Eating Disorder Treatment

Eating disorders are complex psychological conditions—not problems with food or willpower. They're sophisticated strategies for managing overwhelming emotions, maintaining control, or expressing what feels impossible to say directly.

The restriction, bingeing, purging, or compulsive exercise serves psychological functions: emotional regulation, self-soothing, control, or communication. These patterns typically developed when you needed ways to cope with experiences that felt unbearable.

My Approach

I work with eating disorders using both CBT-E (Enhanced Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) and Schema Therapy, adapting to what you need at different points in recovery.

The practical work matters. Breaking restriction-binge cycles, challenging food rules, reducing body checking, developing regular eating patterns—these CBT-E skills create stability and reduce the immediate grip of eating disorder behaviours.

And so do the deeper roots. For many people, eating disorders developed as responses to overwhelming emotions, trauma, unmet needs, or attachment wounds. Understanding these underlying patterns—through Schema Therapy—helps create lasting change rather than just symptom management.

In practice, this means we work with both. We address the behaviours and thought patterns maintaining your eating disorder while also making space for the emotional injuries underneath. Some sessions focus on eating patterns and food rules. Others explore the vulnerable or critical parts of yourself that show up around food and body image.

Whether you've been referred for CBT-E or you're seeking deeper trauma-focused work, I adapt the approach to your presentation and what you're ready for. Recovery isn't one-size-fits-all.

Common Presentations

Anorexia Nervosa: Often develops as a way to manage emotions through control, achieve impossible standards, or make yourself smaller when your needs felt too big.

Bulimia Nervosa: Restriction-binge-purge cycles serving complex functions—restriction providing control, bingeing offering escape, purging attempting to eliminate distress.

Binge Eating Disorder: Typically functions as emotional regulation—using food to soothe or escape difficult feelings when other forms of comfort felt unavailable.

OSFED: Eating patterns that don't fit diagnostic categories but significantly impact your life—often involving similar underlying functions.

Many people I work with describe childhoods where emotions weren't welcomed, bodies weren't safe, or needs had to be minimised.

Collaborative Care

Eating disorder treatment requires medical monitoring. I work with GPs who monitor physical health and HAES-aligned dietitians who support nutrition rehabilitation.

You need medical stability for outpatient work. If you're experiencing medical complications, your GP monitors vitals throughout treatment.

When you need more intensive support: I refer to specialist eating disorder day programs or inpatient facilities when needed. My work suits people who are medically stable for outpatient therapy.

Dietitian work: I collaborate with HAES dietitians focused on relearning body signals and developing sustainable eating patterns.

Getting Started

I offer a 15-minute phone consultation to discuss your situation and work out how I can best support you.

We'll talk about your eating disorder presentation, what you've tried before, your current medical supports, and what you're hoping to get from treatment.

If you're looking for eating disorder support—whether that's practical skills work, deeper trauma-focused therapy, or both—reach out to see if we're a good fit.

Crisis support: If you're experiencing a mental health crisis or medical emergency, contact your GP, present to emergency, or call Lifeline (13 11 14). For eating disorder specific support, contact Butterfly Foundation on 1800 33 4673.