Virtual Eating Disorder Treatment

Virtual PHP/IOP offer an immersive online treatment experience for adults of all genders who are ready for more autonomy in their recovery and create a sense of community within each client's home environment.

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Alsana Connect ™ would like to be your virtual eating recovery community.

(855)915-0213

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Virtual Eating Disorder Treatment

Alsana Connect provides holistic*, virtual eating disorder treatment for individuals recovering from the following eating disorders:

  • Anorexia Nervosa
  • Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID)
  • Binge Eating Disorder (BED)
  • Bulimia Nervosa
  • Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorders (OSFED)
  • Co-occurring mental health conditions

What to expect

Alsana Connect provides evidence-based clinical care with comprehensive medical oversight. Online eating disorder treatment allows the flexibility for you to:

  • continue working with your outpatient team during treatment.
  • live your life while honing your recovery skills with virtual peer support.
  • build a strong foundation for lasting recovery by learning how to cope with life’s daily challenges.
  • keep eating disorder behaviors contained and prevent health risks from worsening.
  • heal with the support of your eating recovery community from the comfort of your home environment.
happy woman engaging in online eating disorder treatment with Alsana.

Virtual PHP/IOP Program Features

Alsana Connect programming is designed in alignment with our Adaptive Care Model®, which seeks to address healing in all areas of clients’ lives by providing Nutritional, Medical and Clinical care as well as Movement and Relational therapies. Our Virtual clients receive the same quality of personalized care as those enrolled in a traditional (in-person) Alsana treatment program.

Online treatment is offered every day of the week with flexible programming throughout the day. In addition:

  • Every client receives a full clinical assessment at admission to aid in the creation of their individualized treatment map-regardless of care method.
  • Programming is delivered via a secure, engaging, user-friendly treatment platform that allows clients to remain in direct communication with their outpatient team during treatment.
  • Virtual PHP/IOP programming includes group and individual therapy, nutrition counseling and nourishment support, and recovery-minded movement/yoga.
  • We offer support for members of clients’ support network, including family members and supportive others.
  • Care is provided by a compassion-focused, licensed care team with experience treating eating disorders in the virtual space.

An eating recovery community

While eating disorders thrive in isolation, we believe recovery happens in community. We’ve intentionally structured our vPHP/IOP offerings so that each client is part of a cohesive, consistent group from day one to ...

discharge. This aids in creating a sense of community and support within the comfort and safety of each client’s home environment.

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happy woman in virtual php/iop for eating disorders

Is online eating disorder treatment for me?

The flexibility of online eating disorder treatment care makes it uniquely well-suited to support individuals who:

  • are transitioning from a higher level of care.
  • are seeking early intervention to avoid needing a higher level of care in the future.
  • are caregivers/parents.
  • are ready for more autonomy/less structure.
  • are working or attending school.
  • have severe food-related allergies.
  • want to be with family and other members of their support network while in treatment.

The flexibility of virtual care makes it a valuable care option for adults of all genders who are ready to practice recovery skills and cope with triggers in a less-structured, ‘real-life’ treatment environment.

Because safe recovery is our top priority, every client must complete medical and clinical assessments so we can determine the most appropriate method and level of care. Contact our admissions team via 24/7 live chat to learn more.

Meet the Care Team

Angela Dainas, M. Ed., LMFT

Regional Executive Director | she/her/hers

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Angela Dainas, M. Ed., LMFT

Angela is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) in Georgia and an AAMFT Approved Supervisor. Angela received her undergraduate degree in English from Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama, and her Master of Education in Counseling from The University of Montevallo in Montevallo, Alabama.

Angela has been working in the clinical treatment field since 2009, first working with clients recovering from eating disorders and then clients recovering from substance-use disorders. Angela has had the honor to work with clients and families at multiple levels of care, including detox, residential, partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient, and outpatient.

In her role as Regional Executive Director for Alsana Connect™, Angela oversees the operations of the program and aims to lead the all-remote team in building a cohesive culture of compassion. Angela is passionate about creating a thriving and useful virtual environment to deliver Alsana’s Adaptive Care Model ® to clients nationwide.

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Sara Mischler, MA, LPC

Director of Clinical Services

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Sara Mischler, MA, LPC

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Ryan Varick

Program Director | he/his

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Ryan Varick

Ryan Varick is the Program Director of Alsana’s virtual program, Alsana Connect. He has a Bachelor of Social Work from Ramapo College of New Jersey. He currently lives in Chicago, IL, but was born and raised in New Jersey.

Prior to working for Alsana, he worked at two different non-profit organizations in Rochester, NY. For one non-profit , he wrote and developed a program for young fathers coming out of the Monroe County Correctional Facility and for those on probation. After writing and developing it, he implemented it for the duration of the grant period. For another non-profit, he built and implemented a residential program for homeless LGBTQ+ youth. Ryan said “My ‘why’ is knowing that the work I do, whether with clients or on the operational end of the process, is impactful on those who access our services. If it can increase the possibility of our clients’ success, then it is worthwhile in my eyes.”

In his free time, he enjoys traveling all over, but mainly to Central/South America and Europe, as well as domestically. He has also been actively learning Spanish for the last two years. Ryan and his partner have a three-year-old husky mix named Bruno, who is the light of their lives.

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Christy Schexnayder

Program Director

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Christy Schexnayder

Christy Schexnayder is the Virtual PHP/IOP Program Director for Alsana and is also a Certified Addiction Recovery Empowerment Specialist (CARES).  She has been a member of Augusta’s Coalition for Addiction Recovery Awareness since 2017, ACARA increases awareness of different treatment options in the community and the referral process/admission criteria for each agency.

Christy has a passion for helping individuals locate treatment and recovery resources and supporting them through that process.

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Kimberly Wynn

Program Coordinator

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Kimberly Wynn

Kimberly Wynn is the Virtual PHP/IOP Program Coordinator for Alsana.

Kim is passionate about helping individuals who seek recovery get and stay well!  She meets individuals where they’re at in their journeys and walks with them to reach their goals.

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Rhea Grover

Lead Therapist

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Rhea Grover

I am a licensed professional counselor with extensive experience in the treatment of eating disorders, trauma, dissociative disorders, substance-related and addictive disorders. I have treated complex issues at the inpatient, residential, PHP, and IOP levels of care. I have worked as a primary therapist, clinical director, curriculum developer for the treatment of binge and emotional eating, and lead therapist. I take a values-based approach to remind humans they can be free from the constraints of negative self-talk and learn to live authentically. I incorporate somatic experiencing, DBT, CBT, ACT, EMDR, and mindfulness, to help clients gain access to their own capacity to heal and cope. My work is focused on a client-centered framework with the goal of co-creating a supportive container for healing and self-exploration. I use compassion-focused therapy and humor to help clients navigate the complex issues that have manifested in their eating disorders.

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Madalyn Leatherman, MS, LMFT

Lead Therapist | she/her/hers

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Madalyn Leatherman, MS, LMFT

Madalyn is a Lead Therapist in Alsana’s vIOP program. She is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with experience practicing with adults, children, and adolescents in individual, group, couple, and family therapy sessions.

She has worked in a variety of professional settings outside Alsana, including private practice, residential substance abuse treatment, intensive outpatient programs addressing domestic violence anger management/parenting concerns, military bases, women’s health centers, academic settings, and hospitals.

Outside of eating disorders, she specialized in the areas of trauma, substance abuse, family/relational conflict, family of origin issues, and women’s issues. Madalyn is passionate about working with families who love someone with an eating disorder and have experience being the Family Program Coordinator at an inpatient addiction treatment center. While she has enjoyed the variety of knowledge she has gained from these experiences, she found the common denominator across all types of settings, and work that must be present for therapy to be effective is making sure that you feel understood, validated, and safe.

Madalyn is drawn to humanistic approaches that aim to find the good in all of us and build on our strengths. She also aims to be human herself and knows that at Alsana, you don’t have to recover alone.

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Anthony Hackworth Jr, RD

Lead Dietitian

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Anthony Hackworth Jr, RD

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Kat Barker

Primary Therapist | she/her/hers

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Kat Barker

Dr. Kat Barker is an associate licensed therapist in Alabama and Texas. She completed her Master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and her doctorate in Counselor Education and Supervision at Auburn University. She has worked with clients with eating disorders for over three years in various settings. In her role at Alsana, Kat serves clients in the East United States in the Virtual PHP and IOP programs.

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Kristen Tritt, LCSW

Primary Therapist | she/her/hers

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Kristen Tritt, LCSW

Kristen is an Associate Clinical Social Worker specializing in the treatment of eating disorders from a person-first, strengths-based perspective. With over 10 years in social services, she brings with her a wealth of experiences contributing to her work as a therapist. Kristen has devoted the last five years of her career to gaining experience in the field of eating disorders working at some of the most prominent clinics in the Los Angeles area.

Kristen operates from a values-based approach to help clients guide themselves towards a life that is free from cognitive dissonance and more centered around their authentic selves. She has expertise in treating comorbid trauma and substance use disorders. Kristen is trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), and uses this therapy and other trauma-informed approaches such as TF-CBT and a narrative approach to work towards detangling unhelpful or problematic cognitive patterns.

She also incorporates mindfulness, somatic work, and DBT to help patients access their own internal capacity to regulate and cope. Kristen understands the nuanced process that is required in the treatment of eating disorders. Working from a holistic, person-in-environment approach helps her to guide clients in their own process of self-determination. She believes that the value of the therapeutic alliance, working in harmony and compassion, inspires healing for those who are recovering. The goal, then, is that clients develop a sense of their own autonomy, individuality, and authentically empowered self.

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Elizabeth Beil, RD

Registered Dietitian

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Elizabeth Beil, RD

As a Registered Dietitian with Alsana’s Virtual Program, Elizabeth has been working in the field of eating disorders for several years. Elizabeth believes completely in the Alsana nutrition model and helping each of her client’s find peace and a positive relationship with nourishment; as well as, having compassion and instilling hope for her client’s recovery.

Elizabeth attended the University of Dayton where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Dietetics and completed her dietetic internship at The Ohio State University.

Elizabeth resides in Tampa, Florida with her husband and in her free time enjoys reading, going to the beach, traveling, and trying new restaurants!

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Lorissa Bronson, RD

Registered Dietitian | she/her/hers

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Lorissa Bronson, RD

Lorissa Bronson is a Registered Dietitian for the Alsana Virtual Program. Lorissa became part of the Alsana family in 2020. Prior to working for Alsana, she has worked in a variety of settings including acute care hospitals, physical rehab hospitals, an eating disorder treatment center, and a private practice where she worked with adults and adolescents struggling with their eating disorders.

Lorissa has a variety of experience and holds a national board certification in Nutrition Support (CNSC) and is a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor. Whether she is working in the hospital, holding private sessions, or leading her nutrition groups, Lorissa always uses a Health at Every Size (HAES) mindset and an “all foods fit” philosophy. She believes food is more than fuel. It also provides experiences with relationships and culture, and so much more. She tries to meet her clients where they are and hopes they can feel empowered to have autonomy in their relationship with food, no matter what life throws at them.

Lorissa completed her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Arizona and her dietetic internship at the University Medical Center in Tucson, with an emphasis in medical nutrition therapy. Lorissa now lives with her family in Colorado, where she enjoys playing yard games, dancing, and trying out new recipes from her family and friends.

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Virtual Perception of Care

Alsana’s care teams administer Perception of Care Surveys for all clients when they step down to a new level of care or discharge from Alsana, regardless of discharge type. This aids our teams in identifying opportunities for improvement while also inviting clients to reflect on their online eating disorder treatment experience and use their authentic voices.

94 percent of Perception of Care Survey1 responses received from Virtual PHP/IOP clients said they would recommend Alsana to others in need of eating disorder treatment.

See full Perception of Care Survey results below.

94%

Virtual Programs Perception of Care Survey1 Results 2022

90%

"I felt engaged in treatment."2

94%

"Virtual services fit my schedule and needs."2

93%

"Virtual services were able to deliver comprehensive and adaptive care."3

94%

"Although services were provided virtually, I still felt I was able to communicate with the treatment team."4

99%

"Virtual services offered a unique experience by allowing me to be at home and continue to work on my ED in that environment."5

94%

"I would recommend this program to other individuals seeking treatment for an eating disorder."2

Virtual Outcomes

Virtual Outcomes vs. Brick and Mortar 2022

41%

Reduction of ED symptoms in virtual direct admits.

39% in brick and mortar.

38%

Reduction in depression scores in virtual direct admits.

38% in brick and mortar.

25%

Increase in self-compassion in virtual direct admits.

17% in brick and mortar.

17%

Reduction of situational anxiety in virtual direct admits

17% in brick and mortar.

We would like to be your virtual eating recovery community.

Receive quality, holistic, online eating disorder treatment from the comfort and safety of your own home.

Contact us today via our 24/7 live chat to find out if online treatment is the right option for you.

Online eating disorder treatment is currently available in Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Missouri, Nevada, Tennessee, and Texas. Alsana is an advocate for clients in receiving insurance coverage for virtual eating disorder care. We are in-network for virtual programming with nearly all major payors. In addition, there are many plans that have agreed to waive co-pays.

Virtual eating disorder care that meets you where you are in recovery.

Call Us Today. (855)915-0213

*Alsana takes an individualized, whole-person approach to eating disorder treatment, however it is not considered a form of holistic medicine.

1Because Alsana clients are surveyed about PoC when stepping down their level of care and when discharging from programs, the percentages above do not describe a percentage of survey respondents but the overall results in terms of survey responses received.
2N=141 | 3N=138 | 4N=140 | 5N=139

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