Occupational therapy with SEDATT

This resource is about occupational therapy with the Sheffield eating disorder assessment and treatment team (SEDATT).

What is occupational therapy?

When someone struggles with an eating disorder, their previous healthy interests fade. This leads the eating disorder and related behaviours to be the most important occupation (or, activity) and affects life-balance. Occupational therapists helps people with eating disorders to re-establish healthy occupations and restore life-balance.

Occupational therapists provide practical and creative support to help people to work towards recovery and overcome any barriers that prevent them from doing the activities that matter to them.

Working together, we will aim to increase your independence and satisfaction in all aspects of life.

What are the benefits?

Benefits of working with occupational therapists in SEDATT include:

• engage in positive activites
• learn to problem solve
• improve day-to-day living
• develop coping skills
• maintain and improve physical and mental health
• use creative media to explore issues and build skills
• improve self esteem
• learn something new
• develop assertiveness

What kinds of things can I expect?

Occupational therapy is a very flexible and creative way of looking at someone’s difficulties.

We will take into account all of your interests and daily activities to make sure that all the treatment is a personalised as possible. This can be done in individual sessions, group work, or work with your family.

You will also set your own goals for recovery with the help of your occupational therapist for your treatment.

Some examples of areas we might work on are:

• meal preparation
• meal practice
• making choices
• distraction
• managing stress and anxiety
• tolerating emotions
• mindful and relaxation
• life skills
• eating out, or in public
• self esteem

What happens now?

You will be invited for an initial assessment, where you and your occupational therapist will discuss yous needs and goals for getting better, and how you might work towards them.

You may also be invited to join some group therapies with other young people like yourself to help on your journey.