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counseling and psychiatric services for adolescents and young adults
Doorways LLC.


1825 E. Northern Ave. 

Suite 200

Phoenix, AZ 85020

602.997.2880  

 

www.doorwaysarizona.com

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Specialties

We specialize in treating adolescents and young adults for

 

depression, bipolar, anxiety and mood disorders,

eating disorders, 

trauma and abuse,

substance abuse,

self harm,

suicide prevention,

ADD/ADHD

Doorways In The News


 
 Chase Kerrey talks with KTAR about signs to be on the lookout for with eating disorders in children.

Staff Highlight

 
Claire Shortsleeve
Office Assistant

Claire graduated from Arizona Christian University in 2011 with a degree in Behavioral Health. She is currently attending Fuller Theological Seminary working towards a Masters in marriage and family therapy. Claire is a Young Life leader in central Phoenix and a kitty lover.


Where are you from?  

 

I was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona.

 

 

Tell Us About Your Family  

My parents are great. They have been married 28 years, and still enjoy each other! I have a not so little brother named Eric who attends NAU. He, like my dad, is an artist. Eric and I were home-schooled for most of our childhood, which really set us up for a lifetime of loving to learn. We love fish tacos, our cat Blackie, and camping! 

 

    
When you have 30 minutes of free-time, how do you pass the time?  

 

I love to get a little exercise into my day whether it's just stretching or a quick hike. Lately 30 minutes are often filled up with homework.
 

 

If you could meet someone living or dead,who would it be and why?

Almost certainly Esther from the Old Testament.  I would want to sit and be with her, noting her methods and gentle yet bold spirit.  She is a true victor of the Bible, loving like Jesus did and acting in accordance with the promptings of her heart.


What's your favorite quote/verse?  

"Thus the authority of compassion is the possibility of man to forgive his brother, because forgiveness is only real for him who has discovered the weakness of his friends and the sins of his enemy in his own heart and is willing to call every human being his brother."

-Henri Nouwen, 
The Wounded Healer

Eating Disorders: 
The War on Women

Click the infographic to learn more about the war that various eating disorders have waged on men's bodies.
Eating Disorders: 
The War on Men


Click the infographic to learn more about the war that various eating disorders have waged on men's bodies.

Quotables

"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds you plant."

 

- Robert 
Louis Stevenson

  

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." 

- Lao Tzu

 

"Be helpful. When you see a person without a smile, give them yours." 

 

- Zig Ziglar

 

"Gravitation is not responsible for people falling in love."

 

- Albert Einstein

 

"To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance."

 

- Oscar Wilde

 

"It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light."

 

- Aristotle Onassis

 

"Believe you can and you're halfway there."

 

- Theodore Roosevelt

 


Greetings!   

 

Jan

Do you know someone who struggles with food?  Since millions of us are battling eating disorders, odds are that you know someone who does, even if you don't realize it.  

 

Helping raise awareness about eating disorders is the goal of 

Eating Disorder Awareness Week which took place during the last week of February this year.  Organized by the National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA), Eating Disorder Awareness Week offers a chance for everyone to educate themselves about eating disorders and then do just one thing to spread the word and increase awareness about these life threatening disorders that go too often untreated. 

 

Regardless of who you are and whether or not an eating disorder or disordered eating has touched your life, there are things you can do to help spread awareness and precipitate change.

 

The first is to know the facts.  Clinically significant eating disorders will affect 20 million American women and 10 million American men at some point in their lifetime.  These disorders are real and take real, long-term help to overcome.  They can have significant, serious, life-long and even life threatening consequences.  They impact every area of a person's life and can be debilitating both physically and mentally.

 

The second is to know the most common disorders and the signs that someone is struggling with them.

  • Anorexia Nervosa - When a person participates in self-starvation, depriving the body of calories in order to become thinner.  People who struggle with Anorexia Nervosa lose excessive amounts of weight, are preoccupied with food and obsessive about calories, fat, and dieting.   For more information about Anorexia Nervosa, click here.
  • Bulimia Nervosa - When a person goes through cycles of binge eating followed by activities like purging or excessive exercising to "make up for" the binge.  When someone is struggling with Bulimia Nervosa there may be external clues that indicate the presence of bingeing and purging behavior like large amounts of missing food, empty food wrappers, or packaging from laxatives or diuretics.  For more information about Bulimia Nervosa, click here.
  • Binge Eating Disorder  - When a person participates in regular episodes of binge eating that is not accompanied by other behaviors intended to compensate for or get rid of the extra calories. When someone is struggling with binge eating disorder, they will consume large amounts of food within a short time frame and may avoid eating with others to hide this behavior.  For more information about Binge Eating Disorder, click here.
  • Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (EDNOS) - Some people who struggle with disordered eating exhibit a range of symptoms that prevent them with being diagnosed with each of the three primary disorders above.  In these cases, a diagnosis of EDNOS enables those people to get the help and support they need even though they don't fit the criteria for a specific eating disorder.  For more information on EDNOS, click here.

The third thing you can do to help spread the word and raise awareness about eating disorders is to do "just one thing" during this year's Eating Disorder Awareness Week.  For more information about eating disorders and for ideas on how you can get involved, visit the National Eating Disorder Association.

 

Sincerely,

 

Jan Hamilton, PMHNP-BC

Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner

Doorways, LLC

[email protected]

 

P.S.  If you know someone struggling with an eating disorder, there is help.  You can either contact us or call the National Eating Disorders toll free confidential Helpline.  CALL THE HELPLINE at 1-800-931-2237, Monday - Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. EST. 

 

Doorways Now Offering
Weight Loss/Nutrition Services
Rachel
Rachel Brogan MS, RD, Registered Dietitian

 

Doorways is now offering weight loss and nutrition services

  • Weekly one-on-one with our dietician
  • Personal eating plan
  • Get help with eating issues
  • Get the accountability, support and resources you need

Rachel is also available to speak to groups and organizations about healthy eating.

 

Rachel received her Masters of Science degree in Human Nutrition from the University of Nebraska in 2003. She worked at Remuda Ranch for over five years treating adult women, girls, and boys with anxiety and eating disorders. She specializes in adolescent eating disorder treatment, weight management, and family education. She is excited about leading adolescents and young adults into a more positive relationship between their bodies and food.

 

For more information call Doorways at 602-997-2880.

What Causes Eating Disorders?

This is one of the questions parents ask us all the time.   Whether their child has already been diagnosed with an eating disorder or they are interested in information on preventing an eating disorder, most parents want to know where it starts, what makes one person develop an eating disorder but not another, and most importantly, what they can do to help.  The truth is there is no singular, quantifiable cause or reason why some teens struggle with eating disorders and others do not.  There are however, some factors that may increase the likelihood of a specific person being diagnosed with an eating disorder.  These risk factors range from societal pressures to self image and do not always lead to an eating disorder but they do increase the risk and can be used as warning signs that parents can learn to look for.

 

Social Warning Signs

 

The image of perfection most often promoted in the media, magazines, movies, and online has a powerful effect on how we see ourselves, how we see each other, and whether or not we are "acceptable" in our eyes or the eyes of others.  For adolescents, the pressure to be accepted, to fit in, is already extreme.  When the person they see in the mirror doesn't match what they have been told is desirable or acceptable, the pressure to change how they look can become all encompassing.  For some, this will lead to the development of an eating disorder.

 

Biological Warning Signs

 

Unfortunately, one of the most common things parents should be looking for may be hiding in plain sight.  According to the Alliance for Eating Disorders, 50-80% of a person's risk for developing an eating disorder may be genetic.  These disorders tend to run in families.  While biological factors can affect males and females, research shows that girls whose mother or sister have now or have ever had Anorexia Nervosa are twelve times more likely to develop this eating disorder and four times as likely to develop Bulimia as their peers without this risk factor.

 

Psychological Warning Signs

 

Many people with eating disorders also struggle with other mental health problems.  This means that people who have been diagnosed disorders that are commonly also seen in those with eating disorders have a higher risk of also developing an eating disorder.  Commonly co-morbid mental health disorders include depression, anxiety, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).

 

Interpersonal Warning Signs

 

Other factors that increase the risk of developing an eating disorder center on certain types of life experiences.  People who have been physically, sexually, or emotionally abused have a higher risk for eating disorders.  Being bullied, especially if the bully or bullies targeted the person's weight, size, or other physical characteristics also increases the risk that an eating disorder will develop.   Traumatic events like the death of a family member or a difficult divorce can also increase the risk of developing an eating disorder as part of coping or escaping from the event.

 

One of the most important things parents can do is provide a mitigating influence when it comes to the messages teens get about how they should look.  Remind boys and girls that the men and women who look like fashion models make up less than 2% of all the women in America.  Make sure the messages being sent inside the home to boys and girls are healthy and encourage acceptance, embrace diversity, and ensure each child feels loved for everything they are, not just how they look.

 A Required Taste