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By: Megan Samuels, MSW, LCSW-C, Eating Disorder & Trauma Therapist  Thank you for taking the time to learn more about how to support a friend who is navigating eating disorder recovery! Your support can make a meaningful difference, and it’s wonderful that you’re seeking guidance. Below, you’ll find three key tips to help you show up with compassion, knowledge, and confidence. Tip #1: Educate Yourself The world of eating disorders and recovery comes with its own set of terms, concepts, and acronyms. Familiarizing yourself with this language can help you better understand what your friend is experiencing—and how to support them. Some common terms include: intuitive eating, diet culture, weight cycling, Health at Every Size (HAES), and weight bias. Here are a few book recommendations to get you started:
Tip #2: Support Yourself & Do Your Own Work Supporting someone through eating disorder recovery can be emotionally taxing. It’s important to care for your own mental health, too. I often encourage loved ones to seek their own professional support—whether through therapy, coaching, or educational resources. Our clinicians understand the challenges that can come with supporting someone in recovery. We’re here to help you show up for your friend while also taking care of yourself. We can also assist with the educational component from Tip #1. In sessions, we provide extensive psychoeducation on intuitive eating, weight bias, and diet culture, and we’re happy to help you process any questions, worries, or misconceptions you may have. How We Can Help:
You might also consider support groups for friends and loved ones offered by some practices and treatment centers. Hearing from others in similar situations can be incredibly validating. Tip #3: Encourage Your Friend to Seek Professional Help Eating disorders are complex medical and mental health conditions with one of the highest mortality rates among psychiatric illnesses. One of the most impactful ways you can help your friend is by encouraging them to seek treatment from trained professionals, such as an eating disorder therapist, medical doctor, and registered dietitian. Recovery is most effective when supported by a comprehensive treatment team that can address the psychological, nutritional, and medical components of an eating disorder. We know it can feel scary for someone to reach out for help. Many of our clinicians are in recovery themselves, and we understand how vulnerable that first step can be. To make the process easier, we offer a complimentary 15-minute consultation before scheduling an initial session. You’re welcome to join the call if your friend feels comfortable. Bottom Line If you’re supporting a friend through eating disorder recovery, you deserve support too. Reach out to us to learn how we can help you navigate this meaningful but challenging role. Journal Prompts: Supporting a Friend Through Eating Disorder Recovery
Schedule a FREE 15-minute consultation to explore how eating disorder therapy or recovery coaching can help you to find freedom. 🌟 Available in MD, VA, DC, PA, FL, and CA for eating disorder therapy 🌍 Offering recovery coaching worldwide  Megan Samuels, MSW, LCSW-C (she/her), is an eating disorder and trauma therapist at The Eating Disorder Center. She offers therapy for teens and adults, focusing on the intersection of eating disorders, including anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder, & ARFID, and trauma (including complex trauma and dissociative disorders). Megan uses a blend of relational therapy, EMDR therapy, ego state interventions, DBT, and ACT with clients. She is passionate about providing compassionate and supportive care for folks struggling with an eating disorder and/or complex trauma. The Eating Disorder Center is a premier outpatient eating disorder therapy center founded by Jennifer Rollin. We specialize in helping children, teens, and adults struggling with anorexia, binge eating disorder, bulimia, OSFED, and body image issues. We provide eating disorder therapy in Rockville, MD, easily accessible to individuals in Potomac, North Potomac, Bethesda, Olney, Silver Spring, Germantown, and Washington, D.C. We also provide eating disorder therapy in Arlington, Virginia and virtually throughout Virginia. Additionally, we offer eating disorder therapy virtually in Florida, Pennsylvania, and California. We provide eating disorder and EMDR trauma therapy in Rockville, Maryland and virtually throughout Maryland and Virginia. We provide eating disorder recovery coaching via Zoom to people worldwide. Connect with us through our website at www.theeatingdisordercenter.com
*Disclaimer: The information is provided for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for your independent medical decision-making nor a recommendation or endorsement for any particular treatment plan, organization, provider, professional service, or product. The information may change without notice. No claims, promises, or guarantees are made about the completeness, accuracy, currency, content or quality of information linked. You assume all responsibility and risk for any use of the information. Comments are closed.
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The Eating Disorder CenterWe are a premier outpatient eating disorder therapy center in Rockville, Maryland.
We also provide eating disorder recovery coaching to people worldwide via Zoom. Click here to book your free 15 minute phone consultation! Phone: 301-246-6856 Email: [email protected] Archives
March 2026
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