Expressive Arts Therapy and Recreation Therapy are integral elements of the eating disorder treatment program at The Meadows Ranch. Each of these therapies provides patients with an opportunity to express themselves through a variety of modalities which enable them to explore and discover existing and new thoughts, feelings, emotions, and somatic experiences. Through non-verbal representation, patients are encouraged to delve into the topic area at a level they are comfortable with.
It is possible to recover from an eating disorder and lead a normal, healthy life. Charlotte Sandy, a The Meadows Ranch alumni, was recently married. She wanted us to share her story with you. Charlotte writes: “At age 13, I developed anorexia and struggled with it for 10 years. After one failed treatment attempt and multiple relapses, I entered residential treatment for the last time in November 2009.
By Gejia Capasso, Family Therapist for The Meadows Ranch
Historically, families have shouldered the blame for a loved one suffering from an eating disorder. This has been met with controversy from both families and treatment teams. We know that eating disorders are complex and that families do everything in their power to fight the eating disorder. Watching someone you love suffer from an eating disorder is painful, scary, and can create anger and confusion. The stress and division within the family can seem overwhelming as each person involved is impacted in different ways. Loss of trust in family relationships, not knowing what to say or how to say it, and not knowing how to support the person who is quite possibly questioning if they even want to get better are all common experiences. Families describe, “Walking on eggshells,” thinking “Everything I say and do seem to make things worse,” and equally “Everything I don’t say and don’t do seem to make things worse.” Here come the shame and blame that families find themselves walking through as they try to understand a disorder that thrives on secrecy, dishonesty, and isolation.
By Michelle Wells, Alumni
I had been discharged from my treatment program for a year and was in the ups and downs of early recovery when the call came. My husband’s voice cracked when he said my name, so I knew before he told me that my father was dead. There were no details yet, but I did not need them. The coroner’s report would later confirm what I already knew. My dad, like his twin brother twenty years before him, had taken his own life. There is much I could write about his life and perhaps some day I will, but as I sit here today contemplating World Suicide Prevention Day (September 10, 2017) all I have to share with you are the pieces of my heart.