Absolutely! While we have a specialized program for eating disorder treatment, Chrysalis does not exclusively treat eating disorders. We provide counseling services for a variety of concerns, including: depression and other mood disorders, anxiety, trauma and abuse, grief and loss, substance use disorders, self-harm, and relationship, family, and marital issues.

Therapy frequency and duration varies depending on the individual. You collaborate with your therapist to determine how often you meet. Typically, clients start off seeing their therapist once a week or once every other week and adjust the frequency as progress is made or as your needs change. A person’s time in therapy is dependent on the complexity and chronicity of the issues being addressed.

Our administrative team provides exceptional customer service, including billing services. The cost of therapy is dependent upon on your method of payment and can range from $0 to $150 per service. If you have health insurance coverage, we are happy to work with your insurer to submit claims on your behalf. Prior to your first appointment, we encourage you to contact your insurer and request your benefit information for outpatient mental health services in an office setting so that you are informed of payment expectations. We will need you to bring your insurance card to your first appointment in order to determine your costs for therapy that day and for subsequent visits. If you are without insurance or prefer to self-pay, we offer a reduced rate for all of our services to help with feasibility of payment.

All of our therapists are licensed mental health professionals, not medical doctors, and can only provide counseling services. Therefore, no therapist at Chrysalis is able to prescribe medication for clients who may need it. We also have a nurse practitioner, Aiereal Lloyd, to provide medication management services to our clients in-house. Additionally, we collaborate with members of the Wilmington medical community and have established relationships with psychiatrists whom we refer clients to when specialty care is required.

The first appointment is considered an intake and involves a lot of information gathering. You will fill out paperwork prior to seeing your therapist and they will review the contents before visiting with you. The first face-to-face interaction consists of history taking as well as learning what present day concerns bring you to counseling. You will discuss your goals for therapy and what you hope to gain from the experience.

We believe eating disordered behaviors exist on a spectrum. We use the following continuum model to explain one’s relationship with food and the body:

Conceptualizing these behaviors across a continuum allows you to see the progression of symptoms from normative eating with healthy body image to a full blown clinical eating disorder.  Most American adolescents and adults report that they struggle with body image, are preoccupied with their weight, and have a history of dieting.  However, when these struggles become a primary focus in one’s life and begin to interfere with functioning, it’s important to seek help.

Pressing concerns, including medical complications, arise when these behaviors progress into unhealthy means to manipulate one’s weight or body, such as excessive exercising, abusing laxatives, or self-induced vomiting.  Using food to manage underlying emotional needs, whether through overeating or restricting, is also indicative of eating disordered behavior.  If you think you are struggling with body image, weight (or how you feel about your weight), or your relationship with food, we strongly encourage you to seek support from a specialist to further understand your behaviors and to begin treating them.

Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any psychological disorder.  In fact, approximately 10% of those with an eating disorder will die from their disease.  These disorders greatly impair one’s mental, physical, and emotional functioning, hindering one’s quality of life.

There is significant hope for recovery when treatment begins.  Research shows that after just a year of consistent treatment, clients report a significant remission in active eating disorder behaviors.  While those with a chronic history of an eating disorder should expect a longer duration of treatment, full recovery can be achieved and sustained.

Whether you are a parent, partner, or close friend of someone with an eating disorder, we do not recommend that you forcefully confront your loved one regarding their behavior.  Keep in mind that they may not realize that they have a problem, and it is not your responsibility to “fix” them or rescue them from the disease.  Rather, gently express your concerns while offering suggestions for support and help. We encourage parents and partners to seek professional support through the treatment process as well, even consulting with a specialist prior to establishing care for their loved one.