Eating Disorder Parent Coaching: Virtual Support for Parents
Watching your child or teenager struggle with an eating disorder can leave you feeling scared, overwhelmed, frustrated, and unsure of what to do next.
You may find yourself wondering: Should I encourage them to eat, or will that make things worse? What should I say when they criticize their body? Am I being too involved, or not involved enough? How do I know when to push and when to step back?
You don't have to figure this out alone.
At The Eating Disorder Center, we offer virtual eating disorder parent coaching to help parents feel more confident supporting a child, teen, or adult through eating disorder recovery. Parent coaching provides practical guidance, education, and support while helping you develop strategies that fit your family's individual needs.
You may find yourself wondering: Should I encourage them to eat, or will that make things worse? What should I say when they criticize their body? Am I being too involved, or not involved enough? How do I know when to push and when to step back?
You don't have to figure this out alone.
At The Eating Disorder Center, we offer virtual eating disorder parent coaching to help parents feel more confident supporting a child, teen, or adult through eating disorder recovery. Parent coaching provides practical guidance, education, and support while helping you develop strategies that fit your family's individual needs.
How Can Eating Disorder Parent Coaching Help?
Eating disorders can impact the entire family. Even when your child has a therapist, dietitian, or other treatment professionals, there may still be difficult moments at home when you're unsure how to respond.
Eating disorder parent coaching can provide additional support as you navigate those everyday challenges.
Parent coaching may help you:
Coaching can help you develop practical tools for supporting recovery while maintaining your role as their parent.
Eating disorder parent coaching can provide additional support as you navigate those everyday challenges.
Parent coaching may help you:
- Better understand eating disorder thoughts and behaviors
- Learn ways to respond when your child is distressed around food
- Navigate challenging meals and snacks at home
- Communicate more effectively about food, weight, and body image
- Reduce unhelpful conversations about dieting, weight, or appearance
- Support your child's recovery goals outside of treatment sessions
- Develop strategies for difficult situations, including restaurants, holidays, vacations, and social events
- Understand how to provide support without reinforcing eating disorder behaviors
- Feel less alone and more confident in your role as a parent or caregiver
Coaching can help you develop practical tools for supporting recovery while maintaining your role as their parent.
Help for Parents of Teens With Eating Disorders
It can be especially challenging when a teenager is struggling with an eating disorder.
Your teen may insist that nothing is wrong, become angry when you express concern, struggle with meals, withdraw from family activities, or become increasingly preoccupied with food, exercise, weight, or their appearance.
Parents often tell us they feel like they're constantly questioning themselves.
You may worry that saying the wrong thing will make the eating disorder worse. At the same time, doing nothing may not feel right either.
Parent coaching for eating disorders gives you a dedicated space to talk through these situations and develop concrete ways of responding.
Rather than trying to find the "perfect" thing to say, we can help you focus on communication and behaviors that support your child's recovery and your relationship with them.
Your teen may insist that nothing is wrong, become angry when you express concern, struggle with meals, withdraw from family activities, or become increasingly preoccupied with food, exercise, weight, or their appearance.
Parents often tell us they feel like they're constantly questioning themselves.
You may worry that saying the wrong thing will make the eating disorder worse. At the same time, doing nothing may not feel right either.
Parent coaching for eating disorders gives you a dedicated space to talk through these situations and develop concrete ways of responding.
Rather than trying to find the "perfect" thing to say, we can help you focus on communication and behaviors that support your child's recovery and your relationship with them.
Supporting Your Child at Meals
Mealtimes can become one of the most stressful parts of family life when a child has an eating disorder.
A young person may become anxious before meals, negotiate portions, avoid certain foods, seek reassurance, become distressed after eating, or engage in eating disorder behaviors.
Parents can understandably become anxious themselves.
Eating disorder parent coaching can help you think through how you respond during these moments and practice strategies for creating a more recovery-supportive environment at home.
When appropriate, parent coaching can complement recommendations from your child's eating disorder therapist, dietitian, physician, or other treatment professionals.
A young person may become anxious before meals, negotiate portions, avoid certain foods, seek reassurance, become distressed after eating, or engage in eating disorder behaviors.
Parents can understandably become anxious themselves.
Eating disorder parent coaching can help you think through how you respond during these moments and practice strategies for creating a more recovery-supportive environment at home.
When appropriate, parent coaching can complement recommendations from your child's eating disorder therapist, dietitian, physician, or other treatment professionals.
Parent Coaching Alongside Eating Disorder Treatment
Eating disorder parent coaching is not a replacement for eating disorder treatment.
Depending on your child's individual needs, their treatment team may include an eating disorder therapist, registered dietitian, physician, psychiatrist, or higher level of care.
Parent coaching provides a different kind of support.
Your child's clinical providers focus on their treatment needs, while your coaching sessions can focus specifically on helping you navigate your role as a parent.
If your child already has an eating disorder treatment team, we are happy to collaborate with their providers when appropriate.
Depending on your child's individual needs, their treatment team may include an eating disorder therapist, registered dietitian, physician, psychiatrist, or higher level of care.
Parent coaching provides a different kind of support.
Your child's clinical providers focus on their treatment needs, while your coaching sessions can focus specifically on helping you navigate your role as a parent.
If your child already has an eating disorder treatment team, we are happy to collaborate with their providers when appropriate.
Virtual Eating Disorder Parent Coaching
Our parent coaching sessions are offered virtually, which means parents can access support from home.
Virtual parent coaching can also make it easier for multiple caregivers to participate when appropriate, even when coordinating schedules is difficult.
Sessions provide a supportive space to discuss what's happening at home, identify specific challenges, learn practical strategies, and determine what you'd like to try between sessions.
Virtual parent coaching can also make it easier for multiple caregivers to participate when appropriate, even when coordinating schedules is difficult.
Sessions provide a supportive space to discuss what's happening at home, identify specific challenges, learn practical strategies, and determine what you'd like to try between sessions.
You Don't Have to Navigate Your Child's Eating Disorder Alone
It makes sense if you don't automatically know how to respond to an eating disorder.
These are complicated illnesses, and supporting someone you love through recovery can be incredibly challenging.
Getting support for yourself can help you approach difficult situations with greater knowledge, confidence, and compassion.
The Eating Disorder Center offers virtual eating disorder parent coaching for parents and caregivers seeking additional guidance in supporting a child or teen through eating disorder recovery.
Contact us today to schedule a free 15-minute consultation and learn more about whether parent coaching may be a good fit for your family.
These are complicated illnesses, and supporting someone you love through recovery can be incredibly challenging.
Getting support for yourself can help you approach difficult situations with greater knowledge, confidence, and compassion.
The Eating Disorder Center offers virtual eating disorder parent coaching for parents and caregivers seeking additional guidance in supporting a child or teen through eating disorder recovery.
Contact us today to schedule a free 15-minute consultation and learn more about whether parent coaching may be a good fit for your family.
Frequently Asked Questions About Virtual Eating Disorder Parent Coaching
What is eating disorder parent coaching?
Eating disorder parent coaching provides parents and caregivers with practical education, guidance, and support as they navigate their child's eating disorder recovery. Sessions can focus on communication, mealtime challenges, boundaries, body-image conversations, eating disorder behaviors, and other situations that arise at home.
Is parent coaching the same as family therapy?
No. Parent coaching is not psychotherapy or family therapy. Coaching focuses on practical strategies, education, and supporting parents in navigating everyday recovery challenges. Family therapy is a clinical mental health treatment.
Can I receive parent coaching if my child already has an eating disorder therapist?
Yes. Parent coaching can be used alongside your child's existing treatment team. You do not need to transfer your child's therapy to The Eating Disorder Center in order to receive parent coaching.
Can parent coaching help with difficult mealtimes?
Mealtime challenges are one topic that parents may bring to coaching. Your coach can help you think through ways of responding to anxiety, resistance, reassurance seeking, and other challenges around meals while remaining consistent with recommendations from your child's treatment team.
Is eating disorder parent coaching virtual?
Yes. The Eating Disorder Center offers virtual parent coaching, allowing parents to participate from the privacy and convenience of home.
Do both parents need to participate?
Not necessarily. One parent or caregiver can participate in coaching, although multiple caregivers may participate when appropriate and helpful.
What eating disorders can parent coaching help with?
Parents may seek coaching when their child is struggling with anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, ARFID, OSFED, disordered eating, body-image concerns, or other eating-related difficulties. Coaching is not a substitute for appropriate medical or mental health treatment.
How do I get started with eating disorder parent coaching?
Contact The Eating Disorder Center to schedule a free 15-minute consultation. We'll learn more about what your family is navigating and discuss whether virtual parent coaching may be an appropriate addition to your child's existing support.
We provide virtual eating disorder parent coaching via video to folks throughout the United States and worldwide. Eating disorder parent coaching, serving clients in all states including, Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C., California, New York, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, New Jersey and Michigan.