Rock Recovery: A Unique Nonprofit Bridging Gaps to help People Find Freedom from Eating Disorders

Founded in 2009, Rock Recovery was created to bring people from darkness into light, from anxiety to peace, from hopelessness to hope, from isolation to community, from misinformed to educated, and from the lies of captivity into the truth of lasting freedom.

Bridging Gaps in the Treatment of Eating Disorders

Rock Recovery (Rock), a nonprofit based in the Washington, DC metro area, was founded in 2009 by Dr. Carylynn Larson. Like many who work in the eating disorder field, Cary’s passion for helping those seeking recovery came from her own personal experience overcoming disordered eating.

Using the lessons learned from navigating her own recovery journey and a little push from a close friend, Cary founded Rock to be a place where all people could receive affordable treatment and recovery support while continuing to live their daily lives. She never imagined that her dream would have turned into the organization Rock is today.

What started as an all-volunteer group of women who came together to offer a supportive meal, group therapy, and a recovery community of 10 people in the basement of an old church is now an organization that has helped over 150 individuals find recovery through clinical programs and equipped thousands of families and community members with education and support.

Breaking Bread, Breaking Isolation, Breaking Barriers to Treatment

Rock’s vision is for a world where eating disorders are understood, and the journey to freedom is accessible to all and fully supported. Rock works tirelessly to help this vision come to life by offering weekly clinical therapy groups and community and faith support services to those who struggle, providing them with access to healing and hope for a life free from disordered eating.

Eating disorders and mental health challenges impact people of all age groups, ethnicities, and backgrounds. Rock provides accessible, affordable group outpatient therapy to individuals 18+ who struggle with disordered eating across Virginia, Maryland, Washington, DC, and California (along with nationwide faith support and community empowerment programs to those 16+).

Rock’s clinical and community programs include:

• Body image therapy groups

• Faith-based therapy groups

• Meal-support and group processing

• Sliding scale individual therapy

• Recovery support groups for moms

• Support groups for parents and loved ones

• Peer-led faith support groups and chaplaincy

Rock believes in collaborating with providers and professionals across all levels of eating disorder care. Rock’s outpatient programs are designed to complement the work of therapists, dietitians, and doctors, as well as offer components of care that are found in residential, inpatient, and intensive outpatient treatment centers.

Rock’s clients are offered therapeutic support and a recovery community to lean on while they navigate the tasks of daily life (parenting, work, and school). Rock believes in caring for the whole person through the recovery journey – mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Rock is one of the only nonprofits in the world to provide sliding scale clinical treatment for eating disorders, alongside community support and spiritual care.

Rock clinical and support services break down the barriers of isolation in eating disorder recovery (a critical part of the healing process) by creating space for those who struggle with similar mental health issues to help one another heal. No one should have to navigate recovery alone. Rock invites people of all backgrounds to share their hang-ups, hurts, heartaches, and help one another heal through its programs.

A Nationwide Vision for Rock Recovery

So what’s next for Rock Recovery? For years, Rock has served the Greater DC region with in-person clinical services. In March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic quickly shined a light on the need for Rock to expand its services virtually and in-person nationwide.

Rock quickly responded to this need by expanding its programs virtually to reach communities statewide across Maryland and Virginia, as the organization began to lay the foundation to add additional states in the near future. In late summer 2020, Rock celebrated the launch of its first program virtually in California, the first of many new programs the organization hopes to launch across the nation in the next few years.

Rock dreams of providing a place where individuals and families from every state can access affordable, accessible life-saving treatment. Until its vision is fulfilled, Rock’s team will work tirelessly to bridge critical gaps in eating disorder treatment.

You can follow Rock on social media to see how their journey continues to unfold:

• Facebook: www.facebook.com/rockrecoveryed

• Instagram: www.instagram.com/rockrecovery

• Twitter: www.twitter.com/RockRecovery

• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/rock-recovery/

To learn more about Rock Recovery’s services, visit www.rockrecoveryed.org To read how Rock’s programs are changing people’s lives across the nation and learn how you can help, visit rockrecoveryed.org/client-testimonials/.

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The opinions and views of our guest contributors are shared to provide a broad perspective on eating disorders. These are not necessarily the views of Eating Disorder Hope, but an effort to offer a discussion of various issues by different concerned individuals.

We at Eating Disorder Hope understand that eating disorders result from a combination of environmental and genetic factors. If you or a loved one are suffering from an eating disorder, please know that there is hope for you, and seek immediate professional help.

Published December 14, 2020, on EatingDisorderHope.com
Reviewed & Approved on December 14, 2020, by Jacquelyn Ekern MS, LPC