Freedom from Emotional Eating, Food & Weight Obsession

FAQ

Coach Ellen Shuman’s FAQ

There is a point of readiness for Coaching. Visit these pages to Learn More about My Coaching and about Who Will Benefit Most from Working with Me.

If what you read on those pages feels like it might be what you’re looking for, go to my Book a Free Coaching Consult Call and plan a call with me. Together, we’ll figure out if what I offer is a good fit for you.

Yes! I just ask that you share that information with your therapist. When needed for ethical care, or just helpful, I consult with my coaching clients’ therapist (and/or psychiatrist), and sometimes a client’s dietitian. Client plus practitioners, all working together on the client’s behalf, can be quite an empowering team! Often, a person just works with me.

I was trained as a Life Coach about 25 years ago, by The Institute for Life Coach Training and Dr. Diane Menendez. My expertise in emotional eating, binge eating, emotional dysregulation, behavior addictions, mindfulness and emotional regulation skill training has been amassed through 30 years of work in the recovery field. I worked as the principle researcher and program developer for Acoria, the outpatient eating disorder treatment center I founded and ran (1993-2005). I also had access to some of the top experts in the world when I served as Vice President and then President of BEDA; The Binge Eating Disorder Association (which recently merged with NEDA). Read more about my story here.

Absolutely! It’s important that we determine if we’re a good fit and if coaching appears to be the right level of service for you at this time. While I am not a therapist and I cannot diagnose, my 30 years in the eating disorder treatment field as a program developer for an outpatient treatment center, and my 25 years as a Coach, gives me what I need to determine if Coaching is the correct level of support.

No, sorry, due to sheer volume of inquiries and the complex nature of this work (and since I do not know you or your needs), it’s not ethical to offer professional or personal advice through email. If you want to learn more about emotional or binge eating, I suggest spending some time reading many of the information pages on my website. Then, if you think you’re a good candidate for Coaching, Book a Free Coaching Consult Call with me. We can figure out how to best address your needs, together, in live time.

Over the course of the last 25 years as a Coach, in addition to private coaching, I have facilitated phone groups for emotional and binge eaters…and for 12 years I ran A Weigh Out’s Membership Circle; a year-long self-guided program, online.

These days, online courses are all the rage! But, in my own experience, I have found most people who struggle with binge eating benefit most from a more personalized experience; more in depth help than virtual or pre-packaged groups provide. They need to develop new emotional regulation skills. They need help to develop new emotional habits to replace long-held painful ones.

In my practice, I have found this is best accomplished through a supportive, individualized, one-to one relationship. I like really getting to know my clients so I can best help them create the life they want. Some amazing change become possible inside the warm, non-judgmental, empowering partnerships that form!

Based on information gathered through focus groups and feedback from my clients, most said they preferred phone sessions to being on camera. They reported a willingness to say certain things during phone calls that they might not have had the courage to say if they were being seen. 

They liked the fact that phone calls removed all body image concerns. If they had a tough week, and were feeling any shame about their body, they said they were more willing to show up for a session vs cancelling.

Plus, I’m old school. I do my best work by phone. Video is an added technology that gets in the way of what I pick up from clients. And, frankly, since the pandemic, I am Zoomed out!

For anyone who lives outside the US, and does not have long distance service to the states included in their phone plan, to keep costs down, we can do an audio call through Skype.

My fees for coaching are posted for all to see toward the bottom of my Coaching Page. Click here

For 30 years, my area of expertise, my research, program development at my treatment center, and advocacy work have been primarily in the area of binge eating, Binge Eating Disorder, and emotional overeating. So, I do not consider myself qualified to coach people who have Anorexia or are presently actively bulimic. 

If you are Anorexic or Bulimic, I highly recommend finding a therapist who specializes in those eating disorders. Consider asking a physician you know for a referral, or contact NEDA’s Treatment locator. If you’re in the US, contact NEDA, National Eating Disorders Helpline, (800) 931-2237. To find paid listings in many countries, try “Psychology Today’s Find a Therapist”.

YES! The emotional management skills and tools I teach can benefit anyone who wants to learn how to manage their life in more calming and fulfilling ways. When partners are doing the work along with you, amazing things stat to happen in those relationships. If interested, check out my WellCentered Life Coaching page.

Yes. Many, many health care professionals feel the need for a greater understanding of best practices for working with binge eaters and, in general, for working with people who live in larger bodies. 

I offering training/consultation on a select basis to Dietitians, Psychotherapist, Psychiatrists, Medical Doctors, Bariatric Groups, Nurses, Physical and Occupational Therapists, Personal Trainer, etc.

Visit my Professional Training page to learn more and to get in touch.

If you have a question about A Weigh Out Coaching that’s not addressed above, feel free to use my Contact Page or email your question to support@aweighout.com

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