The Oxford Dictionary defines an eating disorder as a range of mental conditions in which there is a persistent disturbance of eating behavior and impairment of physical or mental health. Quintana said an eating disorder can look like an intense preoccupation with food, whether it be overeating, not eating enough, throwing it up or restricting intake.
“The main red flag is that the person is very obsessive,” she said. “However, it’s not about the food. It seems like it is, but food is used to regulate one's emotions. That preoccupation with what they are eating or not eating becomes a distraction from painful or uncomfortable emotions.”
To help combat the need for more eating disorder treatment centers, Monte Nido Houston, a residential treatment facility with 16 beds, opened in Conroe in early April. Located at 15252 Saddlewood Drive, the new center is located next door to Clementine Houston, a treatment center for teens and children.
According to the National Eating Disorder Association, eating disorders have the second-highest mortality rate of all mental health disorders.
A study by the American Academy of Pediatrics showed that before the pandemic, the eating disorder emergency visit volume was increasing by 1.5 visits per month. In the first year after the pandemic, visits increased by 12.9. Despite the following year decreasing by 6.3, the study found hospitalizations are still not back to prepandemic levels.
“The isolation, the uncertainty, it all led to an increase,” Quintana said.
Residents of Monte Nido have on-site access to a psychiatrist, therapist, dietician and chef.
“It is one step down from an in-patient hospital,” she said. “We have the medical component, but we try to make it feel more like home. We are in a house, and we want people to feel comfortable, not like they are in a sterile hospital environment.”
Day-to-day operations include requiring clients to eat at least six times a day and help prepare meals. Quintana said the process is used to heal a patient's relationship with food.
“We have an ‘all foods fit’ philosophy,” she said. “We believe there is room for any type of food. We want [clients] to feel like eating and cooking is a positive experience.”
Quintana said one factor that sets the facility apart from other treatment centers is not just the focus on food but on trauma-informed care.
“The majority of clients that come in have had those adverse experiences, and so we screen everyone who comes in for [post-traumatic stress disorder] symptoms and trauma,” she said. “If they do meet criteria then we incorporate some of those trauma-informed processes.”
One aspect includes using cognitive-processing therapy, Quintana said. According to the American Psychological Association, this type of therapy involves repairing the relationship between thoughts and emotions to reduce the “automatic” system of PTSD symptoms.
“We do see that when clients leave, the majority of them report lower levels of symptoms and don’t meet requirements of PTSD anymore,” she said. “It’s very effective.”
Quintana said anyone suffering from an eating disorder can visit the Monte Nido Houston website for more resources and information.
“Reaching out for help doesn’t mean that you need to automatically come to a place like this,” she said. “Just reach out, have a conversation, and try not to feel a sense of shame. This is something a lot of people struggle with, and usually they struggle in silence. The more we can normalize it and the more people can get the care they need.”
Monte Nido Houston
15252 Saddlewood Drive, Conroe
936-242-0300
www.montenido.com
