A dyadic group-movement therapy with adolescent girls with eating disorders

Movement therapy emphasizes that intervention with the body may have a therapeutic impact on emotional, cognitive, and social levels. Movement therapy with individuals with eating disorders (EDs) is associated with many difficulties, owing to the fear and shame that these patients feel with their body. The persistent resistance occurring in group-movement therapy with patients with EDs has led us to implement a novel multidyadic movement group therapy, consisting of an equal number of participants and staff. This model enables the work of patient-staff dyads, using body-related modeling and adequate containment from the staff to assist patients in dealing with their body-related fear and shame. In this article, we use case studies to illustrate the implications-derived from the unexpected highly positive impact of multidyad movement group therapy and discuss the clinical relevance of this treatment in EDs.