Helping Adults and Teens With Eating Disorders is 'Life's Work and Passion' for Manager of Intake and Outreach
As a young mom, Jennifer Reeder struggled with anorexia but after treatment she finds fulfillment in helping others at Rosewood Centers for Eating Disorders.
SANTA MONICA, Calif., May 2, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Driven to help others by her own experiences with an eating disorder, Jennifer Reeder has joined the staff of Rosewood Centers for Eating Disorders Santa Monica as Manager of Intake and Outreach.
In this position, Reeder will draw from her struggle and eventual recovery from anorexia nervosa when she was a new mom a decade ago. As one of the first members of the Rosewood staff that clients and families will meet, her goal is to help them understand the process and feel comfortable from the outset.
"My experience truly gives me the ability to empathize and connect with people who are struggling with eating disorders," Reeder said. "I remember the first time I entered treatment. It was a huge sense of relief to realize I didn't have to do this on my own. I felt safer, and I want to provide that for our clients."
As Manager of Intake and Outreach, Reeder will focus on ensuring clients smoothly transition into the program, educate and raise awareness in the community on the deadliness of the disorder, and help to continue to grow the expanding alumni program.
She will also raise awareness about the services offered at Rosewood Santa Monica. Rosewood Centers for Eating Disorders – with locations in Arizona and California – offers comprehensive, specialized treatment and recovery programs for adults and adolescents with anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder and co-occurring substance use and mood disorders.
By providing compassionate customer service and patient care, her goal is to help build the trust that clients need to have a successful recovery.
"We are thrilled to have Jennifer on board," said Lee R. Neagle, Rosewood's Executive Director. "As you work in this field, you recognize those individuals that have truly found their calling, and Jennifer is one of those individuals. Her compassion for people with eating disorders and her professionalism shine through in all that she does."
Reeder began working with people with eating disorders at the hospital where she sought treatment. Her therapists noticed that other patients often turned to Reeder, a mother of two daughters, for encouragement and advice. Right after her treatment ended, Reeder was hired to help with administration and counseling.
"One of the most magical experiences of my life was being able to say, 'I'm going to help you have a different kind of life now. You don't have to live this way,'" Reeder said.
Several years later, she took a job as a legal assistant at a law firm. But she missed seeing the transformation in patients who, like her, had entered eating disorder treatment ill and desperate and emerged stronger and healthier, both mentally and physically.
She returned to working for eating disorders treatment centers, in positions that included director of admissions and clinical outreach manager.
"To be able to touch people lives, to help guide them into treatment, to help them understand that you can find life on the other side - this isn't a job to me," Reeder said. "It's my life's work and my life's passion. I consider myself very lucky. Not everybody gets the opportunity to take suffering and turn it into something beautiful."
About The Rosewood Centers for Eating Disorders
Rosewood Centers for Eating Disorders is one of the first and most experienced programs in the United States providing comprehensive care for those struggling with anorexia, bulimia, binge eating and co-occurring disorders. Our treatment programs are led by renowned experts Dena Cabrera, Psy.D., CEDS, Amelia Davis, M.D., and Nicole Garber, M.D. Clients choose Rosewood for superior medical and psychiatric treatment, innovative therapies, individualized aftercare, alumni support and family involvement. With locations in Arizona and California, Rosewood offers all levels of care for men, women and adolescents, providing individualized treatment to match the unique needs of our patients. Learn more at www.rosewoodranch.com.
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Amy Bernard
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SOURCE Rosewood Centers for Eating Disorders
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