What should every therapist truly understand before working with clients who have eating disorders? In this insightful interview, Dr. Marianne Miller talks with Edie Stark, LCSW (@ediestarktherapy) about what ethical, inclusive care really means.

Together, they explore why “gold standard” approaches like Family-Based Treatment (FBT) often miss the mark for neurodivergent, fat, queer, and BIPOC clients. The conversation highlights the importance of cultural humility, anti-fat bias awareness, trauma-informed care, and intersectional understanding in every therapeutic setting.

Whether you are a clinician, a student, or someone in recovery who wants to understand what quality treatment should look like, this episode offers a thoughtful look at how therapists can grow, unlearn, and create safe, collaborative spaces for healing.

Why “gold standard” models like Family-Based Treatment (FBT) do not fit everyone

How anti-fat bias and wellness culture shape eating disorder care

The importance of cultural humility and intersectionality in therapy

Ways to create trauma-informed, consent-based, and collaborative care

What ethical practice looks like when working with neurodivergent and marginalized clients

How therapists can identify and challenge their own internalized biases

Why eating disorder work requires humility, continual learning, and self-reflection

Therapists and dietitians who want to provide ethical and inclusive eating disorder care

Students and early-career clinicians who are beginning to work with eating disorders

Supervisors and consultants who guide others in complex clinical cases

People in recovery who want to understand what to expect from truly affirming treatment

Anyone curious about how bias, culture, and power dynamics affect eating disorder recovery

Edie Stark, LCSW, is the founder of Stark Therapy Group in California and Edie Stark Consulting, where she supports therapists through business consulting, case consultation, and supervision. She’s also a feature writer for Psychology Today and advocates for ethical, media-accurate portrayals of eating disorders.

Connect with Edie on Instagram at @ediestarktherapy and @edies_edits, or visit ediestark.com.

Dr. Marianne Miller is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist specializing in eating disorders, ARFID, and binge eating disorder. She practices in California, Texas, and Washington D.C., and teaches self-paced, virtual courses through her binge eating recovery membership and her course ARFID and Selective Eating.

Learn more at drmariannemiller.com or follow her on Instagram @drmariannemiller.