Fed, full, forced, fed up - the work with eating (dis)orders

Eating (dis)orders and (dis)ordered eating present a challenge to any practitioner on multiple levels. Learning how to identify and work with each presentation can be a daunting task, and easily become the trigger for confusion and anguish in the therapist. Our relationship with food is a gateway to the innermost part of ourselves, and any issue at this level poses questions regarding selfhood and embodiment.

The workshop will offer an opportunity for participants to question their own relationship with eating, with the aim of enhancing their client’s. The two days will cover both psychological and biological aspects of eating (dis)orders and help the participants to identify when and how to involve medical professionals in the psychological treatment of such presentations.

The two days will have both theoretical and clinical focus throughout, and there will also be opportunities for participants to bring their own clinical material and reflect on specific dilemmas they might be facing.

Giovanni Felice Pace is an experienced psychologist, psychotherapist, and supervisor. He has extensive experience with eating disorders in both the private and public sectors. Having been attracted to “difficult presentations” since graduating, he brings together different approaches in the treatment of “deep disturbances” with a specific focus on the questions of personhood and selfhood. He currently works in private practice and gives lectures at different institutions and events both in the UK and in Italy.