Just like you, eating disorder therapists, support groups, and other resources are adapting to the social distancing lifestyle. As time marches on during the quarantine in California, we’re finding there’s no shortage of support out there for you during this time. You just have to know where to find it.
We are based in the San Francisco Bay Area and have clinicians located in both Northern and Southern California supporting those in recovery throughout the state. In an effort to support California businesses, we decided to share some of our favorite Californian teachers, influencers, and organizations who provide amazing virtual workshops and resources that can support your eating disorder recovery while you are at home. Let’s support our California economy!
The Kindful Body Team: Ashley, Julia, Juliana, Lindsay and Marcella compiled their top picks for their clients. We organized our favorite resources by topic to make them easier to find what you are looking for!
Virtual Meal Support
For those who are used to more hands-on support in residential treatment, virtual meal support can be helpful.
Registered dietitians Wendy Sterling and Casey Crosbie are co-authors who wrote the Plate by Plate Approach. They host Instagram Live meal support sessions on the COVID-19 Eating Support account. On their Instagram, they show examples of well-balanced meals and snacks.
Well-known Laura Anton from Culver City also supports those in recovery on the COVID-19 Eating Support account.
Online Body-Positive Yoga
Yoga is an excellent option for joyful movement while you are sheltering in place. Here are some online classes:
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Angela Fisher of Big Yoga Life in Albany, CA offers 5 virtual classes a week on Zoom.
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Eat, Breathe, Thrive has a live online yoga course designed especially for eating disorder recovery. No prior yoga experience is needed to join.
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Monique Haan is a licensed therapist whose mental health background informs her yoga teaching style. She offers donation-based Zoom classes twice a week.
Meditation
With all of the added stress due to the pandemic, everyone could benefit from taking a few minutes out of their day to meditate. The San Francisco Zen Center offers a Zoom meditation program with sessions at various times of the day.
Online Support Group
We offer two online support groups for California residents, one at noon and one at 7pm.
Relationships
Relationships are strained during this time when family and friends are either separated or spending more time together than ever before. Local San Francisco therapist, dating coach, and mindfulness teacher Lauren Korshak offers an online meditation class Friday nights called Metta Date.
Her website also features a wealth of resources specifically for COVID-19.
Couples looking to grow in their relationship together during this time can purchase Lauren’s book of exercises, The Mindful Relationship here.
Art Therapy
Arts and crafts aren’t just a boredom buster for when you are trapped indoors. Getting in touch with your creative side–whether that means drawing, painting, writing, or dancing–can also be immensely therapeutic. Here are some local art San Francisco Bay Area art therapy resources:
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Arts Unity Movement in San Mateo is offering online groups, which you can RSVP for on Meetup here.
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Christine Hirabayashi is an art therapist in Campbell who sees clients by phone or video chat. You can email her for more information.
Just for Teens
If you are or have a teen in recovery, here are some resources made just for ages 13-18:
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One Life Counseling Services in San Carlos Recovery through Art for Adolescents, a $40 class held Thursdays 4-5:15pm (4/17,4/24,5/1, and more dates TBD). You can register by emailing aaron@onelifecounselingservices.com
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Annie & Ellen, sisters and co-founders of Gemmed in West Hollywood, offer online support groups for teens and young adults. Find out how to join here.
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No Weigh! A Teen’s Guide to Positive Body Image, Food, and Emotional Wisdom is an excellent book written by local authors, Shelley Aggarwal, Signe Darpinian, and Wendy Sterling.
For New Moms and Moms to Be
Motherhood during eating disorder recovery adds a whole new layer of emotions and body image struggles. If you are a new mom or a mom to be, here are some resources just for you:
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Family Tree Wellness mental health services for new moms and those who are expecting
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The Recovery Mama Guide to Your Eating Disorder Recovery During Pregnancy and Postpartum
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Awake at 3 a.m.: Yoga Therapy for Anxiety and Depression in Pregnancy and Early Motherhood
Other Online Resources
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Natalie Carey is an online body-positive personal trainer and author of Every. Body. Beautiful who is based in San Francisco. She runs a blog and a YouTube channel and offers virtual training to clients. You can find all of the awesome resources she has to offer on her website, Barbell Blondie.
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Food Heaven Made Easy Podcast: Wendy and Jess are San Francisco Bay Area-based dietitians with a Health At Every Size (HAES) approach. Together, they run the Food Heaven Made Easy podcast and blog, where they discuss body image, disordered eating, and more.
Netflix Movies
Yes, you can even find some form of recovery support when you are watching Netflix!
I am Maris is about a local yoga instructor that recovered from an eating disorder. The film explores how yoga helped Maris on her self-love journey. Let it inspire you to check out some of the yoga classes we shared in this blog!
What We are Reading
There’s plenty of time to catch up on reading, so here are a couple of our recommendations:
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The Eating Disorder Trap, by Robyn Goldberg, a registered dietitian in Los Angeles
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Anti-Diet by Christy Harrison a dietitian and anti-diet influencer originally from the Bay Area
Even with social distancing, there is still a huge local online community of support out there for you to lean on. Your eating disorder recovery is still a priority right now, so take advantage of all the resources you have at your fingertips to keep yourself accountable and healthy.
If you are in need of online eating disorder therapy during this time, you can reach out to us to schedule a free 15-minute video consultation.
