We have been supporting parents in supporting their teens with ARFID. Our work is rooted in Family-Based Treatment for child and teen eating disorders and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for ARFID. In our work with families of teens with ARFID, we see how hard it is to parent and feed and support recovery. This is why we have created a monthly support group for parents of teens with ARFID.

This monthly group is alternately led by Lauren Muhlheim, Psy.D., CEDS-S and Carolyn Comas, LCSW, CEDS-S over zoom. We will provide psychoeducation about ARFID, the different types of ARFID, how it may develop, maintaining factors, and recovery strategies. Parents will be able to share struggles and successes.

For more information about the group check out our Parent ARFID Support group page or please contact hello@EDTLA.com or you may register for the monthly group (priced at $30) on our group registration page. (Please be sure you are registering for our monthly ARFID Parent group and NOT our free weekly Adult ARFID group).

 

Virtual Meal Support Group

Our weekly meal support group is open to those struggling with an eating disorder or disordered eating who would like a supportive, recovery-minded space to connect with others while eating a meal or a snack. Our support group is led by our externs, Taylor and Mikayla, who are supervised by Lauren Muhlheim, Psy., PSY15045. $10 for the month, attend as many times (up to 4) as you would like. Register for the current our next month on our group registration page.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eating and Body Image Therapy Group for Men

We are excited to announce our Eating and Body Image Therapy Group for men beginning in September, 2022 over Zoom.

This group is for men who are looking for a supportive space to discuss issues around body and eating and/or are looking to add group therapy to their eating disorder recovery. If you are tired of pursuing thinness/fitness or have struggled with disordered eating, and are interested in divesting from diet culture, this group is for you. Through connection we will explore diet culture and the pressures on males to have a perfect body. We will work to heal your relationship with your body and will learn about non-diet approaches to health.

The group will meet weekly on Wednesday evenings at 6 pm over Zoom and is open to anyone ages 18 and up who identifies as male and is located in the state of California. This group is for you if you are looking for a supportive environment to discuss issues surrounding body image and eating and what it is like to be male in our culture.

The group is led by Jonathan Dang, LMFT, who is passionate about supporting males with eating and body issues. Jonathan is currently pursuing certification as an eating disorder specialist. Learn more about our male eating disorder group. Or for more information, please email hello@EDTLA.com and put “Male Group” in the subject line.