Anorexia Nervosa
Welcome to
Victus Counseling
At Victus our specialized Counselors are dedicated to providing the tools and supports needed to overcome an eating disorder. Specialized registered dietitians are available through a network of providers we have cultivated collaboration with. Including IAEDP trained and certified dietitians licensed in multiple states.
Helping you to navigate and overcome:
News & Articles
Creating a Pathway for Recovery
Victus Counseling is dedicated to guiding individuals on a transformative journey toward recovery from eating disorders. We understand the complexities of these conditions and offer a supportive environment where you can find the most effective treatment tailored to your needs. Our experienced team uses a range of evidence-based therapies, like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), which helps in altering negative thought patterns; Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), encouraging a life aligned with personal values even in the face of distress; and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), which equips you with coping skills for emotional stability.
We also incorporate Motivational Interviewing to empower your willingness to change, Person-Centered Therapy to provide a non-judgmental space for growth, and Family Behavior Therapy (FBT) to engage the support of loved ones in your recovery process. Every step you take with us is a stride toward reclaiming control and creating a balanced, fulfilling life.
Bella Rosa THANK YOU ❤️❤️
We wanted to take a moment to send a big thank you to Bella Rosa Flower Market for the stunning flowers provided for our mental health clinic. 🌿💐
The beautiful arrangements have truly brightened our space and created such a welcoming environment for both our team and the individuals we serve.
We've received countless compliments from our community and with our outreach partners, especially the mental health professionals we've connected with.
Your thoughtful contribution not only lifted our spirits but also reminded us all of the power of kindness and natural authentic beauty!
Thank you for being a part of Victus Counseling’s journey and helping us spread positivity and support to those in need! 💖
#MentalHealthAwareness #ThankYou
- Victus Counseling Eating Disorder Specialty Clinic, Sioux Falls
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About those GLP-1 weight loss medications… Let’s talk informed consent.
Resources & expert recommendations below. Keep reading!
At Victus Counseling, we specialize in eating disorders—a serious mental health condition. We do not offer weight loss treatment. Our approach is always evidence-based and rooted in informed consent—because every client deserves to understand both the risks and benefits of any medical treatment.
GLP-1 medications (like Ozempic, Wegovy, etc.) are making headlines, and it’s important to look at these through the lens of eating disorder care. This month, ANAD (National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders) released a helpful and balanced resource page on GLP-1s and eating disorders:
Read it here
www.wrbl.com/business/press-releases/ein-presswire/801300175/anad-publishes-resource-page-on-glp-...
ANAD emphasizes:
“We seek to provide individuals with the knowledge to make informed decisions about their care and minimize potential harm.”
Many providers aren’t trained to ask the right questions.
Medical training in eating disorders is shockingly limited—less than 3 hours on average, even though eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness.
More on that here:
Fierce Healthcare article
www.wrbl.com/business/press-releases/ein-presswire/801300175/anad-publishes-resource-page-on-glp-...
Important date:
ANAD is hosting a live community Q&A on GLP-1s + EDs on April 28.
Register here:
anad.org/glp-1-medications-eating-disorders/
Why does this matter?
Clients must be screened for eating disorders before being prescribed weight loss medications—but that often doesn’t happen. Informed consent isn’t optional. It’s an ethical obligation.
We support every client’s right to choose (or not choose) a medication—with full knowledge of how it may impact their mental and physical health.
If you think you might have an eating disorder:
Use this free screening tool from the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA):
www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/screening-tool/
Medical Professionals:
If you are a medical provider you can learn more about eating disorders through this free resource created for medical practitioners!
The course, called preparED, is free and publicly available. The Center for Eating Disorders and the New York State Psychiatric Institute worked together with eLearning Brothers to develop and launch the course in the summer of 2020.
Use this link:
prepared.nyspi.org
Stay open to learning and feedback from clients - they are experts about the lived experiences in their body (P.S. all bodies are good bodies)
One of the BEST supports is understanding. Are you aware of your own biases about weight? We all carry unconscious biases that can influence how we see and treat others. If you're interested in exploring your own weight bias, take the Implicit Association Test (IAT) from Harvard University. It’s a free, quick test that helps you identify hidden attitudes about body weight. Understanding these biases is the first step in creating a more inclusive and compassionate environment for everyone.
Take the test here: Implicit Association Test - Weight Bias
implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatouchtest.html
Let’s work together to reduce weight stigma and promote understanding!
Consumers
If offered a GLP-1 helpful questions to ask:
1) Can you help me understand why you're recommending this medication specifically for me?
This prompts your doctor to explain the medical reasoning behind the suggestion — whether it's related to blood sugar levels, insulin resistance, cardiovascular risk, or BMI — and helps distinguish between evidence-based care and assumptions based on weight alone.
2) Are there alternative options that address my health concerns without focusing on weight loss?
This opens up a conversation about lifestyle interventions, mental health support, or managing underlying conditions that might be more appropriate — especially if weight isn’t the root cause of the issue.
3) How will we measure success with this treatment, and does it involve more than just weight loss?
This question challenges the idea that weight alone equals health, and it pushes for a more holistic look at your well-being — like improvements in mobility, lab results, energy, or mental health.
Let’s continue advocating for safe, ethical, informed care—especially for those in vulnerable populations.
Specialized eating recovery provider and always a student/advocate researching and sharing to be better in the field of eating recovery - where we all can do better!
Faith Carlson, MA, LPCMH, CEDS
anad.org
Register to attend and submit your questions for our Community Q&A on April 28th at 12pm ET. GLP-1 Medications & Eating Disorders After fielding questions about GLP-1 medications from volunteers, grou...0 CommentsComment on Facebook
Big news! Our friends at Fairplay recently filed a request for the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Meta for violating a children’s privacy law. You can check this complaint out here: bit.ly/complaintagainstmeta
The request focuses on “Horizon Worlds,” a VR gaming platform owned and operated by Meta. From July 2024 to April 2025, Fairplay conducted a mulit-part investigation of Horizon Worlds to document kids’ experiences on the platform.
The investigation turned up some alarming results. They found that children under 13 make up a substantial part of Horizon Worlds’ user base — and that every time they log onto the platform, they face the threat of sexual predators, financial harm, bullying, and harassment. Perhaps just as disturbing, Meta knows these kids are accessing Horizon Worlds improperly, but it continues to hoover up their data without their parents’ consent in flagrant violation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.
Fairplay’s filing was supported by a sworn statement from Meta whistleblower Kelly Stonelake, the former director of marketing for Horizon Worlds. Ms. Stonelake helped verify their findings after the investigation was complete.
Victus Counseling celebrates this much-needed step toward holding Big Tech accountable for knowingly putting children in harm’s way. Please read the complaint and share with your networks!
Those annual DC trips advocating for eating disorder awareness and protections from online harms is something I am deeply passionate about - it's helpful to see some movement in accountability to the harms Meta has done and continues to do....
You can review the complaint here: bit.ly/complaintagainstmeta
bit.ly
Fairplay statement on COPPA 2.0 reintroduction0 CommentsComment on Facebook
Eating Recovery Heros
Your support team - we see you ❤️
Never lose hope - full recovery is real!
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Busy day and I want to quickly share thank you everyone for reaching out to Tricare! I took a call this morning from executive offices of Triwest/Tricare who share they can absolutely help with 2025 Tricare clients and services. We are working on 2024 with the old contractor - this is promising though!
Also, took a call from a national news agency this morning looking into barriers in treating eating disorders and insurance companies.
More to come soon. I wanted to quickly share a big thank you to everyone reaching out to Tricare and sharing the real impacts of what is happening across our nation.
We never lose hope things can’t change. ♥️
Victus Counseling
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Recently, my social media/ media attention has been focused on the significant challenges in the healthcare system, particularly with the changes in Tricare reimbursement for services in treating eating disorder clients. The transition from Health Net Federal Services, LLC to TriWest Healthcare Alliance as the new West Region contractor has caused months of frustration and financial damages for providers across both mental and medical care. It also has disrupted the absolutely essential services for clients.
Last Friday, Tricare reached out to me, and while I was fully booked with clients, I plan to give them a call back Monday. As a diligent therapist, my goal is to advocate for both providers and patients, working to resolve these issues as quickly as possible. I will push for a direct contact phone and email that any provider in the Tricare West region can use to get help within 24-48 business hours—help that results in resolution of unpaid claims and ensures that our Tricare clients can return for their much-needed appointments. It’s about eliminating the endless paperwork we’ve all been submitting without success.
If, by some chance, Tricare pays my unpaid claims, I plan to donate all of those funds to Project HEAL to support those scholarships they offer for mental health services for eating disorders. I’ve already adjusted for the losses and sacrificed my own finances—it’s never been about the money for me. It’s always been about serving and helping others.
As I’ve always said in my LinkedIn bio: it’s less about me and more about helping others where we can all do better. I’m ready to put those words into action, and I truly hope Tricare can do the same.
Never Lose Hope Things Can’t Change.
#Tricare #MentalHealth #EatingDisorders #HealthcareProviders #Advocacy #ProjectHeal #InsuranceReform
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I shared this in the interview - our military members showed up for us we need to show up for them. This is not ok and while Victus is able to take the loss - providers across the nation have not been able to and closed down or laid off staff. We trust insurance will reimburse us - when they don’t we don’t get funded for work.
Here is the NBC report ran this month sharing the impact nationally.
www.nbcnews.com
Several thousand Tricare providers haven't been paid for months, forcing many to drop patients, reduce hours or consider closing their clinics.0 CommentsComment on Facebook
This is new.
This is not the same thing that’s been happening for years. It’s actually the past 6 months. I experienced it at Victus and across our nation. It is not fixed. It’s not getting better. It’s sad we can’t serve our military and clinics are closing. Please share and reach out to representatives (Senator Mike Rounds)
We need help now or providers won’t be able to stay on Tricare. This impacts so many.
www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna194954
Military medical bills unpaid, providers face tough decisions
www.dakotanewsnow.com
A Sioux Falls mental health professional says she has to stop providing services to veterans who use TRICARE insurance. It’s not that she doesn’t want to help them, it’s that she’s not getting...1 CommentsComment on Facebook
Payments & Insurance
We accept cash, credit card, online payments & checks.
Aetna, Anthem, Cigna, BlueCross and BlueShield, Avera, Sanford, TRICARE & more.
First Alert Safety Check: National Eating Disorder Awareness Week
/in Educational, In the NewsSIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – 28.8 million Americans will have an eating disorder in their lifetime. It’s the number one cause of death among all mental health illnesses and affects lives emotionally, socially, and physically. Victus Counseling owner and Clinical Therapist specializing in eating disorder treatment Faith Carlson explained the warning signs as, “You’re […]