5 Reasons Why You Might Need Residential Treatment for Your Eating Disorder Today

Seeking treatment at the appropriate level of care is important for helping you progress in your eating disorder recovery.  Thankfully, there are many eating disorder professionals and resources that can help you or your loved one decide what level of treatment might be most suitable for your specific needs.

When it comes to eating disorder recovery, there is a variety of options available for support and treatment. From residential treatment to outpatient care and everything in between, there are resources that can help you find hope and healing. How do you know which level of care is right for you?

Understanding Treatment Options for Eating Disorders

Seeking treatment at the appropriate level of care is important for helping you progress in your eating disorder recovery.  Thankfully, there are many eating disorder professionals and resources that can help you or your loved one decide what level of treatment might be most suitable for your specific needs. It is recommended that you work with a professional to determine what level of care is the most beneficial for your recovery. This might be an eating disorder therapist, counselor, physician, or psychiatrist. By understanding your concerns as well as the signs and symptoms you are experiencing, a qualified professional will make treatment level recommendations that meet you exactly where you are currently. The most common levels of eating disorder treatment include:

• Inpatient Treatment
• Residential Treatment
• Partial Hospitalization
• Intensive Outpatient
• Outpatient

Typically, a more acute or inpatient level of treatment is necessary for someone who may require medical and/or psychiatric stabilization.  Many individuals will often transition to the different levels of eating disorder treatment as they progress in their recovery journey.  Less acute levels of treatment, including intensive outpatient and outpatient treatment, are more suitable for a person who does not require supervision and monitoring and who is relatively stable from any medical or psychiatric complications.  

Why Residential Treatment Can Best Support Recovery

Residential treatment is an important option available for eating disorder recovery. Residential treatment programs offer a safe and structured environment where individuals can find healing from even the most destructive of eating disorders. At this level of care, residents are provided with continual support and monitoring as well as comprehensive treatment from a multi-disciplinary team, including physicians, psychiatrists, therapists, dietitians, and more.  Residential treatment offers the best level of support required for individuals suffering from a severe eating disorder, including anorexia, bulimia, or binge eating disorder and co-occurring conditions.

Making the choice to seek out residential treatment can feel overwhelming, but it is important to know that you are not alone in this process.  Consider some of the following reasons why residential treatment might be a positive option for your recovery:

1. You are struggling with medical complications: Eating disorders are complex illnesses that can result in serious medical consequences. Maybe you have found yourself in and out of doctor's offices to deal with eating disorder symptoms. Alternatively, maybe you have found the quality of your life negatively affected by physical complications resulting from an eating disorder. Eating disorders, if left untreated, can be life threatening, often due to medical complications, such as heart failure, electrolyte imbalance, or malnutrition. In these cases, residential treatment can help you safely recover from these conditions by providing resources needed for medical stabilization.
2. You are overwhelmed, emotionally or psychologically: It is not uncommon for eating disorders to develop alongside other issues, such as anxiety, depression or addiction. These co-occurring conditions can make it more complex for you to find the underlying cause of your eating disorder and start healing. Residential treatment can give you the structure and environment needed to heal from these complex factors.
3. You find it difficult to feed yourself: Sometimes something as simple as feeding your body appropriately can feel immensely challenging if you are living with an eating disorder.  Because of the severity of eating disorder behaviors, you may not even be sure how or what to feed yourself. Engaging in destructive eating habits, like restricting, purging, and/or binging, can make food seem chaotic. You may feel like you cannot trust your body or are intensely fearful of gaining weight. Residential treatment can be an invaluable resource for helping you normalize your eating behaviors and develop healthier eating patterns.
4. The quality of your life is compromised: Eating disorders can deprive you of enjoying life, making it difficult to flourish in school, work, and relationships. You may have had to drop out of school, lost your job, missed out on a promotion at work, or are suffering in relationships with those closest to you because of your eating disorder. Residential treatment can give you the strong foundation you need in your recovery journey to deal with the underlying causes and gain the tools necessary to rebuild relationships.
5. You have a poor support system: Eating disorders can be isolating, and you may not have adequate support to help you through the recovery process. It is important that you do not fight this alone and that you surround yourself with others who understand how to help you. The treatment team available at the residential level of care can give you the support and structure you need to recover.

While the decision to seek out residential treatment can be tough, it is important to realize what you will gain by prioritizing your healing and recovery. Living life to your fullest potential and ultimately being able to thrive in every aspect of your life are gifts that you will never regret.

The risks of not seeking out residential treatment for your eating disorder must be taken into consideration. Left untreated, you could potentially endanger your life or even lose what matters most to you. Consider how you want your future life to look and ask yourself if your eating disorder is part of that picture.

How Remuda Ranch Can Support Your Healing

At Remuda Ranch at The Meadows, we understand what is needed to help you find lasting recovery from your eating disorder. Our residential level of care provides the highest quality of comprehensive treatment to ensure that you are supported every step of your journey.  Our eating disorder professionals are dedicated to seeing you thrive and will support you with an individualized care plan that is designed to meet your unique needs.  Wherever you may be on your journey today, we stand ready to support you in recovery.  For additional information about the treatment of eating disorders, please call to speak to an Intake Coordinator at 866-842-1245

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A Unique Equine Experience

"The Spirit Equine program of Colleen DeRango and Buddy Uldrickson is at the forefront of therapies for trauma and the healing of emotional wounds. Buddy’s calm, centered, presence, his immense horsemanship, and Colleen’s organic mastery of Somatic Experiencing™ have partnered to create a magical and transformative experience. I recommend this powerful program without reservation."



The Meadows’ equine workshop team combines the wisdom of our skillful therapist trained in Somatic Experiencing® (SE), with an uncommon horseman and highly skilled trainer. This unique equine experience is held on a scenic, rustic ranch a short distance from Wickenburg, Arizona.

Combining The Meadows Model, SE, mindfulness, and natural horsemanship, this workshop allows for a distinct healing experience. The program consists of experiential activities with horses, and addresses self-esteem, boundaries, honoring reality, wants and needs, emotional regulation, and spontaneity. Created exclusively for a small group of no more than five participants, this workshop is an outdoor experience facilitated by two gifted professionals.

We Can Help

For more details, call 866-280-2874 or complete the form below. Our Intake Coordinators are happy to assist you between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. MST on weekdays, and from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. MST on weekends.

Binge Eating Disorder Treatment Centers

Content Source : Best Eating Disorder Treatment

We are extremely proud of our medical staff at Remuda Ranch at The Meadows. Their dedication to patient care and treatment is what makes the Remuda Ranch at The Meadows such an effective treatment program.
Remuda Ranch at The Meadows offers an acute level of care as well as inpatient and residential programming in a safe, nurturing environment. Our treatment is led by a well-qualified multidisciplinary team that is dedicated to providing assistance and support 24 hours a day.

Patients who enter our program can rest assured knowing that they are receiving the best care possible throughout their stay. During the early phase of recovery, patients often discover physical and mental health symptoms for the first time. These symptoms may not be new, but they were often masked or relieved by the eating disorder. The keen assessment skills of our nurses and medical staff helps in this early phase and throughout the course of our patients' treatment.

Dedicated To Your Care

Remuda Ranch at The Meadows nursing and medical staff can help individuals suffering eating disorders discover a higher quality of life. We offer a comprehensive holistic treatment that focuses on healing all aspects of the mind, body, and spirit. We invite you to get an accurate diagnosis and treatment. For additional information about our programs, please call to speak to an Intake Coordinator at 866-332-0836 or complete the form below and we will contact you with the information you need.

Recovering from My Eating Disorder Through Faith

By Kelly Biese, 2007 Remuda Ranch Alumna
I will never forget October 11, 2007, as I stood in front of the security gates at the Dayton airport. I was so angry with God. Part of me wanted to turn and run back, afraid that I'd never return to see my friends, and another part of me still believed I didn't have a problem and would be sent back home when I got to Remuda Ranch. I was just so tired of fighting and tired of being tired.

Remuda Ranch proved to be just the right place for me, and by the second day God began to change my heart and fill me with hope as I put my trust in HIM. There were challenges while I was there, but the caring staff and especially the music and messages I experienced in Chapel continued to fill me with strength and hope. 

 

When I returned home on Nov. 25th, 2007, I felt great and believed everything was going to be okay. However, even though I was using the skills I learned at Remuda Ranch and following my treatment plan, I took my focus off of God and started looking to those around me to provide my strength and hope. I made them my foundation, and I began to sink again.

Fortunately, I had a strong support person that asked me one evening if I had ever asked God to be healed. After thinking for a moment, I realized that I had prayed for years but had never asked God to heal me. That night, I wrote the following in my journal:

"Lord, it is time. I want to be healed. I want to be well enough to let your light shine through me and touch others. Please Lord, send the Holy Spirit to fill me. Empower me to rise above this. If there is something deep inside me holding me back from fully accepting recovery, from embracing the new life you have for me, from letting go of the past, please open my eyes to it and help me to move beyond it. Help me to move beyond this, Lord. You said ask and ye shall receive, knock and the door shall be opened. I've been afraid to ask because I didn't feel I deserved it. It is your will, Lord, but I don't believe your will is for me to continue suffering with no gain. Lift this burden, Lord. I'm willing to take the steps I need, but I need your help to guide me, Lord. I'm willing to take the step, but I need your guidance. I trust you. Open my eyes. Open my ears. Open my mind. Open my heart—to you, Lord. Fill me with your Holy Spirit, that I may grow strong and serve You." - April 28, 2008

The next morning I awoke with a sense of peace I can never describe, and I have not been the same since. I have continued on my path of recovery and each year gets a little easier. I may not love every part of my body, but I can finally say I like my body, for the first time in my life. I can enjoy food - ALL food - when and where I want, without guilt. The scale has no place in my life, because I refuse to let three digits consume my mind and define my life.

In August, I returned to graduate school to pursue my Masters in Social Work degree, and I hope to specialize in trauma and substance abuse. I will forever by grateful to Remuda Ranch for bringing me back to life and giving me hope for healing.

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Dual Diagnosis, Addiction and Eating Disorders: Self Destructive Behavior

It is fairly common for people to struggle with both an addiction and a mental health disorder at the same time. This is known as a “dual diagnosis,” or having at least two conditions that co-occur and interact with one another. Just how someone suffering from depression may habitually binge drink as a way to self medicate, someone suffering from anxiety, depression, OCD, self-harm or PTSD can develop an eating disorder as a means to cope with her underlying mental disorder.

Dual Diagnosis and Eating Disorders

Lately there has been a growing body of evidence to support the similarities between eating disorders and addictive conditions like drug addiction and alcoholism. The American Society of Addiction Medicine now holds a wider definition of addiction to include not just drugs and alcohol, but also “process” addictions like food. This is because all of these substances have a very similar effect on the brain.

Natural stimulants like taking care of our bodies, healthy amounts of exercise, being praised or being in love trigger special reward centers in our brain, making us feel good. These reward centers can also be activated through artificial means like drug use, alcohol, and food abuse such as binging, purging or even starving.

Chemical addiction and eating disorders arise from many of the same sources and display some of the same characteristics. Both conditions:

• Include common risk factors: family history, imbalances in brain chemistry, stress or childhood trauma
• Appear during stressful life transitions like the loss of a parent, a divorce or puberty
• Arise from low self-esteem, depression or anxiety
• Involve a pattern of compulsive behaviors
• Involve a preoccupation with a substance or activity
• Are chronic conditions that produce severe or potentially fatal side effects

  Self-Destructive Patterns of Addiction and Eating Disorders

  When the reward center of the brain is stimulated inappropriately, specifically through drugs, alcohol, or food abuse, it stops functioning the way it was intended to. These stimulants create a false sense of temporary happiness or relief with damaging consequences. An individual who struggles with an addiction or eating disorder may have a personality type that is prone to impulsivity, extremes and high anxiety and this creates a need for greater amounts of stimulation in order to feel well. Relief created by unhealthy stimulation only creates a greater risk for dependency and addiction forming habits. Despite severe medical complications, it is difficult for individuals struggling with addictions to give up their addiction, as in the case of anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder, alcoholism or substance abuse.
  
  

  Treatment of Eating Disorders and Alcoholism/Substance Abuse

  Since the addictive nature of eating disorders and alcoholism/addiction is similar, and the underlying issues pertaining to both conditions may overlap, it is crucial to treat eating disorders and addiction simultaneously in the recovery process. At Remuda Ranch at The Meadows, our comprehensive treatment team addresses the various needs of women and girls with co-occurring disorders through medical, nutritional and psychotherapy treatments. Our trauma-focused and brain-based approach helps us find and treat the root cause of the patient’s addictions and behavioral disorders.
  
  At Remuda Ranch at The Meadows, we understand the seriousness of dual diagnosis. In a safe and nurturing community composed of their peers, people are guided on their journey of recovery by examining the underlying causes of their eating disorder and co-occurring disorders. The goal is for these individuals to gain the courage to face difficult issues including grief and loss; heal from emotional trauma; and become accountable for their own feelings, behaviors, and recovery. Please call us at 866-390-5100 or complete the form on our website to find out if our program is right for you.
  
  

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Accepting the Past as an Asset in Recovery

By Aleah Johnson, The Meadows Alumni Coordinator
What if I were to tell you that all aspects of your past would be used as an asset? Would you believe it or would you instantly regret and want to change it?
I have a love/hate relationship with the word "acceptance." As a stubborn addict, I am not supposed to agree with everything, right?

What is Acceptance?

Acceptance is defined as "the act of taking or receiving something offered." Sometimes I really have to stop and take inventory of the things in my life, both personally and professionally and ask myself if I am fighting or if I am accepting.
One of the most crucial bits of advice I have learned in recovery is to accept my past as an asset. It is important to accept ourselves where we are on our journey and be able to leverage ourselves for good.

The past is a place or state of being in an earlier period of a one's life, career, etc., that might be thought of as shameful or embarrassing. We have all done things in our past that we may not be proud of— choosing to resist or deny our past only leads to more suffering. Acceptance allows us to live in the present moment and not "future trip" or worry about the past.

Resistance is often about control; the more we try to control our lives, the more out of control they get. Acceptance allows emotional balance and gives us the ability to accept people and things exactly as they are, even when we can't see the WHY or when we're not getting what we want.

Finding Serenity

Acceptance is a key solution to our problems. When we are disturbed, it is because we find some person, place, thing, or situation—some fact of life—unacceptable. We can find no serenity until we accept that person, place, thing or situation as being exactly the way it is supposed to be at that moment.

Until we accept ourselves, our situations and our life, on life's terms, we cannot be happy. We need not concentrate so much on what happens in the world as on what needs to be changed in ourselves and in our attitudes. (Page 417, The Big Book)

Early in my recovery, an old-timer in one of my first meetings told me, "You can make this as easy or as hard as you want, little lady, but ultimately the choice is up to you." I fully accepted this not only as a piece of advice but also as a challenge.

Nobody is perfect and everyone has battles and struggles; this is part of this amazing journey that we call life. Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future. Recovery is a marathon, not a sprint. It is our job to accept all aspects, to start where we are, use what we have, and do what we can to make the best out of the life we have left.

Join The Meadows Alumni Association

If you are a graduate from any of The Meadows inpatient programs, The Meadows Intensive Outpatient program, any weeklong intensive workshop at the Rio Retreat Center at The Meadows, or a family member who attended Family Week, you are welcome to join The Meadows Alumni Association!
Sign up today to receive our monthly email newsletter and to be kept up-to-date on any relevant, recovery-related news and events in your area.

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World Suicide Prevention Day - Remuda Ranch

By Jessica Setnick, MS, RD, CEDRD, Remuda Ranch at The Meadows Senior Fellow

 

  Imagine the worst physical pain you have felt in your life. Was it childbirth? A gunshot wound? Appendicitis? A broken leg? Third-degree burn? Motorcycle crash?

Now imagine the worst emotional pain you have ever felt. Have you lost a loved one? More than one? Sent a child overseas to war? Supported a friend during a slow death from cancer? Witnessed a tragedy? Been betrayed? Left at the altar? Put a lifelong pet to sleep?

In any of these situations, you may have experienced pain so intense that, at least for a moment, you wanted to die. A pain so severe that you would consider any option to escape or make it stop.

But something kept you from ending your life.

Either you knew you could get help, you had hope that the pain would fade, you could see a future some day without pain, your survival instinct kicked in and pushed you onward, you knew that you couldn’t willingly leave those who love and depend on you, or you were protected by people who knew of your pain and who kept you safe until you healed.

This is the tragedy of suicide: that at the same time that someone is suffering such intense emotional grief and pain, he or she also has no hope that it will fade, has lost the ability to see a future without pain, believes that others might be better off without them, and does not share the pain with someone who can help.

This is why we must end the stigma of eating disorders. Too many people are suffering in silence, perhaps not even knowing that their pain has a cause, a treatment, and a way out. They are blaming themselves for the pain they experience, the pain they believe they are causing their loved ones. They either believe that death is the best or only option, or the pain is so overwhelmingly severe that they feel compelled to end it permanently.
Every suicide causes ripples of pain. Every person lost is a tragedy. Numbers are irrelevant in the face of a life cut short. But for purposes of education, statistics about suicide and eating disorders tell a horrifying story.
The suicide rate among American veterans has made news recently because it is twice as high as the national average. Yet the suicide rate among women with anorexia is 30 to 50 times higher than average, depending on the source. Up to 25 percent of deaths from eating disorders come from suicide.
It is National Suicide Prevention Month, but every day is suicide prevention day. Everyone is at risk, since depression and eating disorders often go unseen. There is no test for identifying suicide risk, but the American Association of Suicidology created the Is Path Warm? acronym to help you spot risky behaviors:

• Ideation (threatening to hurt or kill oneself)
• Substance abuse (increased or excessive substance use)
• Purposelessness (no reason for living)
• Anxiety
• Trapped (feeling there’s no way out)
• Hopelessness (about the future)
• Withdrawal (withdrawing from friends, family, activities)
• Anger
• Recklessness
• Mood changes

If you know someone exhibiting these symptoms, call 1-800-273-8255 for the national suicide prevention hotline.

If someone you know with an eating disorder is exhibiting these behaviors, call Remuda Ranch at 1-866-390-5100 for help.

Source Link :- World Suicide Prevention Day

Eating Disorder Recovery

The road to eating disorder recovery begins with recognizing that there is a problem. This can be extremely challenging, especially if you’re still clinging to the belief that weight loss is the key to happiness. Even when you recognize that your happiness and worth come from loving yourself for who you truly are, old habits are very hard to break. The good news is that those learned eating disorder behaviors can be addressed if you want to change and are willing to ask for help.

Sustained recovery requires careful planning and for many patients, this means utilizing the full continuum of care. Recovery takes place over years of mindful application and lessons learned in treatment. At Remuda Ranch at The Meadows, we help you learn to let go of unhealthy eating behaviors. More importantly, we help you discover who you are beyond your eating habits, weight, and body image so you can overcome your eating disorder and gain true self-confidence.

The Ten Components of Recovery

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration has defined ten fundamental elements that are required along the road to recovery.

• Self-Direction: choosing to seek recovery and actively seeking it out
• Individualized and Person-Centered: recovery is unique to each individual in regard to that person’s strengths, needs, experiences and cultural background
• Empowerment: the patient has control over her future and the ability to speak for herself about what she needs, wants and aspires to
• Holistic: recovery emphasizes the whole person – mind, body, spirit and emotions
• Nonlinear: recovery doesn’t always happen in a consistent step-by-step basis – there is continual growth, learning and occasional setbacks – recovery begins when the patient recognizes that positive change is possible
• Strengths-Based: recovery focuses on building on the multiple capacities, resiliencies, talents, coping abilities and inherent worth of the individual
• Peer Support: support through sharing experiences, knowledge and skills with others during the recovery process can help the patient and others by giving each a sense of belonging and community
• Respect: acceptance, protection of rights and elimination of discrimination and stigma are necessary for regaining self-acceptance and the patient’s personal belief in her worth
• Hope: the message of a positive future and the understanding that people can overcome even the hardest challenges is a belief that must be internalized

The exact treatment needs for individuals struggling with an eating disorder vary from person to person. For this reason, it’s important to coordinate a treatment plan with the provider and healthcare professional that is best suited to the patient’s unique requirements.

Asking for Help

It can be scary to ask for help to overcome an eating disorder, but gaining support from a trusted person in your life, is for many people, the first step on the road to recovery. Alternately, some find it less threatening to confide in a treatment specialist, such as an eating disorder counselor or nutritionist, to initiate change.

Your friend or family member may be shocked when you tell them about your eating disorder, but it’s important to remain hopeful. Take the time to discuss the ways you’d like them to support you during your recovery process.
The next step is to find a healthcare specialist to guide you through the recovery process. At Remuda Ranch at The Meadows, we partner with healthcare professionals to help patients feel comfortable, accepted and safe when transitioning into treatment. For more information about the treatment of eating disorders, please call to speak to one of our Intake Coordinators at 866-390-5100. You can also complete the Take the Next Step form and we will contact you with the information you need.

For more than 20 years, Remuda Ranch at The Meadows has partnered with hundreds of psychologists, psychiatrists, primary care providers, registered dieticians and primary therapists. The vast majority of our patient referrals come from these professionals. Through inpatient eating disorder and anxiety treatment, we help women and girls to stabilize and commit to recovery. Then, we return them to the referring professional for ongoing outpatient care. Together, we make recovery a reality.

Source Link:  http://www.remudaranch.com/blog/item/74-eating-disorder-recovery