Today I am talking with Dr. Elizabeth Hamlin. Elizabeth Hamlin, MD, is a psychiatrist, psychotherapist, and psychoanalytic candidate who has spent her career working intensively with patients with severe eating disorders.

I’ll say it once and I’ll say it again: Eating disorders are a way to communicate.

Eating disorders are really not just about the food. They're a way to regulate and communicate emotions. By understanding what is potentially going on for someone via their eating disorder, we can use it as information to actually get to what's underneath.

The interesting thing about high functioning eating disorders is that it accounts for a large majority of eating disorders. People with high functioning eating disorders may appear to have it all together: they may be perfectionists, do well in school and at work, and may be surrounded by friends. But that doesn’t mean they’re not suffering from disordered eating. Listen to learn what high functioning eating disorders are, and when it’s time to get help. Learn more about eating disorder therapy and treatment in NYC and Brooklyn at rachelleheinemann.com.