Avalon Hills recently co-sponsored the annual Utah State University Counseling Center Conference.  It was a particularly thrilling experience because the speaker was Steven Hayes, the co-founder of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).  Our research advisor, Mike Twohig, Ph.D. is a former student of Doctor Hayes.  Consequently, he was able to arrange for Steve Hayes to stay on following the one day conference and do an experiential weekend workshop.  Both the Counseling Center conference and the weekend workshop were very well attended- even including clinicians from as far away as Florida and Minnesota.  All members of the Avalon Hills treatment team were involved and found it to be meaningful in informing our work with those who suffer with eating disorders.  The 2 main tenants of ACT include 1) facilitating acceptance of the fact that life is difficult at times and avoiding certain aspects of life or emotions only creates a bigger problem & 2) committing to a life that is of value-outside of being overly concerned about outward appearance.  Consequently, ACT is a great fit in working with issues related to disordered eating. 

The photo shows all of those in attendance for the weekend workshop, where many new friends and connections were made!

Chocolate Festival – 2009

This past February marked the third year of Avalon Hills’ participation in the Cache Valley Chocolate Festival. The Chocolate Festival is a yearly event held to raise funds for Planned Parenthood.  Tickets are purchased at the door allowing the buyer to sample several chocolate desserts and vote for their favorite. 50+ desserts are entered into the festival and then judged by a panel of culinary experts from around the valley. Awards are given in each category, along with a people’s choice award for the Amateur and Professional divisions and a grand prize award for the best of the competition. At the end of the evening, winning desserts are auctioned off and the proceeds given to Planned Parenthood. Both the adolescent and adult unit participated in choosing, preparing, and entering a chocolate dessert into the festival.

The adolescents decided that they wanted to make chocolate “bowls” and fill them with homemade chocolate candies.  So they made the bowls by dipping small balloons in melted white and milk chocolate, then popping the balloons, so that all that remained was a chocolate shell.  The girls then made home-made chocolate dipped caramels, chocolate dipped maraschino cherries, and an assortment of truffles.  They filled their chocolate shells with the homemade chocolates, and named their creation “love-a-bowl.”  They ended up winning first place in the teenage category.  Everyone had so much fun.  It is so important and fulfilling for us when we can provide positive experiences with food for our clients.

The adult clients entered a Flourless Chocolate Cake filled with Pomegranate Jelly. Several cooking classes were spent baking sheets of cake, making pomegranate jelly, and meticulously piping out little chocolate shapes to decorate the top of each sample. The dessert consisted of a layer of flourless chocolate cake, pomegranate jelly, dark chocolate ganache, chocolate mousse rosettes, and a chocolate shape.  600 samples were made over all and, we are happy to say, were gone by the end of the evening. The adults were able to attend, sampling the desserts and voting on their favorites. They were able to stay for the awards ceremony where they were able to stand up and accept their awards. The adult dessert took home the People’s choice award for the Amateur division, and also the contest-wide grand prize! They were so proud of their accomplishments and involvement. There was such a positive attitude surrounding such a difficult and anxiety provoking task.

What do you know, food CAN be fun!

I wanted to let everyone know that Dr. Quakenbush-Roberts will be on a radio broadcast on February 18, 2009. You can listen to the show or an archive of the show at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/yourmentalhealth.

  The press release for the show is below.

Dr. Benita Quakenbush-Roberts Owner of Avalon Hills Discusses Eating Disorders

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PRLog (Press Release) – Feb 16, 2009 – Join Jacqueline Foreman and her special guest Dr. Susie author of the book It’s Not About The Weight. They will be joined by Dr. Benita Quakenbush-Roberts, owner of one of the best treatment centers in the country for those affected by eating disorders, Avalon Hills. The show will air live on Wedensday, February 18th, 2009 at www.blogtalkradio.com/yourmentalhealth and can also be listened to in archived format after it airs.  Listeners are encouraged to call in and ask questions at 347-838-9159.

Avalon Hills Eating Disorder Treatment Center is for Adult & Teen Females Suffering from Anorexia & Bulimia.  The Avalon Hills eating disorder treatment center helps female adolescents and adults overcome eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia by changing the way they view their bodies and their surroundings. They believe that every girl needs three things to rise above the negative beliefs and cultural influences that contribute to the development of eating disorders. They believe the three cornerstones for positive change are: New Information, New Insights,  New Experiences.

Dr. Quakenbush-Roberts is a licensed psychologist (Utah license # 376641-2501), with 16 years of clinical experience having served children, adolescents, and adults with a wide range of mental health disorders in both inpatient, residential, and out-patient settings. Along with her husband, Gary Roberts, she is one of the original founders of Avalon Hills. The core philosophy underlying the Avalon Hills eating disorder treatment center first originated out of her thesis and doctoral research (Quakenbush, Stein & Doty, 1996; 1998), which focused on females who overcame eating disorders, and the reported factors that facilitated their recovery. She completed her Ph.D. in Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychology at Utah State University in 1998. Initially, Dr. Quakenbush-Roberts was responsible for program development, implementation and supervision of therapeutic interventions, staff training, licensing requirements, business development, and coordination of business/clinical operations. Currently, Dr. Quakenbush-Roberts is the acting CEO. Since first opening the doors of Avalon Hills in March 2003, Dr. Quakenbush-Roberts has been committed to continually improving the treatment programs of Avalon Hills, while simultaneously evolving the organization into a thriving, dynamic organization. Dr. Quakenbush-Roberts is a member of the Avalon Hills Executive Team and Governing Body. Dr. Quakenbush-Roberts is a member of the American Psychological Association, Utah Psychological Association, Academy of Eating Disorders, National Association of Eating Disorders, and Society of Adolescent Medicine.

Avalon Hills tailors each resident’s treatment program to her individual needs, using both scientific and holistic treatment approaches. Each activity is designed to help residents put the things they learn here into the context of their everyday lives, so they can apply them to the pressures they will face when they return home. Avalon Hills remains committed to individualized, comprehensive programs for all clients we serve. Their eating disorder clinic is located in Utah.

Please join us for this informative show on eating disorders of all kinds.

Your Mental Health is a program that deals with mental health issues and illness as well as the stigmas attached to people who suffer from various forms of mental illness.

For most everyone Thanksgiving is a time for family, maybe watching football, or going to church. All families have their own traditions. You can be sure, though, that all Thanksgivings will revolve around what seems to be a mountain of food. For those individuals struggling with an eating disorder, that mountain of food can quickly become fraught with anxiety and stress. The young women at Avalon Hills are familiar with this anxiety all too well. This year, instead of avoiding the pain, anxiety and depression, these women have chosen to face their fears. They are in residential treatment. Yes, they are not with their family and friends but they are with a supportive and caring team, dedicated to making this holiday a “family affair”, Avalon style. Thanksgiving started off at a leisurely pace. Everyone slept in a little later. After all, it is a holiday! Telephone calls were made to home while watching the Macy’s Day parade on television and getting dressed. After breakfast, time for pet care and then a walk for D-o-gee.

This is her favorite activity! Time to start getting ready for dinner! The table was set using the best linens and dinnerware. See the little table decorations? They are all handmade. Most meals at Avalon are served family style, this dinner was no different. Dinner began with a toast to health and to hope. Potatoes and turkey and cranberry sauce were shared along with jokes, laughter and stories.

After cleaning up, all gathered in the family room to listen to and sing along with Liz and Lila, two of Avalon’s talented culinary staff. Later Marty, one of the therapists, joined in.

After meals had settled, we took a long walk around a little lake next to our home. It was such a beautiful day!

Later, more calls to family and friends before heading out to see a movie in town. After the movie, most everyone was tired and glad to get back home. Our Thanksgiving was becoming just a pleasant memory for the most part, still with anxiety but no melt downs!

We at Avalon are thankful to share our Thanksgiving Day with such determined young women.

The Unfashion show name has been changed based on client request to the ME Fashion show, which is actually very reflective of the theme of the event. The outfits are as individual as the clients and they are looking really cool, it should be a very fun as well as therapeutically challenging night! Another component that has been incorporated is the horse participation. Each client will be paired with a horse and will decorate him or her to match their own outfit and will model their animal companion as well.

Fitness for Fun special therapy group will be held at the local gym this week to incorporate body image issues as well as find fun with movement. Our head adolescent therapist will accompany and process before and after the group where the clients are challenged to incorporate into a typical gym environment. The focus is going to be on “listening to your body” as well as allowing for some variability in activity intensity.

Avalon Hills Residential Eating Disorders Program is planning an event to celebrate our 5^th year anniversary on August 2, 2008. We are combining with the Avalon Hills Foundation for Eating Disorders to formally recognize the current momentum behind grassroots efforts to obtain insurance funding for eating disorder coverage and the progress in nationwide mental health parity. It is our mission and passion to continue to support advances in this area. It is also fitting to recognize those who are recovering and who continue to educate and advocate for the prevention and treatment of eating disorders.

Events for the celebration will include an advocacy panel geared towards sharing struggles, knowledge, and advancements in securing funding for treatment. We will also include a panel that will allow former clients to continue to share their story as a part of their recovery path. This will be a public event and recorded on video. The video will be available for distribution to increase awareness of eating disorder issues.

Afterwards, Avalon Hills will host a barbeque for employees, alumni and their families as well as current client families to provide time for celebration and mingling.

If you have questions or would like to R.S.V.P please contact Carrie Schmidt at (435) 755-0434 or by e-mail: carrie@avalonhills.org.

Itinerary is as follows:

Winning the
Battle for Recovery

August 2, 2008
Bullen Center
Carousel Ballroom
43 South Main
Logan, UT 84321

12:30 pm – 12:45 pm Introduction
Dr. Benita Quakenbush-Roberts

12:45 pm – 1:15 pm Does this Life Make Me Look Fat?
Jenny Harrop

1:15 pm – 2:45 pm Panel: Success in Recovery
Featuring youth and women recovering from eating disorders

3:00 pm – 4:30 pm Panel: Advocating for Treatment
Featuring parents who have secured funds for treatment

4:30 pm – 5:30 pm Reception