FBT Insights from the Neonatal Kitten Nursery

FBT Insights from the Kitten Nursery

I recently began volunteering at the Best Friends Neonatal Kitten Nursery. Best Friends Los Angeles opened its neonatal kitten nursery in February 2013.  The nursery is staffed with a dedicated coordinator and supported by volunteers who sign up for two hour feeding shifts 24 hours a day to help the kittens grow and thrive. If …

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Look before you leap: Binge Eating Disorder, Vyvanse, and Evidence-Based Psychotherapies

Vyvanse medication for Binge Eating Disorder in Los Angeles, CA [Image description: drawing of 2 pills outside of a prescription pill bottle, representing potential Vyvanse for a patient with Binge Eating Disorder in California]

Learn Why Therapy is Superior to Medication for The Treatment of Binge Eating Disorder by Elisha M. Carcieri, Ph.D., Psychologist, and staff therapist Binge eating disorder (BED) made headlines when the FDA approved lisdexamfetamine dimesylate (Vyvanse) for the treatment of BED. So, what is BED, how is it treated, and what does this treatment option mean …

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Ten Facts About Weight Stigma – Guest post by Liliana Almeida, Ph.D.

Weight Stigm [Image description: larger black woman holding towel that says "wide load"]

  Weight stigma is a bias or discrimination relating directly to weight. Despite the fact that more than half of U.S. citizens are larger-bodied, our society holds a strong negative bias against fatness. The media reinforces weight stigma. The media, such as news media, displays persons in larger bodies in stigmatizing ways by depicting them …

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Parental direction works, but don’t expect your kid to be happy about it: Research on The Family Meal in FBT

family at family meal in FBT [Image description: a family with their backs to us sits around a table] Represents a potential family in California receiving FBT for their teens eating disorder

Family-Based Treatment (FBT) is the best-researched outpatient treatment for teen eating disorders, including anorexia. In FBT, the family plays a central role in treatment. Through family meals, parents restore their teens to health and interrupt eating disorder behaviors. In FBT, parents plan, prepare, serve, and supervise meals. Usually, parents are left wondering 1) how to …

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Recognizing and Managing the Subtler Signs of Starvation in Children with EDs

Signs of Anorexia

This interaction on twitter caught my eye: Watching cooking shows, collecting and reading recipes, and cooking for others (but not eating it oneself) are some of the earliest signs of anorexia that are often missed and misinterpreted by parents.  In Keys’ landmark study “The Biology of Human Starvation” male volunteers were put on starvation diets.  …

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Presentation on Social Media for Psychologists

  Reprinted from the Rutgers GSAPP website:   Dr. Lauren Muhlheim “Use of Social Media by Professional Psychologists”   On Wednesday March 27, 2014, faculty and students at the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology (GSAPP) gathered to hear a colloquium presentation by Lauren Muhlheim, Psy.D, CEDS (Clinical, 1995). Dr. Muhlheim is a prominent …

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Highlights from #ICED2014: The FBT Debate

Drs. Le Grange and Strober

ICED 2014 in New York provided a wonderful opportunity to connect with colleagues from around the world who share a commitment to providing treatment to those suffering from eating disorders. Among the highlights for me were the well-attended, first-ever tweetUP and my official appointment as Board Director for Outreach of the Academy for Eating Disorders. …

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FBT Meal Strategies Gleaned from Ziplining

FBT Meal Strategies Gleaned from Ziplining

Understanding and Responding to Your Youngster’s Fear: A Metaphor I often explain to parents that for a youngster suffering from an eating disorder, a meal can feel dangerous – like jumping out of an airplane. A couple of years ago I had the opportunity to (almost) live out this metaphor on a family vacation. This …

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Who Killed the 50 minute session?

What Consumers Should Know about Changes to Psychotherapy Sessions in 2013 By Lauren Muhlheim, Psy.D., CEDS and Kantor & Kantor, LLP Unbeknownst to most mental health consumers, a change went into effect in January, 2013 that may have far-reaching ramifications for those receiving outpatient psychotherapy.  For the first time in 15 years, changes were made …

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