Welcome

We offer Family-Based Treatment (FBT) at The Emily Program because we believe that incorporating a client’s family into their treatment will make the individual more successful in their recovery. Family-Based Treatment is an approach to therapy where parents play an active and positive role in their child’s recovery. This teamwork assists in restoring the individual’s weight, empowering them around eating, and helping to establish a healthy adolescent identity.

Family-Based Treatment starts with the understanding that parents are not the cause of their child’s eating disorder and that they can be a major asset in recovery. FBT understands the importance of family and that families are a key component in child development. That being said, families are able to help advocate for change in their child’s behaviors. By playing an active role in their child’s recovery, parents can help their child work through FBT and find lasting recovery.

This is one person’s story; everyone will have unique experiences on their own path to recovery and beyond. Some stories may mention eating disorder thoughts, behaviors, and symptom use. Please use your own discretion. And speak with your therapist as needed.

Lu Curtis is a former client of The Emily Program. She is a teacher and the mother of a daughter in recovery from an eating disorder.

ED (an eating disorder) reared his ugly head in 2013 in my then, 13-year-old daughter. We never invited him, or at least I didn’t. However, he became significant to my daughter, ever-present, super-influential, and controlling as hell. ED ruled every aspect of my daughter’s life and began to control our entire family with his horrible influences. The messages my daughter received from ED were more powerful than the messages she received from me or anyone else in the family.

Stacy Schilter Pisano is the Site Director at The Emily Program’s South Sound location in Lacey, Washington.

What programs does The Emily Program’s South Sound location offer?

Stacy: The Emily Program’s South Sound location offers multiple levels of care to individuals struggling with a variety of eating concerns. The most intensive level of care is our Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP). This level of care is best suited for individuals who engage in eating disorder symptom use daily or multiple times weekly and have difficulty intervening on their symptom use independently. The alternative intensive level of care is our Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP). This level of care is designed for individuals whose eating disorder or body image concerns are interfering with various life domains, including emotional and relational health. Both IOP and PHP services include therapeutic groups, gentle yoga, supported meals/snacks, individual therapy, nutrition counseling, and psychiatry. The South Sound location also provides outpatient services to individuals stepping down from higher levels of care or to individuals who are hesitant to enter a higher level of care.

If you or a loved one are struggling with an eating disorder and looking for specialized eating disorder treatment, our admissions team is the place to start! Staffed by caring, compassionate, and knowledgeable staff, our admissions team can help individuals concerning eating behaviors and connect them with experienced clinicians who can start them on the road to recovery.

Kylee Kulow, an Admissions Specialist at The Emily Program, was interviewed for this glimpse into our admissions process. Kylee enjoys communicating with clients and helping them start their personal journey to recovery from an eating disorder. Knowing she can connect and work collaboratively with clients on their personal goals is something special to her. In her free time, you can find her at the lake, with her family camping and boating, spending time with her husband and golden doodle, Juno, or enjoying the farmers market.

Q: Who is the admissions team?

Kylee: The admissions team is the first contact potential clients will speak with when starting the process of coming to The Emily Program for treatment. The team also helps callers who are seeking information about treatment for their family members, loved ones, and friends. Team members are available 7 days a week to provide exceptional service over the phone to help ease any anxiety, fear, or concern a person may have when making the decision to seek treatment or taking the first step to seek support. The admissions team is always happy to answer questions and talk about the services offered at The Emily Program, as well as how to get started.

Sheena Washburn, Clinical Manager and Outpatient Dietitian at our Seattle location, won an Outstanding Preceptor Award from the University of Washington for excellence in her work providing training to interns in her community.

This is one person’s story; everyone will have unique experiences on their own path to recovery and beyond. Some stories may mention eating disorder thoughts, behaviors, or symptom use. Please use your own discretion. And speak with your therapist when needed.

Rebecca Witt is a former client of The Emily Program. She was born in India and lives in Olympia. She is a mother, educator, and photographer. She has her BA in addiction recovery and plans to become a trauma therapist. Her favorite color is glitter and gold. This is her first blog for The Emily Program and she hopes it helps to inspire others to break open and let their light shine.

When I fall short of finding words and when nothing else makes sense, I often turn to Brené Brown, a well-known author, researcher, and storyteller. One of my favorite quotes is:

“Owning our story can be hard but not nearly as difficult as spending our lives running from it. Embracing our vulnerabilities is risky but not nearly as dangerous as giving up on love and belonging and joy—the experiences that make us the most vulnerable. Only when we are brave enough to explore the darkness will we discover the infinite power of our light.” Brené Brown

Ellie O’Brien is a yogi and a mother of two. During her free time, she enjoys practicing yoga and spending time with her family. She works hard to raise her two daughters to be strong in their own voices, opinions, and physical bodies.

As both a woman and a mother, I am constantly bombarded by messages of what I should look like and how I should behave. These messages, advertisements, and cultural norms have existed for decades in order to make women feel less than. If we ourselves do not feel complete, whole, or worthy, we are more likely to buy new products, invest in new activities, and pay to look like what we see in the media. This becomes a cycle—the media perpetuates what we “should” look like and we often try our best to adhere to this ideal out of fear of stigma, shame, or judgment. But, I refuse to participate in this cycle. As a mother of two daughters, ages eight and ten, I want to raise my girls to be strong in their own voices. I want them to think positively of themselves and their bodies, and I do the following to make sure my daughters feel strong, confident and loved in their day-to-day lives.