The Ethics of Modern Eating Disorder Care:
Exploring Nuances & Opposing Perspectives
Saturday, March 1, 2025
8:00am to 4:30pm
At United Way
Join us for the
HEDS Professional Conference 2024
this conference is for:
Professionals in the
Eating Disorder Field
Clinicians wanting to
learn more about
eating disorders.
Conference Schedule
| 8:00am to 8:45am | Check-In, Social Time, and Breakfast |
| 8:45am to 9:00am | Welcome |
| 9:00am to 10:15am | Breakout Session One
|
| 10:15am to 10:30am | Sponsor Break |
| 10:30am to Noon | ARFID Panel Discussion Join us for a discussion amongst therapists, dietitians, a medical doctor, and a speech therapist on approaching the treatment of ARFID. |
| Noon to 1:00pm | Lunch, Visit Sponsor Booths |
| 1:00pm to 2:15pm | Breakout Session Two
|
| 2:15pm to 2:45pm | Visit Sponsors, Stretch Break, and Afternoon Snack |
| 2:45pm to 4:15pm | Keynote Presentation With Gloria Lucas |
| 4:15pm to 4:30pm | Closing Remarks + Raffle Basket |
Meet our Keynote Speaker
Gloria lucas
Glo Lucas is an eating disorders awareness educator and organizer that specializes in intersectional eating disorders education and resources that transform the lives of BIPOC individuals and expand eating disorders treatment models. Being the founder and CEO of Nalgona Positivity Pride, she is able to raise awareness through digital media, public speaking, and grassroots activism. She lives in Orange County, CA.
Turning The Treatment Industry On Its Head: Eating Disorder Harm Reduction 101
This presentation explores Eating Disorder Harm Reduction (EDHR) as a groundbreaking and inclusive approach to supporting individuals with eating disorders. Attendees will learn how EDHR shifts the focus from traditional recovery-only models to strategies that prioritize safety, quality of life, and incremental change. By addressing the systemic inequities embedded in eating disorder treatment, this session highlights the importance of community-based care, radical compassion, and person-centered frameworks. Through an introduction to practical harm reduction strategies and reflections on societal and institutional barriers, participants will be inspired to challenge conventional paradigms and reimagine eating disorder care as a liberatory and transformative practice.
Breakout Session One
Compassion Over Compliance: Integrating Harm Reduction in ED Treatment
with Abbie Madden, MS, RD (they/them)
Is there Room for Weight Loss in ED Treatment?
with Dr. Sehrish Ali, PhD, LPC, CEDS (she/her) and Dr. Erikka Taylor, MD, MPH (she/her)
Healing Beneath the Surface: Psychedelics and Eating Disorder Recovery
with Jennifer Lancaster, LCSW-S, PATP (she/her)
Breakout Session Two
GLP medications & Body Autonomy: Considerations for HAES providers
with Erin K. MacDonald, LCSW-S (she/her)
Working with Neurodivergent Patients with Eating Disorders
with Stephanie Setliff, MD, CEDS-C (she/her) and Jennifer Vittitow, RD, LD, CEDS-C (she/her)
Challenging the Narrative: Are Eating Disorders Always Non-Choices? An Exploration of Client Agency and Ethical Care
with Chelsea Fielder-Jenks, LPC-S, CEDS-C, PMH-C
Panel Discussion
Join us for a discussion amongst therapists, dietitians, a medical doctor, and a speech therapist on approaching the treatment of ARFID. Swipe through to meet our panelists!
Dr. Erin Knopf, MD, CEDS, FAAP, DABPN (she/her)
Dr. Knopf completed residency training at The University of Kentucky in a combined residency program, the Triple Board program. She is a board-certified pediatrician, adult psychiatrist and child/adolescent psychiatrist as well as an iaedp Certified Eating Disorder Specialist. She previously worked at The Eating Recovery Center and ACUTE Center for Eating Disorders. She is co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of VERY, an outpatient, virtual treatment company dedicated to individualized care. Services are grounded in weight-inclusive, trauma-informed and gender-affirming principles and include therapy, psychiatry and dietary support for patients 10 years of age and up in 10 states.
Vivian lee, LPC
Vivian Lee (any pronouns) is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) based in the Greater Houston area. She is currently back in school to become a physician and plans to return to the eating disorder treatment industry once she has completed residency. She has had 9 years of experience (from group therapist to to clinical director to utilization review case manager) working at well-known facilities including Center for Discovery, Monte Nido, and Eating Recovery Center, spanning the entire spectrum of levels of care. Her research has been awarded the David Barlow Early Career Award for Research Excellence by the Renfrew Center foundation, and she has and continues to collaborate with well-known researchers such as the UNC Chapel Hill Center for Excellence in Eating Disorders (CEED), led by Dr. Cynthia Bulik. Vivian holds an M.A. in Counseling from Texas State University, a B.S. in Economics & Management Science from MIT, and is pursuing her MD at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston.
vanessa galeano, MA, CCC-SLP (She/her)
Vanessa Galeano, SLP is a pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist who works at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) treating complex feeding and swallowing disorders. An established clinical lead and researcher, she co-led the development of the Inpatient Intensive Feeding Program, which supports children and their families in weaning from enteral support. She has been identified as the lead trainer and a contributing author of the CHLA medical action plan for medical stabilization for children with severe symptoms related to ARFID. She also works with individuals in the community who struggle with ARFID and feeding/swallowing disorders through her private practice, Sips to Spoonfuls.
kris scover, rdN, LD (they/them)
Kris is a registered dietitian and public speaker who specializes in working with neurodivergent, gender-expansive, and queer clients who are seeking an agentic approach to eating disorder care. Kris is queer, trans, non-binary, and multiply neurodivergent, and their work is shaped by these identities and their desire to improve access to inclusive eating disorder care. They are particularly passionate about changing the way ARFID is conceptualized and treated in eating disorder spaces, a passion born from their own personal experience with ARFID as well as the experiences of their clients. Kris practices from an anti-diet, fat-positive, trauma-informed perspective at their private practice, NourishedED.
Alex Caron, lpc, CEDS (She/her)
Alex Caron is a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist through the International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals (IAEDP). She specializes in treating the full spectrum of eating disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), anxiety disorders, and emetophobia. With extensive experience across various levels of care—including Residential Treatment Centers (RTC), Partial Hospitalization Programs (PHP), Intensive Outpatient Programs (IOP), and outpatient settings, Alex has served as Clinical Director at Center for Discovery and Senior Lead Therapist at Healgood Holistic Counseling Center. She now operates a private practice in Austin, Texas. She is trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (CBT-AR), Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), Interoceptive Exposures, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). She is also a graduate of the Behavior Therapy Training Institute (BTTI) through the International OCD Foundation. Her clinical focus is dedicated to expanding neurodiversity affirming and values driven exposure therapy to support those navigating an ARFID diagnosis.
Alison Pelz, RDN, LD, CDCES, LCSW
Alison has been a clinician for over 25 years. Over the last 20 years she has specialized in the treatment of eating disorders and related disorders. She works with people ages 5 years and up. She is trained in family-based treatment (FBT) to help children and teens recover from eating disorders. Most recently she received specialty training in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT-AR) for ARFID. Early in her career Alison practiced as a registered dietitian. She always knew that she wanted to go to graduate school. She considered going to nursing or pharmacy school, but ultimately decided to become a therapist. Alison loves her work as a therapist and continues to have a love for learning. In addition to seeing clients in Austin, TX. She is the founder of The Pelz Institute, a continuing education provider for therapists and dietitians based on books relevant to clinical practice. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Nutritional Science from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA and a Masters Degree in Clinical Social Work from the University of Texas at Austin.
Wholehearted Sponsors
Courageous Sponsors
Brave Sponsors
HEDS Disclosure Statement
The views and opinions expressed by our speakers are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Houston Eating Disorders Specialists (HEDS) or its organizers. Our goal is to foster open dialogue and diverse perspectives, creating a space for meaningful discussion and learning.
Interested in
sponsoring the conference?
Our conferences aren’t possible without our incredible lineup of sponsors! Your sponsorship will be going towards three main areas:
Conference Logistics
The bread and butter of our conference is the logistics. This includes our venue, food, systems to collect registration, giveaways, and more. Our venue is being held at the United Way and all food will be provided through them.
Keynote Speaker
This year, we are excited to welcome a keynote speaker who will explore the critical topic of harm reduction in eating disorder treatment. As eating disorder care evolves, addressing the ethical complexities and challenges of harm reduction is more essential than ever. Our keynote speaker will provide valuable insight into how harm reduction approaches can support patients in navigating their recovery journey, while offering practical strategies for professionals working within these nuanced frameworks.
Breakout Speakers
Our conference will feature a diverse lineup of breakout speakers, each bringing unique expertise and perspectives on critical topics in the field of eating disorder care. These sessions are designed to provide practical, actionable insights for professionals from various disciplines. In line with our commitment to valuing the contributions of our speakers, we are proud to offer compensation to all speakers and panel members for their time and expertise.
More information coming soon!
Stay in-the-know with professional conference updates by providing your email address below.
Taking Your Power Back: Practical Skills for Recovery
with Dr. Ametis Bassir, PhD, LPC-S, RP and Abbie Madden, MS, RDN, LD, CEDS
During Taking Your Power Back, Dr. Bassir and Abbie will facilitate a collaborative and educational discussion on what it looks like to take your power back in recovery. They will guide folks through identifying core values, exploring why skills are important to have and how to effectively implement them, and working together to create coping skill boxes.
Meet Dr. Ametis Bassir (she/her)
Dr. Bassir is a Licensed Professional Counselor Supervisor, EMDR Trained Therapist, and Reiki Practitioner. She received her doctorate in counselor education from Sam Houston State University and a Master’s in Counseling from George Washington University. She is an adjunct faculty member in the counselor education department at Sam Houston State University and owns her own private practice in Houston. Her areas of specialty include eating disorders, anxiety, relationship issues, trauma, and women’s issues.
Meet Abbie Madden (she/they)
Abbie is a registered dietitian (RD) and certified eating disorder specialist (CEDS). She received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nutritional sciences from Oklahoma State University. She has experience working at various levels of eating disorder treatment and sees clients with anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder, and ARFID. She also specializes in nutrition therapy for polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). In her free time, she enjoys playing with her dog Ozzie, thrift shopping, and growing a variety of houseplants.
EFFT Caregiver Workshop
led by Dr. Anna Brown, PsyD
During the EFFT Caregivers Workshop, Dr. Brown will guide families and support teams through an education discussion on what EFFT is and how to incorporate it into everyday life. Joined by other EFFT providers, attendees will break up into different groups to practice skills on how to support their loved ones.
meet dr. anna brown (She/Her)
Speaker Bio Coming Soon
Movements & Meditation
with Alii Chargois, RYT-200
My workshop, “Movements & Meditation”, will be centered around yoga-based movements and end with meditation. You can anticipate a slow and intentionally drawn together practice that will end with a sound led meditation. This includes lots of stretching, some heat building in the body and a very relaxing sound bowl meditation. I encourage you to use this time to foster a closer relationship to yourself and your thoughts. I suggest bringing a yoga mat (and props), pen and journal, and a water bottle.
meet alii chargois (She/her)
My name is Alexandria and I have been practicing yoga for over 15 years. In 2018 I completed a 200 hour yoga teacher training and have gained over 100 hours worth of leading classes since then. My main focus when guiding a practice is to make sure you feel the fullness of the pose. My goal is for you to feel comfortable through the entire class and for you to walk away deeply rooted in your body.
