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5,870 people sought eating disorder therapy help in Virginia in the last year

Discover how starting therapy with a eating disorder can support your own journey toward a happier, more fulfilling life.

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Starting Eating disorder therapy

What is eating disorder therapy?

Eating disorder therapy is a specialized approach aimed at assisting those who are grappling with a range of eating disorders. These disorders are significant mental health conditions characterized by irregular or unhealthy eating patterns and an intense focus on body weight and shape. Common conditions addressed in Eating disorders include anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge-eating disorder, and avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID).

How does eating disorder therapy work?

At Thriveworks, Eating disorders begins with a thorough assessment and personalized treatment plan. Central to eating disorder therapy is psychotherapy, often employing cognitive behavioral therapy and other specialized techniques to target negative thought patterns.

Signs of an eating disorder

The signs of an eating disorder can include:

  • Drastic weight changes
  • Preoccupation with food and body image
  • Binge eating or extreme dieting
  • Excessive exercise
  • Social withdrawal and secrecy around eating
  • Physical and emotional symptoms like fatigue and anxiety

What is the success rate of CBT for eating disorders?

CBT’s remission rate, according to some research, is generally between 50-30% for those seeking assistance for eating disorder symptoms.

What is the recovery rate for people with eating disorders?

The recovery rate for those seeking assistance with eating disorders depends entirely on the individual’s involvement in sessions, the severity of their symptoms, and their willingness to change their eating habits and relationship with food.

Is eating disorder therapy conducted in person or online?

Eating disorder therapy at Thriveworks is conducted both in person and online by video. We encourage you to choose the option that works best for you.

How long does eating disorder therapy last?

The length of Eating disorders will vary from one person to the next, dependent on their specific needs. Your therapist can help to determine what might be most beneficial for you.

Need more help deciding?

Counseling for Anorexia or Bulimia in Reston, VA—Fairfax Therapy and Treatment

Even though effective treatments are available for anorexia and bulimia, only about 10 percent of people receive the treatment they deserve. Nutritional, medical, and psychological treatment plans can be individualized to each person’s needs and symptoms. However, the first step is recognizing the problem and reaching out for help.

Do you or does someone in your life fight against bulimia or anorexia? Would you like some professional support and guidance for the struggle? Thriveworks Reston in Fairfax, VA offers therapy and counseling for bulimia and anorexia, and we want everyone who struggles with an eating disorder to receive the professional care they need. Reach out today to get started.

Symptoms and Signs of Anorexia and Bulimia

The most well-known and widespread eating disorders are anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, most commonly known simply as anorexia and bulimia.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) gives the following criteria for anorexia:

  • Experiencing terror at the thought of gaining gain or being fat.
  • Reducing food intake to less than the body needs (as based upon age, weight, physical health, sex, and developmental trajectory) resulting in a substantially low body weight.
  • Disturbed self-image so that body shape and weight are experienced as larger and heavier than reality.

The DSM-5 gives the following criteria for bulimia:

  • Repeatedly binge eating, including…
    • Eating food, during a time period, that is substantially more than most people would eat during a similar period of time.
    • Losing control over eating during binges.
  • In response to binges, unhealthy, repeated actions that try to prevent weight gain, for example, using laxatives, diuretics, or other medications; inducing vomiting; fasting; or exercising excessively.
  • A self-image that is obsessed by body size and weight.

Both men and women struggle with anorexia and bulimia, and they are often accompanied by an anxiety disorder or depression. An eating disorder can materialize at any time in life, but they generally surface during young adulthood or the teen years.

Associated Health Problems

Even though they struggle against a life-threatening disorder, people who have bulimia or anorexia may receive compliments on how slim or skinny they are. Often well-intentioned but ill-informed friends and family give these compliments, but skinny and healthy are very different realities. The reality is that bulimia and anorexia often cause serious health problems.

People who have bulimia may also struggle with kidney damage, tooth decay, gastric rupture, ulcers, gastroesophageal reflux disease, constipation, electrolyte imbalance, and heart failure.

People have anorexia may also struggle with disrupted menstrual cycles, infertility, low blood pressure, abnormal heart beat, low heart rate, increased risk of heart disease and failure, anemia, disrupted endocrine system, premature osteoporosis, low white blood cells, kidney damage, and ultimately, death.

Root Causes

How, when, and where anorexia or bulimia start in each person is often varied and intimate, but generally speaking, therapists and psychologists talk about two root causes of these eating disorders: biology and environment.

  1. Examples of biological causes may involve genetics, nutritional deficiencies, and irregular hormone functions.
  2. Examples of environmental causes may involve peer pressure to look a certain way; childhood abuse or trauma; and living in a culture obsessed with body type, thinness, and impossible concepts of beauty.

Schedule Bulimia or Anorexia Counseling

There are many nutritional, medical, and psychological treatment options that are effectively helping bulimia and anorexia clients. Often, a combination of all three is the best solution. Thriveworks Reston has counselors and psychologists who can tailor a treatment plan that meets each individual’s unique needs and gives them a great chance at regaining a healthy body image and positive eating habits.

Our counselors understand how much courage it takes to ask for help. We have done what we can to make the process easier because we want to give each client the support they need, even the first time they call our office. That’s why, when you call to make an appointment …

  • A person will answer and help you schedule an appointment
  • You may be able to see your counselor within the week of reaching out
  • We do not keep waitlists
  • Our counselors accept most insurance plans

You do not need to struggle against bulimia and anorexia alone. Effective treatments are available, and Thriveworks Reston in Fairfax, VA is here to help. Call today.

Pricing & insurance

Our therapists accept most major insurances. We accept 585+ insurance plans, and offer self-pay options, too.
Learn more about pricing for therapy and counseling services at Thriveworks.

Our Reston therapists and counselors accept 29 insurance plans

  • Aetna

  • Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Virginia Medicare Advantage

  • Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Virginia | BCBS HMO

  • Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Virginia | BCBS PPO

  • Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Virginia | Exchange

  • Blue Cross Blue Shield | Anthem (Blue Card)

  • CareFirst Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Virginia | BCBS HMO

  • CareFirst Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Virginia | BCBS PPO

  • Carelon

  • Cigna | Evernorth

  • Cigna | Evernorth EAP

  • Cigna | Evernorth Medicare Advantage

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Self-pay costs at Reston
Talk therapy

Talk therapy

Includes individual, couples, child/ teen, & family therapy

First session

$1

Ongoing sessions

$1

Talk therapy

Psychiatry

Includes reducing symptoms with medication & management

First session

$1

Ongoing sessions

$1

Hear from our clients

5.0 Thriveworks Reston reviews are collected through Thriveworks.com.
★★★★★
Michael was super in working with my wife, me and sometimes our son. He is a good listener, offers suggestions but in the end, we had to make our own decisions. It was good to bounce ideas off him and his manner makes one feel comforted after discussing issues with him. He also responded to my emails and emergency phone calls.
Read more Michael was super in working with my wife, me and sometimes our son. He is a good listener, offers suggestions but in the end, we had to make our own decisions. It was good to bounce ideas off him and his manner makes one feel comforted after discussing issues with him. He also responded to my emails and emergency phone calls.
Reston Mar 2020
Review left on Thriveworks.com

Where to find us

Getting here

Thriveworks Counseling & Psychiatry Reston is located on Roger Bacon Dr., which is right off of Wiehle Ave. We share an office building with SCS Engineers, FVCBank, and Parabon Computation, to name a few. We’re also right by Fairfax fields and parks.

Phone number

(703) 782-3073

Languages spoken by VA providers

  • English
Thursday 8:00am - 9:00pm
Friday 8:00am - 9:00pm
Saturday 8:00am - 9:00pm
Sunday 8:00am - 9:00pm
Monday 8:00am - 9:00pm
Tuesday 8:00am - 9:00pm
Wednesday 8:00am - 9:00pm

Shown in ET

Thursday 7:00am - 9:30pm
Friday 7:00am - 9:30pm
Saturday 7:00am - 6:00pm
Sunday 8:00am - 5:00pm
Monday 7:00am - 9:30pm
Tuesday 7:00am - 9:30pm
Wednesday 7:00am - 9:30pm

Shown in ET

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