Levels of Care

Inpatient

At this stage of treatment, critically underweight patients achieve medical stabilization, weight restoration, and nutritional rehabilitation in a safe, home-like environment. Patients receive the highest level of care from our 24-hour nursing staff and our experienced team of doctors, psychiatrists, dietitians, and therapists. This level of care may also include chemical dependency detox services. The primary goal at this stage is to get patients grounded as they begin to build rapport with their clinical team, who will meet them right where they are.

Residential

As they become nutritionally stable, patients are ready to learn how to disempower their eating disorders by uncovering the complex psychological factors contributing to their unhealthy relationship with food. Our spacious residential environment allows patients to feel comfortable and at home while they begin the arduous journey of recovery. Our staff sits down for meals with the patients to monitor their eating patterns and food intake, and to develop an understanding of their thinking patterns. Through these conversations at mealtime, patients learn new, healthy eating patterns.

Our culinary training program helps patients develop the daily living skills to prepare nutritional meals upon their return home. This training includes hands-on use of standard kitchen equipment and the necessary cooking skills needed for success. During this stage, our younger patients also have access to a challenging academic program, facilitated by a licensed teacher in a classroom setting.

Partial-Hospitalization

Here, the staff helps patients develop and practice recovery skills in a supportive environment combined with real-life experiences. This level of care may include going out to restaurants and movies, confronting situations and dealing with the stress without taking it out on the food or themselves. Trauma work is also essential at this level because we want them to gain insight into how an event or multiple events may have led them to this point. Some programs are uncomfortable doing trauma work at this level of care, feeling maybe they’re not ready, but if patients are going to struggle, we want them to do it in a safe environment. We find the danger is more in going home and opening up those wounds where they have less structure and less professional and peer support.  

The Importance of Aftercare  

Treatment is just the beginning. Eating disorders don’t develop in a few weeks, and they aren’t resolved in that span of time either. It’s understandable that patients and loved ones want to believe you can participate in 45-60 days of treatment and return home “fixed.” Treatment at The Meadows Ranch is a great beginning, but recovery is a process that will continue for an extended period of time.

That doesn’t mean you need to be fearful about returning to your regular life. Before you prepare to leave treatment, we’ll work with you to create an aftercare plan that includes ongoing support, possibly in the form of an Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP). We’ll reconnect you with your home treatment team or establish one for you, if needed. Post-treatment, you’ll have good and bad days. You won’t be fixed and your life won’t be perfect, but you’ll have the tools you gained and a foundation of trauma work and therapy that will be a springboard to this next exciting season.