Prescott House Eating Disorder and Nutrition Program Eating disorders are not typically associated with men in our society, but we have encountered several men in our program over the years struggling with body image issues, binge eating issues, and excessive exercising issues.  In more severe cases, we have encountered men with anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and other forms of eating disorders as well as men who use steroids.  We have found that addressing issues with food and body image, along with balanced nutrition, can be crucial to a healthy recovery. Nutritional Support:  Clients attend six nutrition education workshops in the first six weeks of their stay at Prescott House.  The workshops include the of topics: meal planning, label reading, nutrition and recovery, hypoglycemia, eating disorders and disordered eating, and grocery shopping.  Clients will also meet individually with the nutrition counselor within their first couple weeks to be assessed on their food habits and to be screened for eating disorder/disordered eating issues.  The clients receive ongoing support with meal planning, shopping skills, and cooking skills as needed.  Emphasis is placed on helping the clients form healthy relationships with food. Groups: The Eating Disorder/Disordered Eating Group meets once per week and includes clients with the most need of help with food and/or body image issues.  The groups facilitate nutritional accountability, individual sharing, group discussions, and experiential work.  However the primary objective of the group is to create a space that allows for the men to share openly with other men about their food and body related concerns.  The group also holds a weekly group dinner organized by a monthly leader to reinforce the connection of the group members.    Individual Sessions:  Individual sessions are scheduled weekly with all clients in the Eating Disorder/Disordered Eating Group.  These sessions involve individual process of the client’s past week with food, CBT work, individual assignments, and goal setting for the following week.  Clients who are not in the Eating Disorder/Disordered Eating Group schedule individual sessions as seen needed by staff or when desired by the client after their initial consultation. Exercise:  Clients are allowed to request gym privileges after their first couple weeks at Prescott House.  Clients are permitted to use the gym up to four days per week for no longer than one and a half hour per visit, though clients with a history of excessive exercising may be more limited on a case to case basis.                     Body Image:  Men are increasingly bombarded with images of our society’s ideas of masculinity through movies, magazines, and advertisements.  The Eating Disorder/Disordered Eating Group places an emphasis on helping the clients find their own beliefs about masculinity by focusing on the intrinsic values of masculinity and what it means to be a man in today’s world.