Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP)
At the UTHealth Houston Center for Eating Disorders, our IOP has a core curriculum that adheres to the “Focused” form of CBT-E for all patients in program, as well as individualized group curriculum specific to their presenting concerns, including Binge-Specific CBT-E groups, and Underweight-Specific CBT-E groups. We also provide groups consistent with the “Broad” form of CBT-E to target maladaptive perfectionism, core low self-esteem, marked interpersonal difficulties, and/or mood intolerance, when we believe these problems may be contributing to a patient’s eating disorder. Parents will receive ongoing support in implementing Family-Based Treatment (FBT) during breakfast at our Center, and while their teen is at home and outside of program.
Anxiety disorders/OCD are a common set of co-occurring diagnoses in patients with eating disorders. For this reason, we have an assimilative integration of ERP, the gold standard treatment for anxiety disorders/OCD, into our core CBT-E framework to enhance a patient’s ability to not only eat, but to do so in a way that can ultimately lead to improved tolerance of anxiety. ERP is additionally beneficial in disproving patients’ maladaptive beliefs related to the overestimated probability (how likely a negative outcome will occur) and cost (how awful it will be) of increasing food consumption and associated body changes.