Meal Support Groups

Chrysalis offers meal support groups for both adolescents and adults. These groups provide the opportunity for participants to challenge beliefs and behaviors that prevent one from nourishing their body, enjoying food, and/or accepting or feeling comfortable in one’s body. Meal groups aim to provide safe and supportive eating opportunities that exclude a focus on calories, diet talk, exercise, weight, and appearance. Participants are encouraged to choose a wide variety of food, increase their level of trust around food, observe body cues and eat while enjoying pleasant conversation. Once the meal has concluded, a reflection of the experience will occur. Meal groups are 60 minutes and are led by a registered dietitian. These are open groups, meaning that participants may be added at any time. Frequency and duration of attendance is dependent on the recommendation of your treatment team.

Learn more about our comprehensive nutrition program here.

Exposure Meal Group

Exposure Meal Group offers a safe and supportive space for clients to challenge themselves with different and new foods. It provides an opportunity for clients to prove to themselves that they are able to get through distressing experiences despite the presence of anxiety. The goal of Exposure Meal Group is for clients to lean into and track the thoughts and emotions that come up during a meal, allowing them to become more familiar with those thoughts and emotions and practice challenging them in the moment. The group will be held on alternating Thursdays from 5 to 6pm. Clients who have not participated in this group before will need to schedule a group orientation session with the group leader. For more information on Exposure Meal Group, please contact Lauren Francis by email at lauren.francis@chrysaliscenter-nc.com.

Adolescent Exposure Meal Group

Adolescent exposure meal group is for clients age 13-17 who are appropriate for outpatient services and need a little extra support in their recovery journey. This group provides a safe and encouraging space for teens to eat in the company of a therapist and peers. In exposure meal group, clients are challenged to pick a themed meal and sit with their anxiety throughout the course of the meal. Adolescent exposure meal group is held on alternating Tuesdays from 5:45 to 7pm. For more information about this group, contact Macy Baynor by email at macy.baynor@chrysaliscenter-nc.com.

Outpatient Lunch Meal Group

This dietitian led meal group allows clients to have more positive experiences with food while gaining both accountability and confidence in their nutrition related self-care. Goals and intentions of this group include practicing plating appropriate meal portions, improving connections/observations with hunger/fullness/body cues and honoring them, having space for stepping outside of comfort zone and eating with others in a safe environment, providing assistance in accountability for fueling, increasing positive meal experiences, and gaining group support and feedback. For more information about this group, please contact Madelyn Huey by email at madely.huey@chrysaliscenter-nc.com.

Nutrition Groups

Post-op Bariatric Support Group

This group is led by Jennifer Wolf, RDN, one of our Registered Dietitians.  The group is intended for those who are within the first 2 years of surgery to lend peer support, swap recipes, talk nutrition, and foster community.  Group will be held in person, biweekly on Wednesdays, runs from 5:30-7pm. To get started or learn more, please contact Jennifer Wolf by email at jennifer.wolf@chrysaliscenter-nc.com.