The Renfrew Center is honored to announce that we have now touched the lives of 100,000 patients. For nearly 4 decades, courageous adolescents and adults have come through both our physical and virtual doors.
Our patients have taught us about courage, healing, renewal, and compassion. They have demonstrated strength in self-advocacy, passion for change, and depth in the thoughtful, brilliant artwork and stories they have shared with our community. Our journey at Renfrew has always been guided and paved by our patients.
We want to thank the individuals and families who have entrusted us with their care, as well as the professionals who have similarly allowed us to treat their patients. Thank you to those who have played a critical role in the development of our treatment programs, lent their voices, made scholarship contributions, and put their confidence in our modalities.
All of us are part of a constellation of support, now assembled with over 100,000 luminaries, who have forged the path of healing. We are grateful to have had the opportunity to help light the way; the future is brighter today because of the glow of our patients’ combined recoveries.
Words of Inspiration
Here you will find words of wisdom, resilience and recovery by alumni who have been impacted by their time at Renfrew. Others can be found on our social media pages – Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn – @RenfrewCenter.
Having struggled with an eating disorder for my entire teenage years, I doubted that recovery was possible. But upon joining the community, I grew faster than ever. Renfrew gave me my life back. I unpacked my emotions and past for the first time, uncovering the deep-seated roots of my eating disorder. By the end of my time at Renfrew, I had solidified new tools and coping mechanisms. More than anything, Renfrew gave me the opportunity to learn who I was. I discovered an identity past my eating disorder –recognizing that I am a full person was instrumental to my recovery. I now know that I am not my illness, I am not anorexia, and I am not just an eating disorder. Life is worth it now. The Renfrew Center truly made such an impact on my life – taking the step to get treatment was the best decision I have ever made.
— Angela K. • Alum, The Renfrew Centers of Philadelphia – Spring Lane, PA and Boston, MA
At the time, I thought I just had a bad relationship with food. I didn’t know my eating disorder was really an attempt for my body and mind to gain some sort of control over the deeper underlying issues that needed to be addressed: anxiety, OCD, depression. Renfrew was the safe place where I was allowed to unravel the layers, get to the root of the feelings behind the symptoms, and springboard into a journey of recovery. I still remember the coping skills, worksheets, and conversations from my time in treatment, which helps keep my recovery focused if the urge to revisit old habits ever arises. I am thankful to say I have been separated from disordered eating symptoms for 9 years now.
— Allie H. • Alum, The Renfrew Center of Charlotte, NC
Recovery was the hardest thing I’ve ever done, and the scariest. It’s also the most gratifying. The friends I made in “Eating School” as we call it are friends for life. Nobody else can understand unless they’ve shared that lived experience alongside you. I started the traditions of First Meal Fives and Hugs Goodbye in treatment. The first is a high five of solidarity after the first meal that says “we’re with you”, even when you don’t finish, because not all days are good days, but you can give it your best. The second is a hug on your last day (of course!) celebrating everything you’ve achieved and to carry that love into the post-treatment world, knowing that the world can be scary but we’re still always in your corner cheering you on.
— Mandy Q. • Alum, The Renfrew Center of Bethesda, MD
The Renfrew Center played an incremental role in saving my life. As an alumna of The Renfrew Center of Coconut Creek, I have been reflecting on my past experiences and I can confidently say that I would not be the person I am today without the support, guidance, and healing space offered to me by The Renfrew Center. Going in and being in treatment was hard work, and also it is the best decision I have ever made. I am endlessly grateful for each and every staff member at Renfrew who had different insight, support, and guidance to offer me along my journey. As I continue in my recovery outside of treatment, my worldview has been expanded to find that there really is a full life waiting for me outside of my eating disorder! I am now happily living in the present moment and experiencing the full range of emotions and experiences life has to offer!
— Libby D. • Alum, The Renfrew Center of Coconut Creek, FL
If you’d like to share your own story, please contact [email protected]
