Therapy for Eating Disorders: Exploring Different Approaches and the Benefits of Working with a Specialist

If you’re struggling with your relationship to food, your body, or both, you’re not alone. Therapy can be a powerful part of the healing process. But with so many types of eating disorders and therapy approaches out there, it’s natural to feel overwhelmed.

Whether you're just starting to explore therapy for eating disorders or seeking clarity around treatment options, this guide is here to support you.

What Is an Eating Disorder?

Eating disorders are serious mental health conditions that go far beyond food. They often involve distressing thoughts about weight, shape, and self-worth, impacting physical health, relationships, and emotional well-being.

If you're preoccupied with food, body image, or feel overwhelmed by guilt or anxiety after eating, you're not alone. And you don’t need a diagnosis to seek support from an eating disorder therapist.

Signs You Might Be Struggling with Disordered Eating

• Obsessive thoughts about food, weight, or appearance

• Extreme restriction or frequent overeating

• Guilt or shame after eating

• Avoiding meals or social events due to body concerns

• Compensating for eating through purging or excessive exercise

• Perfectionism and self-criticism

Even if your experience doesn’t fit into a neat diagnostic category, it still matters, and support is available.

Who Can Experience an Eating Disorder?

Anyone. Eating disorders affect people of all genders, ages, body sizes, races, and backgrounds. You deserve care and compassion, no matter your story.

Types of Eating Disorders

Eating disorders don’t always look the way we’ve been taught to expect. They’re not just about food or weight, they’re often about pain, shame, fear, or feeling out of control. These struggles can show up in many ways, and every experience is valid.

Below are some of the more common eating disorders, described in a way that centers your lived experience, not just a diagnosis.

Anorexia

Anorexia often shows up as an intense fear of gaining weight or losing control, even when your body is already under stress. It can involve strict rules around food, exercise, or “being good,” and can feel like a way to cope with deeper pain.

It’s not just about wanting to be thin, although it can be, or that can be a part of it. It’s often about trying to feel safe, in control, or worthy. You don’t have to look a certain way to be struggling with anorexia. If you’re caught in patterns of restriction or perfectionism, you deserve support.

Bulimia

Bulimia involves cycles of bingeing and purging, eating large amounts of food in secret, then trying to “make up” for it through vomiting, fasting, or overexercising. It’s often fueled by shame and a sense of losing control.

You might look fine on the outside, but feel completely exhausted inside. Bulimia can feel lonely and confusing, especially when no one sees how much you’re hurting. You’re not broken — you’re coping. And you don’t have to do it alone.

Binge Eating Disorder (BED)

BED includes episodes of eating large amounts of food, often quickly and in secret, followed by guilt, shame, or numbness. It’s not about a lack of willpower, it’s a response to emotional pain, stress, or unmet needs.

With Binge Eating Disorder, you might feel out of control around food or like you’re constantly “starting over.” This doesn’t mean you’ve failed. It means something deeper is asking to be understood and cared for — and recovery can begin with kindness, not punishment.

OSFED (Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder)

OSFED covers a wide range of disordered eating that doesn’t fit neatly into one label, but is still painful, real, and deserving of help. You might restrict, binge, or purge in ways that don’t match a textbook definition, but still feel deeply stuck.

Many people fall into this category and feel like they’re “not sick enough.” That’s simply not true. Your experience is valid, and you don’t need a perfect label to begin healing.

It’s Common to Have a Mix of Symptoms

You don’t have to “fit a label” to get help. Many people experience overlapping symptoms, and therapy can be tailored to what you need.

Absolutely. Here’s an expanded, client-focused version of the "Why Do People Get Eating Disorders?" section. It keeps the tone compassionate and non-clinical while offering a deeper, more relatable explanation:

Why Do People Get Eating Disorders?

There’s no one-size-fits-all reason someone develops an eating disorder. These struggles aren’t about vanity or willpower. They’re often ways of trying to cope, survive, or find control in a world that can feel overwhelming, painful, or unsafe.

For some, disordered eating may begin as a way to feel in control during times of chaos. For others, it might serve as a shield, a way to numb emotions, avoid vulnerability, or feel "good enough" in a world full of unrealistic expectations. The behaviors can be powerful, even comforting at times, but they often come at a high emotional cost.

Here are just a few of the deeper reasons that might be behind an eating disorder:

• Trauma or emotional pain
  Past experiences like abuse, neglect, bullying, or sudden loss can leave emotional wounds that aren’t always easy to name. Sometimes food becomes the language we use to express or silence that pain.

• Cultural and societal pressure
  We live in a world that idolizes thinness, productivity, and perfection. Diet culture, fatphobia, and gendered expectations can make it feel like your worth depends on how you look or how little you eat.

• Mental health struggles
  Anxiety, depression, OCD, or other mental health conditions often show up alongside eating disorders. Disordered behaviors can be a way of managing intense emotions or creating a sense of structure when everything feels out of control.

• Identity and belonging
  If you’ve struggled to feel at home in your body, eating disorders can emerge as a way to try and "fit in," escape, or cope with feelings of dysphoria, invisibility, or rejection.

Everyone’s story is different. Your eating disorder may have started gradually or suddenly, with roots that are easy to trace or not. You don’t need to fully understand “why” in order to begin healing. But exploring the deeper layers of your experience can be a powerful part of recovery.

Therapies That Support Eating Disorder Recovery

There’s no one-size-fits-all path to healing, and your therapy should reflect that. Many people benefit from a combination of approaches in therapy for eating disorders, depending on their unique experiences, values, and goals. Below are some of the ways therapy can support your recovery.

EMDR & Trauma-Informed Therapy

If your eating disorder is connected to trauma, whether from childhood, relationships, body-based shame, or other painful experiences, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) can help. It works by gently helping your brain “digest” distressing memories so they no longer feel so charged or stuck.

In trauma-informed therapy, we also move at your pace, with deep respect for your nervous system. We focus on creating safety not just in the therapy room, but in your body. The goal isn't to force change, but to support you in feeling more regulated, resourced, and connected to yourself.

Gender-Affirming Therapy

Eating disorders can be especially complex for LGBTQIA+ folks, particularly when body image is shaped by gender dysphoria, cultural expectations, or experiences of marginalization. Gender-affirming therapy offers a safe space where all parts of your identity are welcomed and honored.

This kind of support isn’t about trying to “fix” you it’s about exploring how your relationship with your body has been shaped by the world around you, and finding ways to reclaim safety, authenticity, and joy in your body.

Narrative Therapy

We all carry stories about our worth, our bodies, and what we’re allowed to want or need. Often, eating disorders are tangled up in these stories: ones we’ve internalized from family, media, or culture. Narrative therapy helps you gently examine these beliefs and begin rewriting them in a way that feels more true to you.

In our work, we’ll explore questions like: Where did this story come from? Who does it serve? What do you want to believe instead? This process can be incredibly liberating, especially if you’ve spent years stuck in self-blame or perfectionism.

Relational Therapy

Relational therapy is rooted in the idea that healing happens through connection. Eating disorders often thrive in isolation or secrecy, and therapy can be a place where you experience something different: attunement, presence, and acceptance.

In this approach, the relationship between you and your therapist is part of the healing. Together, we can explore how your past relationships have shaped your sense of self and how you can begin to build more supportive, nourishing connections (including with yourself).

CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy)

CBT focuses on how your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are connected and how changing one can influence the others. In eating disorder recovery, this might mean identifying distorted thoughts like “I’m only lovable if I’m thin” and learning how to challenge them.

This approach can also include practical tools, like creating regular eating patterns, reducing all-or-nothing thinking, and developing coping strategies for high-risk situations. CBT is often structured and goal-oriented, which some people find especially helpful in early recovery.

DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy)

DBT is especially helpful if you experience intense emotions, self-criticism, or urges to cope in ways that feel harmful. It teaches specific skills to manage distress, build emotional resilience, and practice self-compassion, all essential tools in recovery.

What Does an Eating Disorder Therapist Actually Do?

An eating disorder therapist is more than someone who helps you change your eating habits. We’re here to support your whole self, not just the symptoms you’re struggling with. Healing isn’t about fixing you; it’s about helping you feel safe, seen, and empowered to reclaim your relationship with food, body, and identity.

Here’s what that might look like:

• Creating a safe, nonjudgmental space to explore your story.
  Therapy is a space where you don’t have to perform, explain, or hide. Your experiences, no matter how messy or confusing they may feel, are welcome here.

• Supporting healing from trauma, shame, or self-criticism.
  Eating disorders often develop as ways to cope with deeper emotional pain. We’ll work together to gently understand the roots, whether that’s past trauma, identity struggles, or overwhelming pressure to be "enough."

• Helping you build a more peaceful, compassionate relationship with food and your body.
  This might mean challenging harmful beliefs, practicing body neutrality, or developing new ways to cope with hard emotions — all at your own pace.

• Collaborating with other providers when needed.
  Eating disorder recovery can involve support from dietitians, doctors, or other specialists. If that’s part of your journey, I’ll help coordinate care in a way that feels cohesive and respectful of your goals.

You’re Not Alone in This — Let’s Begin the Journey Toward Healing, Together

Hi, I’m Lizzie — A Vermont-based eating Disorder Therapist

I specialize in helping people reconnect with their bodies, identities, and sense of self beyond the eating disorder. My approach is relational, trauma-informed, and deeply compassionate. I draw from EMDR, Narrative Therapy, and Relational Therapy to meet you where you are, not where you think you should be.

You might already know that you're worthy of healing, but not feel it yet, and that’s okay. You don’t need to have it all figured out before reaching out. In therapy, we’ll explore the deeper roots of your relationship with food and body at a pace that feels safe, supportive, and honoring of your experience.

Whether you’re navigating the aftermath of trauma, wrestling with critical inner voices, or just feeling exhausted by the pressure to “fix” yourself, you deserve care that truly sees you. You don’t have to do this alone.

If you’re ready to begin or just curious about what therapy might look like, I invite you to reach out.

Find Compassionate, Inclusive Support for Every Step of Your Journey With Therapy for Eating Disorders in Burlington, VT

No matter where you are in your healing process, Therapy With Lizzie offers a safe, affirming space to explore your relationship with food, body, and self. If you're feeling overwhelmed, isolated, or unsure where to start, you're not alone — support is available and tailored to your unique story. Reach out today to learn more about how therapy for eating disorders in Burlington, VT can help you move toward the life you deserve. Follow these three simple steps to get started:

1. Reach out to schedule a free consultation.

2. Meet with me, Lizzie Werner-Gavrin, an experienced eating disorder therapist.

3. Start getting support and begin healing!

Additional Online Services I Provide Throughout Vermont

Recovering from an eating disorder is a deeply personal process, and working with a therapist can offer the guidance and care needed along the way. At Therapy With Lizzie, I help individuals navigate anxiety, build resilience, and find relief from stress. My practice is a welcoming, affirming environment for adults exploring gender identity and sexuality. Whether you're processing trauma, facing emotional challenges, or reconnecting with your authentic self, I’m here to walk alongside you with empathy and support.