What Is Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (EFFT)?
Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) is an approach that helps parents and other caregivers support a loved one with an eating disorder. Caregivers learn to understand and respond to emotions, including their own, so they can take a steady part in recovery.
EFFT is part of the Eating Disorders Program at PPG, directed by Dr. Heather Rosen. Sessions are available in person at our Chappaqua and Hartsdale offices and online.
Who EFFT Is For
EFFT is for parents, partners, and other caregivers who are supporting someone with an eating disorder. The person receiving care may be a child, a teen, or an adult.
EFFT can be used alongside Family-Based Treatment, Enhanced CBT (CBT-E), or other eating disorder treatment. It does not replace them. It adds support for the caregiver's part in recovery.
What EFFT Helps With
Hard Conversations About Food
Caregivers practice ways to talk about eating, weight, and recovery that keep the conversation going.
Mealtime Conflict
Caregivers build skills for staying steady at meals when emotions run high.
Strong Emotions at Home
Caregivers learn to respond to anger, fear, and sadness with empathy and clear limits.
Emotional Blocks
Worry, guilt, and fear can make it harder to respond the way a caregiver wants to. EFFT helps caregivers work through them.
Setbacks and Slow Progress
Caregivers prepare for hard stretches of recovery and learn how to stay supportive through them.
Caregiver Well-Being
Caregiving takes energy. EFFT includes attention to the caregiver's own needs and support.
Four parts of EFFT
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1
Understanding Emotions
Caregivers learn what emotions are for, how they show up in an eating disorder, and why responding to them matters in recovery.
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2
Noticing What Gets in the Way
Caregivers identify the worries, beliefs, and feelings that can make it harder to respond the way they want to, and begin to work through them.
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3
Practicing Emotion Coaching
Caregivers practice responding to a loved one’s feelings with attention and empathy, with the support of the clinician in session.
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4
Using the Skills at Home
Caregivers apply what they have learned to meals, hard conversations, and setbacks, and review how it is going with their clinician.
The EFFT Approach to Care
EFFT is collaborative and skills-based. It does not look for fault. Eating disorders have biological, psychological, and social causes, and caregivers are an important part of recovery. Your clinician teaches skills, practices them with you in session, and helps you apply them at home.
With your consent, your EFFT clinician coordinates with the rest of the care team, such as a therapist, a dietitian, and a physician, so that the skills you learn fit the treatment plan.
What to Expect
A Free Consultation
We talk briefly about what you are looking for and match you with a clinician whose training and style fit your needs.
An Assessment
Your clinician learns about your loved one's care so far, the support you already have, and what you hope to change.
A Treatment Plan
Sessions focus on the skills that fit your situation. We coordinate with your existing providers and help you add others, such as a dietitian or physician, if needed.
Care That Connects Across Specialties
EFFT is often one part of a broader plan. Our clinicians work across specialties, and with your consent your EFFT clinician can coordinate with colleagues across the practice.
- Eating Disorders Program: Evaluation, care coordination, and step-down support.
- Family-Based Treatment: A treatment in which parents take an active role in restoring eating and health at home.
- Enhanced CBT (CBT-E): Individual therapy for adults with eating disorders.
- Parent-Focused Therapy: Support for parents in their own right.
- Family Therapy: Sessions for families supporting a loved one in recovery.
- Couples Therapy: Sessions for partners when an eating disorder affects the relationship.
