About this course

Learning Objectives

• Define the primary function of dissociation.
• Identify a core principle of Internal Family Systems (IFS).
• Identify the primary goal of Somatic Experiencing (SE).

Target Audience

Course Instructor(s)

• 

  Mollyanne Vasquez, LCSW

  Clinical Director and Clinical Therapist, Austin Center for Eating Disorders

  Specializations My specializations include the full range of eating disorders, body image, trauma, and anxiety disorders, including Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD).

  Along with individual therapy, I also provide family counseling, as I am awed by the healing that can occur in relationship with one another, especially if there is an eating disorder present in the family system. I also love leading therapy groups for folks wanting to connect with others in recovery, and learn skills and coping tools.

  It is a great privilege to witness the growth, strength, and the recoveries of my clients, and my respect and compassion for people struggling with eating disorders and anxiety only deepens over time.

  Experience In the past decade, I have acquired significant experience in early childhood education, working therapeutically with diverse faith communities, providing counseling in summer camps for teens in foster care, and working with children and their families who experienced abuse or neglect. In my work with trauma, my focus has also been on intervention and prevention, including providing parent/family coaching and education with a focus on sexual abuse prevention. All of these experiences have led me to become more well-rounded as a therapist.

  Treatment Philosophy & Modalities My work with clients is informed by Health at Every Size®️, Intuitive eating, evidence-informed frameworks for eating disorders (such as Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Emotion Focused Family Therapy), sex positivity, and social justice.

  I am delighted to work with children (12+), adolescents, families, couples, adults, Spanish-speakers, LGBTQA+ identifying individuals, and those from diverse of backgrounds and faiths.

• 

  Anna Reed, LCSW

  Clinical Therapist and Practice Manager, Austin Center for Eating Disorders

  I was born and raised in Austin, TX and moved back to the city to make this community my permanent home in 2014. I graduated from Tulane University with my Bachelor’s in Sociology, and received my Master’s of Science in Social Work from The University of Texas at Austin. I have worked with children, youth and adults in a variety of settings to find relief and recovery from trauma and mental/behavioral health disorders, including schools and state-sponsored systems of care. I also have significant experience working with children and adults that have lived experience in foster/child welfare systems and that have complex trauma backgrounds. My growth as a clinician is inspired by the strength and resiliency that I have witnessed with every client I sit with.

  My hobbies include yoga, caring for my cats, listening to podcasts, and spending time with my loved ones in nature.

  Treatment Philosophies Regardless of what brings clients to therapy, I approach the work from a strengths-based, relational perspective, prioritizing the felt safety, vulnerability and valuable experiences brought forth by each client. I work from evidence-based modalities to treating eating disorders and body image, including Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy, Motivational Interviewing (MI), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT). In our sessions, we will incorporate mindfulness and self-compassion work as we move towards healing and body liberation.

  I practice from a social justice lens and am Health at Every Size® and Intuitive Eating aligned.

Disclosure

References

• Castellini, G., Cassioli, E., Rossi, E., Mancini, M., Ricca, V., & Stanghellini, G. (2022). Bridging cognitive, phenomenological and psychodynamic approaches to eating disorders. Eating and Weight Disorders-Studies on Anorexia, Bulimia and Obesity, 27(7), 2273-2289. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-022-01379-6
• Hatoum, A. H., & Burton, A. L. (2024). Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy for the treatment of eating disorders: A systematic review of the literature. Mental Health Science, 2(4), e92. https://doi.org/10.1002/mhs2.92
• Kuhfuß, M., Maldei, T., Hetmanek, A., & Baumann, N. (2021). Somatic experiencing–effectiveness and key factors of a body-oriented trauma therapy: a scoping literature review. European journal of psychotraumatology, 12(1), 1929023. https://doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2021.1929023
• Lester, R. J. (2017). Self‐governance, psychotherapy, and the subject of managed care: Internal Family Systems therapy and the multiple self in a US eating‐disorders treatment center. American Ethnologist, 44(1), 23-35. https://doi.org/10.1111/amet.12423
• Pugh, M., Waller, G., & Esposito, M. (2018). Childhood trauma, dissociation, and the internal eating disorder ‘voice’. Child abuse & neglect, 86, 197-205. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2018.10.005