Bellwood Health Services
Inpatient Eating Disorders Treatment Program
Toronto’s inpatient facility for the treatment of anorexia, bulimia, binge eating, and other specified feeding or eating disorders
“An eating disorder is like an iceberg. On top, we see the food, the calories, and the body image. But underneath, there are things like trauma, mood disorders, personality traits, and family conflicts,” says Dr. Kalam Sutandar, MD, MSc, FRCPC, Psychiatrist, at Bellwood Health Services.
At Canada’s only program that addresses both eating disorders and other concurrent disorders such as addiction, your treatment will focus on evidence-based models that give you the foundation for success, while also offering support to family and loved ones. You’ll have access to a full support staff (with a staff:patient ratio of about 1:6) experienced in eating disorders treatment, including psychiatrists, psychotherapists, nutritionists, registered dieticians, and social workers.
Everyone is at a different place in their recovery journey when they come to Bellwood, which is why our treatment program is designed to be flexible. We work with you to develop a realistic, customized care plan that meets your goals, whether that’s weight rehabilitation, post-treatment Aftercare, or help with an eating disorder and a concurrent concern, like addiction, depression, anxiety, and PTSD.
Highlights
- Evidence-based treatment administered by an interdisciplinary team of medical experts
- Multiple treatment streams for personalized care
- Reintegration support through Aftercare (for Ontario residents) and family support and education
- Location: Toronto, ON
- Category: Inpatient
- Length: Customized to needs
Bellwood’s Approach to Eating Disorder Treatment
Our inpatient eating disorders treatment program features an integrative model of care grounded in patient-centric practices that are centred around evidence-based treatments and a number of therapeutic techniques, including:
- A truly integrative treatment experience where underlying and concurrent mental health concerns (including depression, anxiety, and PTSD) are addressed along with the eating disorder.
- Medication assistance therapy, if needed, to provide additional support along with psychiatric care.
- Nutritional rehabilitation, including meal supervision, with clinical staff and registered dieticians for restoring and normalizing eating habits.
- Patient-specific physical health and wellness activities for supporting the mind and gently supporting the body’s healing.
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) to assist in developing helpful thought patterns and healthy behaviours while in recovery and beyond.
- Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT) for developing the skills needed to manage emotions, practice mindfulness, and overcome difficult times.
- Individual psychotherapy for an empathetic and safe space to discuss personal recovery concerns and develop treatment goals.
- Group therapy to provide opportunities for peer support and professionally guided emotional processing.
- Psychoeducational sessions to help you understand yourself and the nature of eating disorders.
- Family therapy for an unlimited number of loved ones to help continue the healing when you return to home.
Our Eating Disorder Program is Right for Patients who:
- Are 18+ years old
- Meet current DSM criteria for an Eating Disorder and require structure and support in order to make changes to their eating, exercise, and/or purging behaviours
- Have a BMI of 15 or more
- Experience emotional or behavioural problems in their home or in their community and or treatment settings and need a highly structured 24-hour therapeutic environment.
The Advantages of Inpatient Treatment at Bellwood
Eating disorder treatment can often benefit from a more comprehensive approach that’s only possible with inpatient programs. With an immersive environment, 24/7 support, and constant access to medical care, this approach can be more effective for recovery.
Bellwood is known as being among the most effective inpatient facilities in Ontario. And located next to Toronto’s Sunnybrook Park, it offers a calm environment ideal for healing.
A Day at Bellwood, EHN Canada’s Toronto Facility
Morning
You’ll enjoy a nutritious breakfast accompanied by our clinical team and mental health support workers who will work with you to normalize your eating habits. After breakfast you’ll set your intentions for the day with some self reflection. Then, you’ll attend group sessions focussed on making behavioural changes, body image, cooking, psychoeducation and nutrition education.
Afternoon
After a supervised lunch, you’ll attend a one-on-one therapy session to address the root cause of your eating disorder. Then, depending on your care plan, you may participate in gentle exercise to promote your recovery and group therapy sessions focussed on DBT and CBT skills and individual sessions.
Evening
In the evening, there are optional groups such as addiction support groups, meditation, and leisure activities.
About Bellwood’s Health Services
Bellwood Health Services, part of EHN Canada, is home to Toronto’s premier concurrent inpatient eating disorders treatment program, and has over 40 years of history guiding patient recoveries. We are a partner of the University of Toronto’s Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Hospital, and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), and are a fully licensed and accredited private hospital. Our serene setting, steps from Toronto’s Sunnybrook Park, fosters an ideal atmosphere for recovery.
Eating Disorder Treatment Program Streams
Our treatment program is designed to be flexible, with multiple streams to help achieve the unique goals of our patients: full remission of symptoms and weight rehabilitation, or smaller changes that are achieved over time.Our streams include:
- Eating disorder
- Eating disorder + addiction
- Eating disorder + mental health disorder
All streams include group and one-on-one therapy, meal supervision, nutritional rehabilitation, and physical and wellness activities. We also offer programs for short-term symptom intervention and respite care.
Related Programs
People who suffer from anorexia, bulimia binge eating, or OSFED often struggle with concurrent mental health concerns. While our Eating Disorders Program addresses mental health and substance use at the same time, as needed, Bellwood also offers a variety of related treatment programs – both in person and online.
