DR MARIANNE MILLER

CARING EATING DISORDER TREATMENT IN SAN DIEGO AND THROUGHOUT CALIFORNIA, TEXAS, AND WASHINGTON D.C. FOR ADULTS & TEENS

Exploring Binge Eating Disorder Treatment Options? Meet UCSD CHEAR Clinical Director Dr. Rebecca Bernard

Exploring Binge Eating Disorder Treatment Options? Meet UCSD CHEAR Clinical Director Dr. Rebecca Bernard

Looking for binge eating disorder (BED) treatment options in San Diego? I’ve interviewed licensed clinical psychologist Dr. Rebecca Bernard. She is the Clinical Director for the Center for Healthy Eating and Activity Research (CHEAR) at University of California San Diego (UCSD). I attended a training at UCSD by Dr. Bernard, and I really appreciated how well she understood binge eating treatment and how clearly she was able to explain the research on it.

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Want Body-Positive Eating Disorder Help? Meet San Diego Dietitian Sammi Montag, RD

Want Body-Positive Eating Disorder Help? Meet San Diego Dietitian Sammi Montag, RD

Tired of focusing on your weight? Want to improve your health but sick of feeling shamed about your body from medical providers? I want to introduce you to a passionate San Diego eating disorder dietitian, Sammi Montag, RD, who works both for Kaiser and in her private practice. Sammi specializes in incorporating intuitive eating and positive body image development into her treatment. She really loves helping people identify their unique health goals by providing evidence-based nutrition care. Sammi takes a health-focused (rather than weight-focused) approach with emphasis on normalized eating and behavior change. Her nutrition philosophy incorporates an “all foods fit” mentality. Sammi is doing some amazing work helping people recover from eating disorders in San Diego!

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How to Get Help for Binge Eating Disorder

How to Get Help for Binge Eating Disorder

Struggling with binge eating? Feeling out of control of your eating and don’t know where to turn? I have an excellent starting point for you. I discussed what binge eating disorder is and how to get help on a recent podcast on the Embodied & Well Mom Show that I did on with the fabulous Lindsay Stenovec, MS, RDN, CEDRD of San Diego’s Nutrition Instincts. I have provided a transcription of the main part of the podcast in this blog post. Enjoy!!

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Sick of Body Shame and Diet Culture? Meet San Diego Eating Disorder Dietitian Amy Ornelas, RDN, CEDRD
Marianne Miller Marianne Miller

Sick of Body Shame and Diet Culture? Meet San Diego Eating Disorder Dietitian Amy Ornelas, RDN, CEDRD

Struggling with accepting your body size? You want to be healthy, but you’ve tried so many diets over and over and nothing works. You’re sick of the assumptions people make about you because you don’t fit the “norm” of what bodies should look like. Plus, you are just OVER what friends, family, co-workers, and even medical professionals say about your body and what you should and shouldn’t eat. It’s so challenging to navigate the messages we receive about our bodies and the food we eat. Especially in San Diego, where there’s such a focus on health, wellness, and appearance that it sometimes feels impossible to take a different perspective. Well, I have a WONDERFUL resource in San Diego Eating Disorder Dietitian Amy Ornelas, RDN, Certified Eating Disorder Registered Dietitian (CEDRD). She wholeheartedly embraces the Health at Every Size (HAES) and intuitive eating approaches, and she loves working with people struggling with body shame and fighting diet culture that’s so pervasive in San Diego and elsewhere. Enjoy getting to know her!

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Five Tips for Managing Overwhelming Emotions in Eating Disorder Recovery

Five Tips for Managing Overwhelming Emotions in Eating Disorder Recovery

Have you ever felt so filled with emotion that it was almost unbearable? Do your mind and body feel flooded with feelings such as fear, anger, disgust, frustration, irritability, anxiety, or sadness—to the point at which you feel almost paralyzed? Having an eating disorder in San Diego and elsewhere is so hard. Sometimes the overwhelming emotions can be triggered by things such as discomfort with food and with your body, negative interactions with others, and work and family stress. At such times, it seems like the emotions take over both your brain and your body, and you would do anything thing in the world to make them stop. It is so so hard. Thankfully, there are a few coping strategies that can help you navigate such situations. These coping skills come from dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), which is an approach I integrate in my work with people struggling with eating disorders in San Diego.

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Let's Talk About Sex and Body Image! Meet Sex Therapist Dr. Nicole Van Ness, LMFT

Let's Talk About Sex and Body Image! Meet Sex Therapist Dr. Nicole Van Ness, LMFT

Have you been struggling with your body image so much that it has been affecting your sex life? Is your partner complaining that you don’t want to have sex that frequently, and you feel hesitant to share that it’s because you feel uncomfortable in your own skin? Whether you live in San Diego or elsewhere, you likely know that having a regular and fulfilling sex life is important for intimate relationships. The reality is that A LOT of people struggle with sexual intimacy, and when you have an eating disorder and feel negatively about your body, it becomes a drain on your life and relationships.

Needing answers? I have brought top expert, as well as friend and former top doctoral student of mine, Dr. Nicole Van Ness. Nicole went to school and learned her trade as a sex therapist in San Diego, and in recent years she has moved to Texas, where she has a private practice and is adjunct faculty at Southern Methodist University. Nicole has maintained her California license as a marriage and family therapist, and she provides videoconference services for individuals and couples in San Diego and other parts of California.

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My Eating Disorder and Trauma Recovery: "Life Without Ed" Author Jenni Schaefer

My Eating Disorder and Trauma Recovery: "Life Without Ed" Author Jenni Schaefer

Hello everyone! I am SO EXCITED to present my new interview with none other than Life Without Ed author and speaker Jenni Schaefer! Jenni’s book came on the scene around 10 years ago, sending shockwaves throughout the world of eating disorders. Eating disorder professionals and individuals suffering from eating disorders alike acknowledged that Jenni captured a way of looking at eating disorders that was elegant and accurate. Since that time, countless people have found solace in her book, reading chapter by chapter and literally nodding to themselves and saying, “she gets it.” It has been transformative in the eating disorder field. Both outpatient eating disorder therapists like myself in San Diego, as well as clinicians in higher levels of care have recommended this book as people start on their recovery journey. Jenni has since written two more books on eating disorders. PLUS, Jenni travels throughout the country, not only spreading her story of eating disorder recovery, but more recently on trauma recovery as well. She’ll talk about both areas in this interview. Enjoy!!!

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Interview with UCSD Eating Disorder Psychologist Dr. Jennie Wang-Hall

Interview with UCSD Eating Disorder Psychologist Dr. Jennie Wang-Hall

Hi everyone! In the past few months, I’ve gotten to know Dr. Jennie Wang-Hall. Jennie is a gifted eating disorder therapist who works in the adult eating disorder treatment program the University of California San Diego (UCSD) Eating Disorders Center. She also has a private practice in Oceanside. When I first met Jennie, I totally connected with her because she lived in Colorado (my home state!), loves dogs (ditto!), and who works in the adult eating disorder treatment program the University of California San Diego (UCSD) Eating Disorders Center really smart (like me! ;) ). She is an overall authentic, genuine person who really cares about people recovering from eating disorders. Plus, Jennie is fun to hang out with, and so I’m so glad she is both my colleague AND my friend. I’m looking forward to you getting to know her. I also think that my interview with her will give you more information on adult eating disorder treatment at a partial hospitalization program (PHP) and intensive outpatient program (IOP).

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Have Kids Who Are Picky Eaters? Meet San Diego Dietitian Rachel Rothman, RD

Have Kids Who Are Picky Eaters? Meet San Diego Dietitian Rachel Rothman, RD

Do you have kids who are extreme picky eaters? Have you been grappling with trying to figure out how to provide for their nutrition needs without turning every meal into a battle? It is so hard when you have children that struggle with eating a wide variety of nutritious foods. It is absolutely exhausting, especially in San Diego when you just want to pack some food and go to the beach and focus on enjoying the sun, sand, and water instead of worrying about whether you can get your kid to eat something. One of the newer diagnoses of eating disorders is Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID). It is basically extreme picky eating that can cause serious health issues.

One San Diego pediatric dietitian who specializes in ARFID, as well as in other types of feeding and eating disorder treatment is Rachel Rothman, RD (registered dietitian). She has a B.S. Food science from University of California Davis and a Master’s degree in nutrition education from Teacher's College, Columbia University. She has loads of clinical experience with feeding difficulties, feeding disorders, sensory processing disorder, and many other nutritional ailments. All in all, Rachel is a really smart woman who will do an amazing job working with you and your kids.

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