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Eating Disorder Treatment for Hyannis, MA

Everyone on Harborside’s clinical team has an extensive background treating eating disorders alongside the anxiety, depression, trauma, and body-image concerns that so often travel with them. That depth matters, because disordered eating is rarely just about food. It shows up wrapped around other things, and care that only looks at one piece tends to miss the rest.

Hyannis lives differently depending on the month. Year-round households here run small businesses, work the ferries and the hospital, raise kids in the same schools their parents went to, and then watch the town fill and empty with the tourist season. That rhythm puts pressure on eating patterns and body image in ways that are easy to minimize and hard to talk about out loud. Harborside is based just up the road in Yarmouth Port, and we work with patients across Hyannis and the rest of the Cape by video, with care built around the actual shape of a year-round Cape life, not a seasonal one.

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Eating Disorder Treatment for people in Hyannis, MA

Appointments happen over a secure video platform. You need a phone, tablet, or computer with a camera and a private space where you can talk without being overheard. That’s it. No app to buy, no waiting room.

An initial evaluation typically runs longer than a follow-up, giving your clinician time to understand your history, current eating patterns, medical background, and what’s been tried before. Follow-up appointments are shorter and scheduled at a frequency that fits your situation, sometimes weekly, sometimes further apart, adjusted as things change. If medication is part of the plan, prescriptions are sent electronically to a pharmacy near you in Hyannis or wherever you fill them, and follow-ups track how things are going and whether adjustments make sense.

Therapy sessions run on a similar structure: video, a set time each week or every other week, and a therapist who stays with you across sessions rather than starting over each time. Harborside is based in Yarmouth Port, Massachusetts, and everything above is delivered remotely, so where you sit in Hyannis doesn’t change how the care works.

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How telehealth care actually works

This service covers restrictive eating patterns, binge eating, purging behaviors, and the preoccupation with food, weight, or body image that can take over daily life. It also covers the conditions that frequently sit alongside disordered eating: anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive patterns, trauma history, and ADHD. Treating the eating disorder without addressing what’s underneath it usually leaves the underlying piece untouched, so our clinicians look at the whole clinical picture rather than a single symptom in isolation.

Some patients come in already carrying a diagnosis. Others aren’t sure what to call what they’re experiencing and want an honest evaluation before deciding what to do next. Both are a reasonable place to start.

What we treat

The first session is mostly conversation. Your clinician will ask about your eating history, current patterns, physical health, family history, and any other mental health concerns you’re managing. There’s no physical exam over video, so if a medical evaluation or lab work is needed, you’ll be directed toward appropriate resources near you. By the end of the appointment, you and your clinician talk through what treatment could look like: therapy, medication management, or both, and how often you’d be seen.

What the first appointment involves

Medication management and functional psychiatry at Harborside are performed by psychiatric nurse practitioners: Rachel Egan, RN PMHNP-BC, who is also the practice’s clinical director, Emily Pardue, RN PMHNP-BC, and Kirstin Ritchie, RN PMHNP-BC. Each is qualified to evaluate, diagnose, and prescribe for mental health conditions, including the conditions that often accompany eating disorders. Full bios and credentials for each of them are on the team page.

Therapy and the day-to-day work of eating disorder treatment are delivered by the licensed therapy team: Hannah Legesse, LICSW, Tori Mahoney, LMHC, Jacquelyn Duford, LCMHC ATR, and Lexie Carchedi, LCSW. Jacquelyn is also a registered art therapist, which gives some patients, particularly those for whom talking about food and body image head-on is difficult, another way into the work. Medication management and therapy can run together or separately depending on what a patient needs.

Who our clinicians are

Harborside is a private-pay practice and does not bill insurance directly for appointments. Current fees for an initial evaluation and for follow-up appointments are listed on the pricing page, and you’re welcome to ask questions about cost before anything is scheduled.

What it costs

You can request an appointment through the Harborside website. From there, scheduling and intake paperwork happen directly with the practice, and your first video appointment is set up once that’s complete. If you’re not sure whether this is the right fit yet, reaching out with questions before booking is a normal first step, not a commitment to anything.

Getting started

This page is educational and does not replace individualized medical advice. Reading it does not create a provider-patient relationship with Harborside.

If you are in immediate danger, call 911. For mental health crisis support, call or text 988. Harborside does not provide emergency or after-hours care.

For general information on eating disorders and warning signs, the National Institute of Mental Health is a reliable public resource. [CITATION: NIMH eating disorders overview page, used for general public education on symptoms and risk]

Reviewed by Rachel Egan, RN PMHNP-BC, Clinical Director, Harborside Psychiatrics. Last reviewed: {LAST_REVIEWED}.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Does Harborside treat eating disorders that haven't been formally diagnosed?

Yes. Many clients start therapy for a difficult relationship with food or body image before, or without, a formal diagnosis.

Yes, when a client is already working with one. Coordination is discussed during intake and ongoing treatment.

No. Eating disorder therapy at Harborside is talk therapy. Medical monitoring, lab work, and meal planning are handled by outside providers and coordinated with as needed.

Clients who want medication management can be connected with one of Harborside’s psychiatric nurse practitioners.

No. Outpatient therapy isn’t appropriate for every situation. If a higher level of care is needed, your therapist will discuss that directly rather than continuing with weekly sessions alone.

Currently, eating disorder treatment at Harborside is available to clients located in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

If you need help right now

If you are in immediate danger, call 911. For mental health crisis support, call or text 988. Harborside Psychiatrics does not provide emergency or after-hours care.

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