Common Questions About Eating Disorder Treatment

​​​​Eating Disorders are highly treatable! Full recovery is possible.
​
​Book your free 15-minute phone consultation to learn how we can work together.

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Can people with eating disorders get better?​​​

• Yes! With treatment and support, full recovery is possible.
• We have had great success in helping clients to recover from their eating disorders and are grateful to do this work.

Who do eating disorders impact?

• Eating disorders do not discriminate. Eating disorders affect people of every age, weight, race, and gender.
• In our practice, we work with people of diverse ethnicities, ages, body types, genders, and races.

What type of center are you?

We are an outpatient therapy and coaching center that specializes in treating individuals with eating disorders.

What ages do you work with?

We specialize in working with children (age 7+), teens, and adults with eating disorders and body image issues.​

Why should I see an eating disorder specialist vs. a general therapist?

• 1. General therapists often get little to no training in eating disorders. It is recommended to seek a specialist in eating disorders, just as you would seek out a neurosurgeon to perform brain surgery and not your primary care doctor. 
• 2. Eating disorder specialists are highly trained and skilled in treating eating disorders, and this is the majority of what we treat.
• 3. Eating disorders are miserable and take over people's lives.
• 4. Eating disorders have the second highest mortality rate of any mental illness. 
• 5. It's so important to see an eating disorder specialist if you think you or a loved one might be struggling with an eating disorder.

Do I need to have an eating disorder to see you?

• No. We are eating disorder and body image specialists, however, we have some therapists who also work with individuals experiencing anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorder.
• Kate Dansie, MSW, LCSW-C, Kellie Zundel, MSW, LCSW-C, Jennifer Rollin, MSW, LCSW-C, and Lauren Levine, MSW, LCSW-C, also specialize in treating individuals with obsessive compulsive disorder.
• Megan Samuels, MSW, LCSW-C, also specializes in treating trauma and dissociative disorders, including dissociative identity disorder (DID).

Which services do you offer?

• We provide individual therapy in Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, California, and Florida — and we provide eating disorder recovery coaching to individuals worldwide.
• We offer level of care recommendations and eating disorder diagnostic evaluations for individuals and families who are unsure about where to start.
• We also have eating disorder trainings for purchase, for those in recovery and for professionals.
• We offer clinical supervision for therapists looking to learn more about eating disorder treatment.

How do therapy and eating disorder recovery coaching differ?

Eating disorder recovery coaching: 

• Focuses on overcoming daily challenges individuals with eating disorders often struggle with
• Utilizes a present-focused, goal-setting and skill-based approach to push through limiting beliefs and behaviors
• Does not delve much into the past or any "underlying issues" which are best addressed in therapy
• Supports clients in using their personal strengths to recover from eating disorders
• Focuses on changing behaviors and building a life outside of your eating disorder
• Encourages self-compassion, body positivity, and food freedom
• Is available to individuals around the world via Zoom video chat
• Can be a stand-alone approach for someone with subclinical disordered eating or body image issues, or for someone further along in their recovery. However, for most individuals, we typically require eating disorder recovery coaching clients to be working with a therapist​
• Is collaborative and does not follow a medical model. Coaches do not diagnose or develop clinical treatment plans. However, coaches can help clients to follow a treatment plan developed by treating professionals

Eating disorder therapy:

• Eating disorder therapists can diagnose and treat eating disorders as well as co-occurring issues.
• Clinical treatment plans in focus on eating disorder behaviors as well as any core underlying issues and needs.
• For each therapy session, you must be physically located in a state where the therapist is licensed.
• Sessions may be reimbursed by health insurance (please contact your insurance company to ask about your unique plan's outpatient therapy coverage benefits).

Do you offer eating disorder recovery coaching where I live?

• ​Recovery coaching is provided to individuals worldwide via Zoom (video chat platform) by our coaches in the U.S.
• We generally require coaching clients to also see a local therapist - determined on an individual basis.

Do you offer therapy where I live?

• In-person therapy sessions are available at our office in Rockville, Maryland.
• Video therapy sessions are available to clients located in greater Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, California, and Florida.  Note: All other states - we provide recovery coaching services but not therapy.
• Maryland Therapists: Kate Dansie, MSW, LCSW-C and Megan Samuels, MSW, LCSW-C offer in-person and video therapy sessions in Maryland. Lauren Levine, MSW, LCSW-C, Ali Donohoe, MSW, LCSW-C, Rachel Flounlacker, MSW, LCSW-C, Jessica Smith, MSW, LMSW, and Jennifer Rollin, MSW, LCSW-C offer virtual sessions to individuals in Maryland. 
• Virginia Therapists:  Kate Dansie, MSW, LCSW-C, Jennifer Rollin, MSW, LCSW-C, Megan Samuels, MSW, LCSW-C, Rachel Flounlacker, MSW, LCSW-C, and Kellie Zundel, MSW, LCSW-C offer virtual therapy sessions in Virginia.
• Washington, D.C. Therapist: Kate Dansie, MSW, LCSW-C provides virtual therapy to clients in Washington, D.C.
• Pennsylvania Therapist: Jennifer Rollin, MSW, LCSW-C provides virtual therapy to clients in Pennsylvania. 
• California Therapist: Samantha Moshiri, MA, LMFT provides video therapy sessions to individuals throughout the state of California. 
• Florida Therapists: Jennifer Rollin, MSW, LCSW-C and Lauren Levine, MSW, LCSW-C offer virtual therapy sessions in Florida.
• Pennsylvania Therapist: Jennifer Rollin, MSW, LCSW-C offers virtual therapy sessions to individuals in Pennsylvania.

What is the intake process for new clients?

• Please fill out our contact form or call us. 
• Our admin team can answer questions about services and match you with a therapist or coach from the information you've provided.
• New client appointments are scheduled by mutual agreement​ with the therapist or coach - you'll have the opportunity to speak briefly with them by phone before the first appointment.
• All new therapy client appointments include a detailed evaluation to make a diagnosis and treatment plan.

Which treatments do you use?

• We use effective therapy methods, including acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and exposure and response prevention (ERP).
• We also have a therapist who offers EMDR therapy for trauma.
• Additionally, we help clients to practice self-compassion.

How frequently do you meet with clients?

• We generally see clients once or twice a week, as clinically indicated, to help you make progress on your treatment goals.​​
• The overall length of treatment is unique to each person, based on a variety of individual factors. The therapist can discuss this further with you after they evaluate and develop an initial treatment plan for you.

Can I use my Flexible Spending Health Account or Health Savings Account for payment?

Yes, clients can typically pay for our services with flex spending (FSA) cards or with HSA cards! 

​Do you take insurance and what are your fees?

• We value confidentiality and believe that you (not your insurance company) should guide your therapy. Therefore, we are not contracted with any insurance plans. 
• We collect the full fee from you at the time of service, and we can provide receipts for therapy visits that you can send to your insurance company.
• If your health insurance plan includes out-of-network mental health benefits, they may reimburse you for some of the costs of therapy.
• It is your responsibility to verify your insurance benefits with your insurance company before scheduling.
• Recovery coaching is generally not billable to insurance, however we can accept HSA or FSA payments.
• We offer services at a range of price points, including group coaching options. Please contact us for more details. ​

How do I find out what my insurance reimburses for therapy visits

​ We recommend asking these questions to your insurance provider, before our first therapy session:

• Do I have Out Of Network, Outpatient Mental Health benefits?
• What is the deductible and has it been met?
• How are out-of-network session fees applied to my deductible?
  
• Do the therapy session fees fall within my plan's "allowed amount" for these CPT codes? (90834, 90837, 90791). 
• What percentage of the "allowed amount" does my plan cover for each code: 90834, 90837 (individual therapy) and 90791 (evaluation)?
• For adolescents and children: also include family therapy codes 90846 and 90847.
• What is the preferred modifier for virtual sessions, and does coverage differ for virtual sessions?
• How many therapy sessions does my plan cover?
• Is preauthorization required?
• Is a referral required from my primary care physician?​​
• ​The therapist provides superbill receipts. How do I submit these for reimbursement, and how long does the process take?
• Is there anything else I'll need to submit with the receipts?

Do you work with other professionals?

• Yes - we believe a collaborative approach to care is helpful for many individuals.
• We are happy to work with your existing treatment team.
• We gladly help clients establish a treatment team (i.e. physician, dietitian, psychiatrist, etc.) when we agree that this would be beneficial. ​

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   Where is your office located?

• Our office is located at ​932 Hungerford Dr #35B, Rockville, MD 20850​​.
• The office is easily accessible to clients in Potomac, North Potomac, Bethesda, Germantown, Olney, Gaithersburg, Silver Spring, and Montgomery County, Maryland. 
• Individuals and families visit us from a variety of cities, particularly in Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Virginia.
• We also provide online/virtual therapy in these states: Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, Florida, and California.
• Eating disorder recovery coaching services are offered by our U.S. coaches to individuals worldwide—particularly in the United States and in western Europe.

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Eating Disorders are highly treatable! Full recovery is possible.
​
​Book your free 15 minute phone consultation to learn how we can work together.