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
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