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NEDA TOOLKIT for Parents Questions to ask when interviewing a therapist • How long have you been treating eating disorders? • What is the best way to communicate with you between sessions? • What are your training credentials? Have you received specialized training in eating disorders? • Do you charge for phone calls or emails between sessions? How is that billed? • Are you a member of any eating disorder professional organizations? • How do you handle medical or psychiatric emergencies? • What do you think causes eating disorders? • What are some warning signs of immediate danger that I should be aware of? • What do you think needs to happen in order for my loved one to get well? • How will I be involved in my loved one’s treatment? • How would you describe your treatment style? • What forms of psychotherapy do you use? • What happens during a typical psychotherapy session? • How will you evaluate my loved one and develop a treatment plan? • What are the goals of treatment? • When can I start to expect seeing progress? • When will I be notified if my loved one is not making progress? • How often will progress be communicated? • What are the criteria you use to determine whether a treatment is working? • How long will you give a treatment to start working before you re-evaluate? • If my loved one doesn’t respond to the first form of treatment, what steps would you recommend? • What kind of medical information do you need about my loved one before treatment begins and as therapy is ongoing? • How will you work with other members of the treatment team? How frequently will you share information? How will you do this (email, phone, etc)? • Are you able to communicate with my loved one’s school should the need arise? • What are your thoughts on psychotropic medication? • What are your criteria for moving a person to a higher level of care? • What is your appointment availability? Do you have evening or weekend appointments? • How long does each session last? • How frequently will you need to see my loved one? • How often will you meet with me/us as parents? • Do you accept my insurance? If not, what do you charge? • Do you deal directly with the insurer or do I need to do that? • Do you have a sliding scale? • When is payment due? The availability of eating disorder therapists can vary widely depending on location, as can an individual’s insurance benefits. It may take a bit of persistence to find a treatment provider who will work well with your family, provide effective treatment, and also accepts insurance or is otherwise affordable. Many families have found that they need to travel a bit to find good treatment, but that excellent care is worth the hassle. Medication for Eating Disorders Besides psychotherapy, medication is probably one of the most commonly used forms of eating disorder treatment. It is rarely used as a stand-alone treatment, but generally is meant to help relieve symptoms of co- occurring disorders like depression and anxiety, as well as reduce the discomfort (physical and mental) caused by normalizing eating. Only one medication has been Page  | 33