Disordered Eating Alongside Addiction and Mental Health

What is disordered eating?

Disordered eating describes a troubled relationship with food, eating or the body that does not necessarily meet the criteria for a diagnosed eating disorder. It can look like restricting, skipping meals, bingeing, eating to numb or soothe, rigid food rules, or exercising to compensate for eating. Many people live with it for years without anyone noticing.

How disordered eating connects to addiction and mental health

At Healing Springs Ranch, we define addiction as a pattern of thoughts or behaviors that brings relief from emotional pain, a kind of self-soothing by numbing. Food can serve that purpose just as alcohol or drugs can. That is why disordered eating so often shows up alongside:

• Substance use, sometimes beforehand, sometimes in place of it
• Depression and anxiety
• Trauma and post-traumatic stress injury (PTSI/PTSD)
• Obsessive-compulsive patterns, perfectionism and a need for control
• Other process addictions

It also matters for recovery. When drinking or drug use stops, the need to numb does not disappear on its own. Without attention, it can move to another behavior, including food. We call this addiction substitution, and treating the function behind every pattern is how we work to prevent it.

How we address disordered eating in treatment

When disordered eating is part of a client’s picture, it is built into the same individualized treatment plan as their addiction or mental health diagnosis, rather than handled separately. That can include:

• Individual therapy two to three times a week with master’s-level clinicians
• Trauma resolution using approaches such as EMDR and Emotional Transformation Therapy (ETT)
• CBT and DBT skills for the thoughts, urges and emotions that drive eating behavior
• Somatic processing, mind/body groups and art therapy, which help clients reconnect with their bodies safely
• Process groups, including gender-specific groups, where body image and shame can be talked about openly
• Family involvement, since food and the body are often bound up in family patterns

Clients who need dietary assistance can meet with a nutritionist, who we make available as part of their care.

When medical care needs to come first

Healing Springs Ranch does not treat active eating disorders in people who are medically unstable. Stabilization has to happen first, in a hospital or a specialized eating disorder program. Signs that medical care should come first include fainting or dizziness, rapid or significant weight loss, frequent vomiting or laxative use, an irregular heartbeat, or being unable to eat enough to stay well. In those situations, please talk with a physician or a specialized eating disorder program. If you are unsure, call us; our admissions team evaluates disordered eating patterns during the admission assessment and can talk through the situation with you.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Healing Springs Ranch treat eating disorders?

We address disordered eating when it occurs alongside addiction or a mental health diagnosis. We do not treat active eating disorders in people who are medically unstable; medical stabilization needs to happen first, in a hospital or a specialized eating disorder program.

If I come for addiction or mental health treatment, will my eating be part of my care?

Yes. If disordered eating is part of what you are struggling with, your clinicians include it in your treatment plan alongside your other diagnoses, so the same underlying pain is treated in one place.

How do I know whether Healing Springs Ranch is the right fit?

Our admissions team starts with a free, confidential assessment to understand your situation and the right level of care. If you are medically unstable because of an eating disorder, a hospital or specialized eating disorder program is the right first step.

What other conditions do you treat?

We treat addiction, mental health conditions and trauma, separately or together, including complex co-occurring diagnoses such as depression, anxiety, PTSI/PTSD, bipolar disorder and dissociative disorders. See Conditions We Treat.

Do you accept private pay and insurance?

Yes, both. We welcome private-pay clients and offer payment plans. We are in-network with Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, Health Choice, Magellan and Employers Health Network, and work with out-of-network benefits. We do not accept Medicare or Medicaid.