The Emotional Toll of Being an Eating Disorder Clinician
Avoiding Burnout While Making an Impact
Being an eating disorder clinician is deeply meaningful work. We sit with people in some of their most vulnerable moments, helping them navigate the complexities of food, body image, trauma, and identity. It’s a job that demands patience, resilience, and an unwavering belief in recovery—even when our clients can’t see it for themselves.
But if we’re talking about burnout, let’s get one thing straight: It’s not the client work that drains us—it’s the toxic culture of the field itself.
I remember walking into a branch meeting of one the eating disorder professional communities back in 2012. I was so excited to attend and build community within a field I had been passionate about for years. I was in my final year at Columbia School of Social Work, about to graduate and hoping to network with established clinicians already working with eating disorders. As I scanned the room for a seat, feeling nervous and awkward, I noticed no one wanted to make eye contact. Everyone seemed to know each other, everyone seemed completely disinterested in meeting someone new. When I finally found a seat and tried my luck starting a conversation with people in front of me, a RD and therapist, I gleaned from their name tags, they gave me cold tight smiles, a loose handshake and the therapist asked me who I was. When I shared my hopes of joining the field upon graduation, she laughed, rolled her eyes, said “just what we need another eager child in the field” and turned around.
I wish I could say this experience was my first and only like it, but unfortunately it was just the beginning of many cold shoulders, “mean girls” exclusions, and toxic behaviors that run rampant in our field. I know I am not the only one who has experienced this, and much worse. I know that since I am white and thin, I also have immense privilege and protections in our field that are completely unfair and undeserved.
So, what do we do about it? How do we start to heal from the divisive nature that seems to breed among us?
The Reality of Burnout in Eating Disorder Treatment
Most people assume that burnout in this field comes from the emotional weight of our caseloads—holding space for grief, trauma, and medical instability. And while that’s certainly a factor, what wears many of us down isn’t the work itself—it’s the culture surrounding it.
The eating disorder treatment world can be shockingly competitive, gatekept, and systemically flawed. Clinicians are often pitted against each other, overworked, and left scrambling for resources in a field that demands endless credentials, unpaid labor, and emotional investment.
It’s no wonder so many of us feel exhausted.
Competition in the ED Field: The Hidden Stressor
Let’s talk about something we don’t often name: The competitive undercurrent within the ED treatment space.
Despite being a field built on the principles of compassion and care, there’s an insidious pressure to prove yourself—whether it’s through the most advanced certifications, the most sought-after speaking gigs, or the largest social media following.
The scarcity mindset in our profession is real. Some of the dynamics I see playing out include:
Credential Climbing: The pressure to get every training, certification, and specialization—even when it’s financially inaccessible or not clinically necessary.
Referral Hoarding: The belief that sharing clients with other providers is a sign of weakness rather than a way to provide the best care.
Gatekeeping Knowledge: Some clinicians treat their expertise as a trade secret rather than a resource to be shared.
Corporate Takeover: Larger treatment centers prioritizing profits over ethical care, leading to moral injury for those working within these systems.
This kind of environment isn’t sustainable. It fosters disconnection, imposter syndrome, and ultimately, burnout.
Collaboration as a Protective Factor
Here’s the good news: We don’t have to play by these rules.
Burnout isn’t just about overwork—it’s about the way we work. And one of the most protective factors for clinicians is community.
When we see other professionals as colleagues rather than competitors, everything shifts. Collaboration means:
Consulting instead of competing. Sharing resources and perspectives makes us better clinicians, not lesser ones.
Referring out with confidence. No one is the perfect fit for every client—helping someone find the right match is an act of care, not failure.
Normalizing mentorship. Learning from seasoned clinicians should be encouraged, not seen as a sign of inexperience.
Advocating for ethical change together. When we join forces, we have a greater chance of improving the systems that harm both clients and providers.
We don’t heal in isolation. And neither do our clients.
How to Shift the Culture & Protect Your Well-being
If you’re feeling burned out, disillusioned, or just over the toxicity in this field, you’re not alone. Here are a few ways to push back against the culture of competition:
Recognize the scarcity myth. There is more than enough work to go around. No single clinician is the “best” at treating eating disorders, and that’s a good thing. Clients need variety, not a single expert.
*I do want to recognize the exhaustion from having to compete with venture capital groups with million dollar budgets - THAT is different and difficult!
Find your people. Seek out colleagues who truly support you, not those who make you question your worth. Create peer consultation groups. Share resources. Celebrate each other’s wins.
Set boundaries with the industry. You don’t have to say yes to every unpaid speaking engagement, every complex case, or every online debate (I’m talking to you Facebook group comment sections haha) . You’re allowed to protect your energy.
Do your own healing work. Many ED clinicians have a personal history with food and body struggles. If we don’t tend to our own wounds, this work will become retraumatizing rather than fulfilling.
Challenge unethical practices. Whether it’s calling out weight stigma in treatment centers, advocating for better supervision, or pushing for fairer pay structures, small actions add up.
Final Thoughts
The eating disorder field can be brutal, but it doesn’t have to be.
When we shift from competition to collaboration, we create a healthier profession—one where clinicians and clients thrive.
So, let’s stop playing the game that leads to burnout. Let’s support each other, challenge toxic norms, and build a field that reflects the values we teach.
Our clients deserve it. And so do we.
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Other Services Offered:
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