Issue link: https://kusm-wichita.uberflip.com/i/1510906
12 "It turned into super restricted eating, where every other food felt scary." — Greta taken place during the height of COVID-19 or long distance, they have usually shared meals over Zoom. Over the past four years, the two have worked on interrupting Greta's restrictive behaviors. "What works best for me is I go into (a session) and put everything on the table," Greta says. "With fear foods, we look at the facts, going through and dissecting why I feel the way I do." She says she trusts Hopper to listen without judgment. Greta's recovery has been characterized by partial recovery and relapse, which continued as a college student living away from home. Twice she left school for medical reasons after "ghosting" Hopper and her treatment team. Before returning to college for her third year, Greta and her providers came up "Together, we focus on what's going to help them most," Hopper says. "I want them to be an active part of that process, instead of relying on me to be the expert. It doesn't mean there aren't times when I might gently confront or reflect, but mostly it's collaborative." It's that kind of partnership that Greta appreciates about her experience in therapy. "It feels like she's working with me even when I'm struggling. It doesn't feel like I'm fighting against her," Greta said. She, too, has occasionally eaten during her sessions with Hopper, although, because much of her treatment has One of her few adult patients was diagnosed with anorexia when she was 12. Greta began seeing Hopper at age 15, after returning from care at an inpatient eating disorder treatment center. Greta's battle with anorexia began after she lost weight after her tonsils were removed, which necessitated a short-term diet of soft foods. With Greta and all her patients, Hopper focuses on relationships — both the relationships patients have with their families and other members of their support system as well as the relationship they create together in therapy. million Americans have an eating disorder. 8