Plan for Thanksgiving with an eating disorder using treatment-aligned nourishment, supportive conversations, boundaries, and help for difficult moments.
Key Takeaways Stress after trauma can involve real physical reactions such as sleep problems, headaches, stomach upset, muscle tension, a racing heart, or feeling constantly
Key Takeaways Exercise becomes concerning when it feels driven, rigid, or necessary to prevent guilt, anxiety, or a feared change in weight or shape. The
Key Takeaways The holidays can intensify old family roles, conflict, grief, financial pressure, and expectations to appear happy. Alcohol or drug use may feel like
Explore how loneliness and substance use disorders interact and learn strategies for integrated care to improve recovery outcomes.
Learn to recognize subtle and urgent warning signs of suicidal ideation to respond effectively and support timely, integrated care.
Learn how to distinguish ARFID from picky eating by recognizing key signs affecting nutrition, growth, and social life for accurate diagnosis.
Learn how addressing shame in dual diagnosis treatment improves patient engagement, retention, and recovery through integrated, compassionate care.
Learn how academic stress, social pressures, and environment contribute to back-to-school eating disorder triggers and when to seek professional help.
Dr. Christopher Womack joins SunCloud as our Medical Director, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
Dr. Womack is board certified in Adult as well as Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, attending the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. Adult psychiatry residency and child fellowship training were completed at the University of Chicago Medical Center.
Dr. Womack’s treatment philosophy hinges on strength based, evidence informed care, where collaboration is central to guiding individualized treatment. He has experience caring for children and teens from varied backgrounds, appreciating the importance of how identity can inform treatment.
Favorite pastimes are cooking new recipes and exploring Chicago’s rich cultural diversity through its neighborhood and fine dining experiences.
Dr. Elizabeth E. Sita, MD, is a Board Certified psychiatrist specializing in the care of patients with eating disorders. She completed her undergraduate training at the University of Chicago and graduated with Highest Honors. She then earned her medical degree at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and was recognized with the Chairman’s Award for Excellence in Psychiatry. She subsequently completed residency with the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University, where she was elected Chief Resident and received the Resident Psychiatrist Leadership & Service Award.
Upon completing her training, Dr. Sita joined the staff atAscension Alexian Brothers Behavioral Health Hospital Hospital, where she served as Assistant Medical Director of the Center for Eating Disorders and Director of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Services before transitioning to lead the new inpatient eating disorder unit as Medical Director of Eating Disorder Services at Ascension Saint Joseph Hospital – Chicago. In these roles, she has cared for a multitude of adolescents and adults struggling with anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, and other eating disorders as well as severe, cooccurring mood, trauma, personality, and substance use disorders.
Dr. Sita has been recognized throughout her training and practice for a commitment to excellence in patient care and for her ability to engage patients in their most challenging moments. Her passions include the care of treatment-resistant eating and mood disorders as well as questions of medical capacity and end-of-life decision making.
She believes that, first and foremost, human connection is key to mental health and well-being and strives to share this philosophy in each and every patient encounter. She is excited to bring her expertise to SunCloud Health as the Medical Director of Adult Services!
VIDEO: Meet Elizabeth E. Sita, MD, Medical Director of Adult Services
Dr. Lacey Lemke (she/her) is a licensed clinical health psychologist with specialized expertise in the treatment of eating disorders and the practice of medical and health psychology. She completed her doctoral training in clinical psychology with a Primary Care emphasis at the Adler School of Professional Psychology. Dr. Lemke went on to complete both her predoctoral clinical internship and postdoctoral fellowship through Ascension Health, where she gained advanced training working with individuals experiencing eating disorders and self-injurious behaviors, as well as within pediatric subspecialty settings including endocrinology, neurology, and adolescent medicine.
Dr. Lemke is deeply committed to providing evidence-based, compassionate care and collaborates closely with interdisciplinary teams to ensure comprehensive treatment. Her professional mission is to support patients in achieving their fullest potential by guiding them to the most appropriate level of care and empowering them to make meaningful, sustainable progress toward improved health and well-being.
VIDEO: 2. Meet Lacey Lemke, PsyD.
