Online Therapy or Telehealth for Eating Disorders

Are you looking for video online therapy for an eating disorder? During the COVID-19 pandemic, we moved our entire practice to telehealth. We now offer ongoing virtual therapy as well as therapy in our office in Los Angeles.

Our eating disorder specialist therapists provide telehealth to patients in California, Florida, Indiana, New York, and South Carolina. We provide telehealth for all eating disorders including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, Orthorexia, and avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID). We also provide treatment for anxiety and depression and eating-related phobias.

Read this page to learn more about telehealth and how it works.

What is Telehealth?

Telehealth is the term used to describe therapy that occurs over a live video connection, allowing you and your therapist to see each other and speak in real-time. Other terms sometimes used include online therapy, teletherapy, telemedicine, video mental health, or video therapy.

Traditionally therapy has occurred in a therapist’s office. Telehealth allows therapy to occur over the internet from your own home, workplace, or other secure location. This is ideal for situations in which patients cannot travel to a therapist’s office, there are no local treatment options, or there is a risk of transmitting a contagious illness. It can also be convenient for patients unable to leave the office during a workday, those without transportation, or those with limited mobility.

Is Telehealth Effective for Eating Disorders?

Did you know that telehealth has been around since the 1950s? It is private, safe, and acceptable. Research confirms telehealth is effective—and, with fast internet speeds and better technology, it is an even better experience. Research shows that telehealth is effective for a number of mental health problems and most patients find it acceptable.

The two main treatments we provide for eating disorders—Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for adults and Family-Based Treatment (FBT) for adolescents—are both well-suited to be provided online. While there are limited treatment studies, research seems to indicate that both CBT and FBT conducted by telehealth are effective and obtain similar results to therapy conducted in the office.

How Online Sessions Are Conducted

We primarily use a HIPAA-compliant encrypted video conferencing system called Doxy or Google Meet. Your clinician will provide you with a link to their online therapy room. You do not need to download any software. A few minutes before the scheduled appointment log in to Doxy or Google Meet (depending on which platform you’ve been instructed to use) and enter your clinician’s virtual waiting room. Authorize your computer’s audio and video and wait for your therapist to admit you.

Insurance Coverage for Telehealth

We charge the same rates for telehealth as in-person. Further information about our fees and insurance coverage is here. Not all insurers cover telehealth sessions. And not all insurance carriers cover telehealth at the same level that they do in-office sessions.

For example, some insurers, carve out their telehealth benefits to a different provider network. Some of these insurers have issued temporary waivers due to the pandemic. Some employers may opt out of these waivers. Thus, it is important to check with your insurance carrier and specifically ask if your insurance covers telehealth sessions with their usual behavioral health network and if there is an end date for this coverage.

Check with your insurer whether video therapy is covered. You will want to ask about the location code of “02” and procedural code modifiers of “GT” or “95.”

What You Need to Know About Video Therapy

Please ensure you have a private, safe, and quiet location from where to conduct your session. Do not attempt to have therapy while you are driving. You will need a computer or smartphone with a camera and a microphone. We advise the use of earphones to protect your privacy from people who may be nearby. Try to make sure you have a strong internet connection. Keeping virus protection software and other software up to date offers further privacy protection. Please check your technology before an initial session. We require you to provide emergency information to your therapist in the event that your connection is disrupted during a crisis.

Please turn off alerts on your phone or computer so they do not interrupt the session. You may also want to turn off “assistant” devices (such as Alexa, Siri, and Google Home) so they do not record and disseminate confidential information.

Your Location for Video Therapy

We can provide video therapy to people when they are physically located in the state of California. We can provide online therapy to people anywhere in the state of California, including San Francisco, San Diego, Fresno, Bakersfield, Sacramento, and Los Angeles. In addition, we have a few therapists licensed in other states so various therapists have some limited availability for counseling for people located in these states:

• New York
• Indiana
• Florida
• South Carolina

We also offer several telehealth eating disorder groups.

 

Begin Online Eating Disorder Treatment in California

You do not have to struggle with your eating disorder alone. Wherever you are in California, we can help. Our Los Angeles, California practice has caring therapists who specialize in the treatment of eating disorders in people of all ages and genders. To begin your online recovery journey, follow these basic steps:

1. Contact Eating Disorder Therapy LA
2. Speak to our practice manager who will match you to an online eating disorder therapist
3. Begin your road to recovery.

In-Person Services at Eating Disorder Therapy LA

All of our eating disorder therapists offer video therapy and some of our therapists also offer in-person therapy in our office in Los Angeles.