What is Family Based Treatment (FBT)?

Family-Based Treatment (FBT) is a therapeutic modality that focuses on involving the family in the treatment process, specifically in the context of eating disorders. It’s often referred to as the Maudsley approach. FBT is particularly effective for children and adolescents, as it empowers the family to support their loved one in their recovery.

Key Principles of Family-Based Treatment (FBT):

1. Family as the Primary Resource:
   In FBT, the family is viewed as the most important resource for recovery. The approach encourages parents to take an active role in helping their child regain a healthy weight, develop healthier eating patterns, and address the psychological issues underlying the eating disorder.

2. Phased Approach:
   FBT typically has three phases:

   • Phase 1: Weight Restoration and Meal Supervision
     The primary focus is on restoring the individual to a healthy weight. Parents are encouraged to take charge of meal planning, portioning, food intake, and monitoring their child’s progress. The idea is to remove the eating disorder’s power by focusing on eating and weight restoration without getting into the emotional or psychological reasons behind the disorder initially.

   • Phase 2: Returning Control Over Eating to the Adolescent
     Once the patient has reached a healthier weight and is more stable, the focus shifts to gradually returning control over eating to the adolescent, while continuing to ensure that they are supported in making reocvery oriented choices. This phase also starts to address the psychological factors that contribute to the eating disorder.

   • Phase 3: Establishing Healthy Development
     The final phase focuses on helping the adolescent transition back to typical developmental tasks, such as autonomy, self-esteem, and personal identity, while ensuring they maintain a healthy relationship with food and body image. The family continues to support these transitions, but the adolescent takes more responsibility for their recovery.

3. Involvement of the Whole Family in Therapy:
   One of the most distinctive features of FBT is the active involvement of the entire family in the treatment. This includes not only the patient but also their parents and, sometimes, siblings. The therapy helps families improve communication, problem-solving, and collaborative efforts to address the eating disorder together.