Making use of Special ED when treating ED Collaborating with school-based mental health professionals

Where do kids spend most of their waking hours? 
At Table Talk this week we learned how to help school age children (and parents dealing with them) in their native environment. Elizabeth Weiner, LMFT, a school based therapist at a local high school, introduced us to the people available for collaboration IN school settings. We learned how disabilities show up in our offices and to adjust any assignments by continually assessing level of comprehension. These students all risk rejection while at school. And kids in GATE (gifted children) can suffer from their own unique frustrations. 
Support we will find in this alliance will vary and how schools define success may be different from how we define success. This is an underserved population, but services are improving. And this is an important opportunity we seldom think of, to share valuable insight about our clients with potential partners who have the same goals as we do. 
Tips include: inquiring about an IEP (on our intake), scheduling a time to talk to the appropriate person, being specific re: what we need from them, continuing the conversation through email, and maintaining an open and creative attitude.. 
See https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/toolkits for NEDA’s helpful Took Kit for educators.
Also, this link listing IEP eligibility criteria, defining each one, and common challenges, and emotional concerns.. 
https://www.specialeducationguide.com/…/specific-learning-…/
Thank you, Elizabeth Weiner for all your work. And thank you to all who joined us this month: Mary Andreasen,Lindsay Gooze, Clarisa Vasquez, Josie Christina, Christine Loeb, Amanda Jennings, Caroline Kurkcuoglu, Sheri Barke, Laura L. Gajda Registered Dietitian, Kim Scott, and Kathy Lee.

BIO

Elizabeth Weiner is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in Westlake Village, CA and an Intensive School-Based Therapist in Conejo Valley, CA. She supports youth and families managing the symptoms of eating disorders, attachment trauma, depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder through the use of evidence-based therapies including (TFCBT) Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, (S.E.) Somatic Experiencing and (EMDR) Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing. Elizabeth also works in collaboration with primary therapists through the addition of short-term EMDR therapy to the existing treatment plan, particularly following a traumatic event.