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This page is for reviews of Inpatient and Residential treatment at The Emily Program’s North Carolina and Georgia locations. For reviews of their PHP/IOP locations CLICK HERE and HERE.
For reviews of their residential treatment centers in Minnesota, Ohio, or Washington click HERE.
Note: The Emily Program’s North Carolina and Georgia treatment centers were called Veritas Collaborative up until July 2024.
Any current reviews or updated information? Please post in comments below! You can check out the FAQ and Guidelines for suggested questions. Thank you!
This is a review for the Durham (adult) location!
When were you there?April 2025-June 2025.
What level(s) of care did you do (e.g., inpatient, residential, PHP, IOP)? Residential.
If applicable: Is it wheelchair accessible?
Yes.
How many patients are there on average?
Around 30ish total. The larger unit has 22 or 24 beds I think and the smaller unit has 8 beds.
What genders does it treat?
All
If applicable: Do they support the gender identities of transgender and nonbinary people?
Yes, I’m trans and had few issues w being misgendered or deadnamed, they seem to take that pretty seriously.
How often do you see a medical doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist (therapist), nutritionist, nurse, etc?
Medical provider: 1x weekly on res (people in IP see them every day though),
psych provider: 1-2x weekly.
therapist: 2-3x weekly depending on whether you do family sessions or not.
dietitian: 2x weekly.
What is the staff-to-patient ratio?
I think it’s supposed to be like 1 BHT per every 5 patients or so (5-6 staff on the floor total at any given time) but when I was there it was MAD short staffed so it was closer to 1 staff member per every 8-10 patients.
What sort of therapies are used (e.g., DBT, CBT, EMDR, ACT, exposure therapy, somatic experiencing, etc.)?
DBT (the programming at the Durham location is VERY DBT-heavy. It’s basically the Marsha Linehan fanclub up in there), CBT, there’s also and ACT group once a week.
Describe the average day:
6:30am: Wake up, vitals/weight.
7:00am: Morning hygiene/meds.
8:30am: Breakfast.
9:30am: Group (on weekends this was normally just more downtime bc groups didn’t really happen even if they were on the schedule).
10:30am: AM snack.
11:00am: Group.
12:30pm: Lunch.
1:00pm: Downtime/room break.
2:00pm: Group.
3:15pm: PM snack.
3:45pm: Group (outing for eligible patients if on the weekend).
4:45pm: Patio time!!!
5:45pm: Dinner.
6:30pm: Downtime/room break.
7:30pm: More downtime/visiting hours.
8:30pm: HS snack.
9:00pm: Night hygiene/night meds.
10:00pm: Lights out.
Did they supplement? How did that system work?
50-99% = 1 boost plus, less than 50% = 2 boost plus. You have 15 minutes to finish supplement after meals and 10 minutes after snacks.
Do they use NG tubes?
Yes.
Are you able to eat vegetarian? Vegan?
Yes to both as far as I’m aware, veganism wasn’t common though.
What privileges are allowed?
Passes and outings if completing and on at least safety level 2.
Does it work on a level system?
Yes; they have a safety level system (1-3), a body movement level system, and a meal level system. Everyone starts out on safety level 1, most people level up to level 2 within a couple of days or a week but it depends on the person. I was on level 1 for a few weeks. Level 3 is where everyone wants to be; night showers, no flush checks, your team will probably start giving you a lot more passes, etc.
Meal levels are:
Blue 1: Everything is planned with your RD and plated ahead of time.
Blue 2: You plate your own snacks.
Yellow: You plate your own breakfast and snacks, plan lunch, and have whatever the plated option is for dinner.
Green 1: You plate everything at breakfast/lunch from the hot bar and have the plated option for dinner.
Green 2: Basically the same as Green 1 but you eat without staff in a separate side dining room called G2.
Body movement levels are:
Body movement 1: The only movement allowed is yoga.
Body movement 2: Yoga and mindful walk.
Body movement 3: Yoga, mindful walk, and outdoor rec.
How do you earn privileges?
By completing meals/snacks, not using ED behaviors, not self harming, etc.
What sort of groups do they have?
A lot of DBT heavy groups (there’s actual DBT group twice weekly but they also do boundaries/interpersonal effectiveness once weekly), there’s also structured discussion group twice a week (open processing group where the milieu picks the topic of discussion, a lot of the time the therapist facilitating the group would just pick for us though). Recovery planning, community, CBT group and ACT were all once weekly. We also had yoga three times a week (honestly no one ever went to yoga though and if they did they’d just sleep haha) and had body acceptance group once a week. There was also culinary group, health education, psychoeducation once a week on weekends depending if there were enough staff for it but a lot of time those groups didn’t happen. There was also an art “group” (group in quotes because I don’t really think it counted as such; the BHTs would basically just give us free access to the supplies in the art room and expect us to entertain ourselves for an hour). Not really a “group” but we also had “mindful walk” for eligible patients twice a week.
What was your favorite group?
Definitely structured discussion and mindful walk!! Recovery planning as well, it was a challenging group that I didn’t like initially but I did get a lot out of it. Also community because there was sometimes drama and that was entertaining haha.
If applicable: Is the program trauma-informed?
The other TEP locations are probably more trauma-informed but the Durham location is still very much Veritas but just w a different name; (some of) the providers and staff will do their best to work with you if you have co-occurring trauma/PTSD but as someone with C-PTSD I found a lot of themes in programming redundant or not applicable to me or just outright triggering for reasons not even inherently related to my ED. I mostly just felt like people didn’t really know what to do with me or how to handle that my trauma history is a major reason why I developed an ED.
What did you like the most?
A lot of the floor staff (BHT/BHS) were awesome and seemed to genuinely care about the patients. My team while in res were also (mostly) great too and did their best to work with me despite things I found uniquely challenging. I also formed close friendships with other patients (peer support was great; the milieu I was with was pretty chill and there wasn’t a ~whole lot of drama).
What did you like the least?
Unsafe staffing ratios/comically short staffing (there were a couple of days when there were two to three BHTs TOTAL for 30ish patients). Administrative staff seemed very hands-off and out of touch and would frequently kinda gaslight us and tell us the floor was fully staffed when both the patients and BHTs knew for a fact it wasn’t. There were also some not great staff members who got away w things they really shouldn’t have/shouldn’t have been working in a setting like that in the first place.
Things were also just very chaotic/disorganized when I was there in general. My room was reassigned 3 times, I’m not the only person that this happened to either; it was pretty common. They seemed to be big into reassigning peoples rooms and moving people around randomly when I was there which made things very chaotic.
Would you recommend this program?
Though I gleaned absolutely everything I could from it and there were parts of my experience that were very positive (like the lovely staff I previously mentioned and my team), honestly not really. I really wish I’d been able to get more out of it but there were just so many issues. They’re good at medical stabilization, restoring weight, stopping you from using ED behaviors in the moment, stopping you from hurting yourself, etc; but you probably won’t get to the root of why you have an ED in the first place here.
What level of activity or exercise was allowed?
Yoga, mindful walk (if on res and body movement level 2 or higher). Anyone can participate in yoga as far as I’m aware.
What did people do on weekends?
Sleep, play card games, watch TV, go on outings or passes if applicable. There’s almost no groups on the weekends so it got really boring. Saturdays tend to be particularly rough staffing-wise also.
Do you get to know your weight?
No, Everyone gets weighed blind.
If applicable: How fast is the weight gain process?
It really varies person to person. If you ask they probably won’t tell you, they’re very cagey about giving out information like that, they wouldn’t even really tell me trends.
What was the average length of stay?
They say it’s 6-8 weeks and I would say that’s close to average, but there are a lot of people who end up staying much longer or shorter. They seem to want people to stay the longest their insurance will allow.
What was the average age range?
18-24, there are some people in their late 20s or 30s/40s though. I’m 24 and I felt “old” in a milieu of mostly 18-21yr olds.
How do visits/phone calls work?
There are visiting hours every day from 7pm-8:30pm, there are also extended visiting hours in the afternoons on weekends. Most people make phone calls during downtime throughout the day or in the evenings.
What is the electronics policy (e.g., cell phones, iPods, Kindles, laptops, tablets)?
They have a SUPER lax electronics policy. You’re not allowed to have your phones/electronics out during groups or meals/snacks but that’s about it, otherwise you can have them whenever you want. The rule about no electronics during groups wasn’t even enforced honestly.
Are you able to go on outings/passes?
You can go on outings/passes if on res and if you’ve completed 100% for 24hrs prior. You have to be at least safety level 2 as well.
What kind of aftercare do they provide? Do they help you set up an outpatient treatment team?
I already had an outpatient team but from what I know they will give you resources to set up an outpatient team if you need it. They normally recommend their PHP when stepping down but if that isn’t an option for you (housing for PHP is very limited if you’re from out of state) they’ll help you find a PHP/IOP program or outpatient team in your area.
***The Adult IP/Res building really is as cold as everyone says it is! I was there in May when it’s 90+ degrees outside in NC and it was still freezing inside. Bring layers!!
What is the difference between the 8 bed area and the bigger area? How did they assign that?
There wasn’t much of a difference. I was on that unit for most of my stay. I was told they tended to put people who were more medically stable on the smaller unit (because there wasn’t always a nurse over there), but I don’t know how true that is.
Thank you so much for your review! I know that the schedule is divided between “group one” and “group two.” Is the 8-bed unit one of the groups and the larger unit is the other?
No problem! :] Group assignment is random and doesn’t really have anything to do with which unit you’re on from my understanding. When you admit they assign you to whichever group has less people to keep the groups even.
What kind of foods do they offer?
A pretty wide variety of things. Imo the food quality was like decent-to-good most of the time, better than hospital food for sure. They have a rotating 4-week menu for breakfast/lunch/dinner.
I can’t remember a lot of it off the top of my head but things like pasta dishes, chicken and rice + vegetables, and sandwiches were all common for lunch/dinner. They do pizza for dinner on Fridays (I think it’s Dominos? Unsure). My personal favorite meal they offered was butter chicken but it was kind of under seasoned in my opinion (lack of seasoning was kind of a running theme unfortunately).
For breakfast you can expect to see a lot of toast, bagels, scrambled eggs, cereal, English muffins, oatmeal, yogurt, fruit, etc.
Depending on your meal level, you might also have access to an alternate menu for breakfast, lunch, and dinner where you can write in different options instead of plated items.
They also have a pantry where patients typically forage for snacks depending on meal level.
When you’re on inpatient, do you get to pick your meals with your dietitian? Or does she just give you whatever?
Do you have any information on the Adolescent/teen program?
Unfortunately I don’t :(. I’ve only ever done treatment w TEP/Veritas as an adult.
what is their smoking/vaping policy like?
No smoking/vaping allowed, they do provide nicotine patches and you are allowed to keep your vape in your lockbox (where they have you store your wallet, etc) and take it on passes with you afaik. I know the Atlanta location allows smoking/vaping.
Hi, thank you so much for the review, i think i’m doing residential there soon. Could you explain the intake process by chance? like are they gonna strip search me when i come in?
NO!! They go through your stuff and take what you can’t have (at least in NC) but they go over it with you.
What is rooming like? Roommates, etc? Also as far as group rooms , are there several or just only one ? Is there a lot of space to roam or are you confined in one hallway and a room? Also bathrooms-showers.. one bathroom shared by all ?
Also, bathrooms and showers, please.
Georgia location
• When were you there?
2023
• What level(s) of care did you do (e.g., inpatient, residential, PHP, IOP)?
Inpatient
• If applicable: Is it wheelchair accessible?
Yes, you may be put on wheelchair restriction depending on vitals/labs/etc.
• How many patients are there on average?
13 beds per unit (4 units, 3 adolescent 1 adult). it was usually pretty full.
• What genders does it treat?
All
• If applicable: Do they support the gender identities of transgender and nonbinary people?
Yes, however some staff will probably misgender and deadname you frequently.
• How often do you see a medical doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist (therapist), nutritionist, nurse, etc?
Doctor every other day-ish, psychiatrist twice a week, therapist 2-3x a week, nurses daily.
• What is the staff-to-patient ratio?
I think there were usually 2 TA’s on each unit plus 2 nurses.
• What were meals like?
You ate in a large cafeteria, depending on what level meal plan you were on you would plate some of you own meals and snacks. all the different units had separate meal times however they overlapped slightly and they usually went past their allowed time, and it wasn’t uncommon for all 4 units to be in the cafeteria at once.
• Did they supplement? How did that system work?
It was 50% or 0% completion, and you had the choice between boost or V- shake (veritas shake, i have a feeling they may have gotten rid of that now that it’s TEP. also TEP uses exchange for exchange when supplementing so i hope they would switch to that too.)
• What is the policy of not complying with meals?
You have 15 minutes with replacement after each meal/snack, and they will tube for non compliance. I will say tubes were pretty rare on the adult unit, but it seemed like half of the kids were tubed.
• Are you able to eat vegetarian? Vegan?
Yes
• What privileges are allowed?
The adult unit was allowed their smartphones for an hour or two every night and you could also use them on outings. Adolescent units had flip phones and much more restrictions.
• Does it work on a level system?
Yes there were different level systems for movement and bathroom related things
• How do you earn privileges?
people in residential had more privileges than the inpatient people, although we were all on the same unit and the only way you would know if you were resi or inpatient was if they told you.
• What sort of groups do they have?
Art, therapy groups, educational groups, (also yoga but generally for residential people only)
• What was your favorite group?
art, we did a lot of different things.
• What did you like the most?
There were a few genuinely incredible human beings on staff there that you could tell felt very passionate about what they do.
• What did you like the least?
Unfortunately bad staff outweighed the good. So many people with absolutely 0 empathy or compassion, TAs who couldn’t give less of a shit what we were doing *TW* We had to literally YELL at a TA that there was a girl purging in the bathroom, the bathroom he was SITTING DIRECTLY NEXT TO that somehow he didn’t hear her throwing up but we could all the way down the hall. Also countless staff members would come into work visibly stoned. *TW OVER* You could tell there were A LOT of TAs there with zero eating disorder education and were not at all qualified to be “helping” us.
• Would you recommend this program?
Now that they have merged with The Emily Program I hope and pray they have made all kinds of changes, The Emily Program changed my life and I believe their method of treatment truly helps a lot of people. But I would not recommend anyone to this place in the state it was in 2 years ago.
• What level of activity or exercise was allowed?
Some light walks and yoga.
• What did people do on weekends?
Literally nothing, it was pretty bad.
• Do you get to know your weight?
No
• What was the average length of stay?
Varied wildly although most people seemed to be there for at least a few months, I had to fight with them to let me do residential in my home state as I was over a thousand miles away from home. I was there in the inpatient program for 2 weeks but it would’ve been much longer if I was forced to do res too.
• What was the average age range?
adult unit was 18-24, the 3 adolescent units ranged from like 9-10 to 17
• How do visits/phone calls work?
I never had visits as I was very far from home so im not sure, you could call during the allowed phone time or ask a nurse to use a phone although they may or may not say yes.
• What is the electronics policy (e.g., cell phones, iPods, Kindles, laptops, tablets)?
Adults had an hour or two of phone time a day.
• For inpatient/residential: Are you able to go on outings/passes?
Inpatient no, res yes.
Location: Durham, NC Adolescent Inpatient Program
Joining this discussion to post about a negative experience at the Durham NC Veritas program (in-patient) for a 17 year old (not adult program). I am the aunt of a child who had a very negative experience. Pulled the child out in a week.
The issue is that the patients interact with low-level employees all the time. Very little time with people who are actually skilled at dealing with eating disorders. Many of the patients are severely ill and it really seemed as if they were just trying to keep them alive, versus curing them. Low level staff was completely untrained and many seemed to have just joined!
Honestly seemed like a money-focused organization. Avoid at all cost!
Location: Veritas Georgia (morningside unit)
When were you there?
sep 2023
What level(s) of care did you do (e.g., inpatient, residential, PHP, IOP)?
inpatient
(I would describe veritas as an in-between level of care between hospital inpatient & the average residential)
If applicable: Is it wheelchair accessible?
yes, i was on wheelchair order bc of vitals
Does it treat both males and females? If so, is treatment separate or combined?
yes, treatment is combined
If applicable: Do they support the gender identities of transgender and nonbinary people?
yes
How often do you see a medical doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist (therapist), nutritionist, etc?
inpatient: medical doctor ~1x/day, psych provider ~2x/week, therapist ~2x/week, & dietitian ~2x/week
** your experience will be determined largely based on which providers you end up getting
What is the staff-to-patient ratio?
~2 staff per unit (units averaged at around 10 people at a time)
What sort of therapies are used (e.g., DBT, CBT, EMDR, etc.)?
DBT & CBT
Describe the average day:
each unit’s timings were a little different but for morningside:
530 vitals
745 wake up, weight, skin check, & morning hygiene
845 breakfast
945 groups*
1115 morning snack
1145 groups*
130 lunch
230 groups*
430 afternoon snack
530 phone time
645 dinner
8 phone time
915 snack
945 night hygiene
*sometimes there were groups, sometimes there weren’t. some patio times (only if not in a wheelchair), yoga (only if a higher level), etc.
*if eligible, there were outings & passes on weekends when on residential
What were meals like?
there is a rotating 4 week schedule for meals.
there is a meal planning group every monday, at which you can look at the menu for the upcoming week and request to sub certain items from or an entire meal. your dietitian will then approve or reject your subs. snacks are initially all planned by your dietitian.
as you level up, you can plate your own snacks, then breakfast too, etc.
What sorts of food were available or served?
cafeteria-like food. a step up from hospital food but a step down from food at most residential. they try to offer variety but items did get redundant.
Did they supplement? How did that system work? What is the policy of not complying with meals?
typically, the supplement protocol would be 0-49% is half a supplement and 50%-99% is a full supplement. you had to sit w/ it for 15 min. refusing and restricting would get talked about to you by your providers, and depending on your dietitian, you may eventually get an ng tube placed.
Do they use NG tubes? yes
Are you able to eat vegetarian? yes
Does it work on a level system?
yes but it was more relevant for residential, when leveling up involved movement, outings, and passes.
What sort of groups do they have? DBT, body image, nutrition, culinary, CBT, meal planning, community meeting, yoga, outdoor rec (if you’re on movement level 3), art therapy, music therapy
(many groups wouldn’t happen due to understaffing)
What did you like the most?
a good handful of the staff & providers actually seemed to really care
What did you like the least?
the dining hall was so overstimulating and cafeteria-like & i was bored a lot there
Would you recommend this program?
if you need a more acute facility than the average residential, but are not too medically or psychiatrically unstable, yes.
What level of activity or exercise was allowed?
yoga, walks, and outdoor rec (dependent on which levels you were on)
What did people do on weekends?
visitation, outings, & passes if eligible
if not, mostly just being bored
Do you get to know your weight? no
What was the average age range? 4 units covering ages 10-24 (i think). units are by age so morningside, which i was on, was 18-24 yo.
How do visits/phone calls work?
visits on weekend days for 1 hr (you can’t have the same visitor for both weekend days).
phones were allowed twice a day for one hour each. extra phone time on weekends.
For inpatient/residential: Are you able to go out on passes? inpatient no, residential yes
?Full Review?
Location: Veritas Durham NC (Adult Residential)
When were you there? Several times in the past 1.5 years, most recently Dec. 2022-Jan 2023
What level(s) of care did you do (e.g., inpatient, residential, PHP, IOP)? residential
If applicable: Is it wheelchair accessible? Yes! And they will provide wheelchairs if need be.
How many patients are there on average? Full capacity is 25 I believe.
Does it treat both males and females? If so, is treatment separate or combined? Yes! All genders are welcomed. Treatment is combined, roomed separately
If applicable: Do they support the gender identities of transgender and nonbinary people? Yes all genders are welcome
How often do you see a medical doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist (therapist), nutritionist, etc? Inpatient you see your medical provider daily and then 1x per week (more if something comes up) if on residential. Psychiatrist 2x per week, Therapist 2x per week, and dietitian 2x per week
What is the staff-to-patient ratio? Unsure. It varied a lot most of the time there were at least 3 staff
What sort of therapies are used (e.g., DBT, CBT, EMDR, etc.)? DBT, CBT, art therapy, ACT
Describe the average day:
7-815 morning hygiene/ weights, vitals/ morning medication
830 breakfast then meal process
Group
1030 Snack
Group
1215 Lunch/ meal process
groupx2
315 snack
group
445 outside/ downtime/ phone time
545 Dinner/ meal process
630/645 downtime/ phone time
845 snack
915 nighttime hygiene
What were meals like? There is a 4 week schedule for meals. They have meal levels from blue 1 (where everything is plated and planned with your dietitian) Blue 2 (you plate snacks and plan meals) Yellow (you only plan lunch) Green 1 (you plate everything) green 2 (where you have to plate from the hot bar and eat in a side dinning room without staff) they allow vegetarian (but will challenge it during your stay and some dietitians won’t always allow it) and accommodate food allergies with medical documentation.
What sorts of food were available or served?There is a wide variety of foods. The hot bar is one meal on a 4-week rotating schedule and they have an alternative menu for while you are still planning your meals.
Did they supplement? How did that system work? Yes they supplemented. You had the options of Boost plus (chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry), boost breeze (requires RD approval), boost pudding (which requires RD approval) or v-shake. V-shake is “veritas shake,” (also requires RD approval but typically is automatically on meal card as an option). You get less volume of supplement if you get v-shake (for example, 16 oz of boost would equal 12 oz of v-shake). Typically, your supplement protocol would be 0-49%, and 50%-99%.
What is the policy of not complying with meals? You get supplemented for the portion you did not complete. You have 15 minutes to finish supplement. You are expected to complete 100% of your fluids as well, or they will not mark it down as a complete. If you have a tube, you are given feeds/flushes based off of how much you completed of your meal and/or supplement.
Do they use NG tubes? Yes.
Are you able to eat vegetarian? Yes but not vegan and it is based on dietitian discretion.
Does it work on a level system? No
How do you earn privileges? N/A
What sort of groups do they have? DBT, body image, nutrition, culinary, ACT, CBT, meal planning, boundaries, community meeting, yoga, outdoor rec (if you’re on movement level 3), multifamily DBT, outing (if on movement level 2 and on residential)
What was your favorite group? Body Image, it’s a harder group but I have always gotten the most out of it.
What did you like the most? I liked the TA’s the most. as a majority of them were very kind and engaging.
What did you like the least? The fact they treat people differently based on treatment history and are quick to mark you as non- compliant based on this
Would you recommend this program? Overall yes.
What level of activity or exercise was allowed? there are 3 movement levels. Level one the only type of movement allowed is the yoga group which is 3x a week. Level 2 you become eligible for outings, mindful walk Level 3 there are outdoor rec activities you can be eligible for.
What did people do on weekends? Basically nothing. there are very few groups on the weekend so a lot of phone and downtime.
Do you get to know your weight? No
How fast is the weight gain process? it really depends on the person.
What was the average length of stay? According to them 6-8 weeks. Most of the time it’s a little longer then that.
What was the average age range? anywhere from 18 and up. There is such a wide variety of ages all the time
How do visits/phone calls work? Boosts are still a little complicated since Covid. You can have visitors it has to be scheduled with your therapist and you are in the lobby or on the “patio”
For inpatient/residential: Are you able to go out on passes? Inpatient no Residential yes
What kind of aftercare do they provide? Do they help you set up an outpatient treatment team? they will recommend their php, the have limited housing available and offer virtual if you are anywhere in NC. Otherwise they will help you find a PHP program by you
Are there any resources for people who come from out of state/country? not really. They do have very limited housing for PHP
If applicable: How is the program responding to COVID? (Less patients, virtual programming, no visitors, masks, social distancing, etc) The visitation is different since COVID. All staff wears a mask, I know when I was leaving they were planning on having the staff eating with clients again soon I’m not sure if that has started yet or not. If there is any kind of exposure they will have clients wear masks until they can test the whole unit.
?Full Review from the Past Year?
Location: Veritas Atlanta, GA (Inpatient & Residential)
When were you there? May 2022-July 2022
What level(s) of care did you do (e.g., inpatient, residential, PHP, IOP)? Inpatient, residential
If applicable: Is it wheelchair accessible? Yes! And they will provide wheelchairs if need be.
How many patients are there on average? There are 4 units total, each with a max of 13 beds.
Does it treat both males and females? If so, is treatment separate or combined? Yes! All genders are welcomed. Treatment is combined, although the men are not allowed to use the same restroom as the women or at the same time (they have single stall restrooms for men/people who feel more comfy using a private room)
If applicable: Do they support the gender identities of transgender and nonbinary people? Yes all genders are welcome
How often do you see a medical doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist (therapist), nutritionist, etc? For inpatient, you see your MD everyday or every other day, psych 2-3x a week, therapist 3x a week (2 individual one family), dietitian 2x a week. For residential, you see MD once a week, psych once a week, therapist 3x a week (2 individual one family), dietitian 1-2x a week. Sessions are 45 minutes (but honestly they are usually shorter).
What is the staff-to-patient ratio? 1.4
What sort of therapies are used (e.g., DBT, CBT, EMDR, etc.)? DBT, CPT, FBT, art therapy
Describe the average day: vitals and labs at 5am, wake up at 7:30am, hygiene (shower) and meds from 7:30-8:30, breakfast 8:30-9, group 9:30-10:15, morning snack (if applicable) at 10:30, group 10:30-11:15, patio time or classroom 11:15-12ish, lunch 1-1:30, group 1:30-2:30, group 2:30-3:30, PM snack 3:45-4:15, sleep hygiene 4:15-5, classroom 5:15-6:15, dinner 6:30-7, free time, phones 8:30-9, night snack 9:15-9:30, meds and hygiene 9:30-10:30, lights out by 11
What were meals like? Meals were decent I suppose. They had a 4-week schedule and did offer vegetarian, gluten, and dairy free. Although they kind of sucked at actually consistently serving gluten/dairy free options to those who needed it (which, is a problem). If you’re in the adult unit, you can plan your own meals and sub out whenever you want, with the approval of your dietitian. If you’re an adolescent, your parent/guardian picks your meals/snacks for you. 3 meals, 2-3 snacks. Majority of people only have 2 snacks, unless you’re on a weight-gain meal plan or other reasons discussed with your dietitian.
What sorts of food were available or served? Honestly anything you wanted. They had a set menu for things you could sub out with, like soy nuggets, quesadillas, sandwiches, pasta. I am vegetarian, so I had a lot of soy nuggets, chickenless paddies, and tofu.
Did they supplement? How did that system work? Yes they supplemented. You had the options of Boost plus (chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry), boost breeze, kate farms, or v-shake. V-shake is “veritas shake,” which is essentially a strawberry milkshake with chia seeds and supplement. you need to get v-shake or breeze approved by your dietitian. You get less volume of supplement if you get v-shake (for example, 16 oz of boost would equal 12 oz of v-shake). Typically, your supplement protocol would be 0-49%, and 50%-99%. They say they supplement you for the amount of food you didn’t complete, but if you complete 95% of your meal, youll receive the same amount of supplement as you would if you completed 50%. Your dietitian is able to give you special protocols. For me, my supplement protocol was in quarters, so it was 0-24%, 25-49%, 50%-74%, 75%-99%.
What is the policy of not complying with meals? You get supplemented for the portion you did not complete. You have 10 minutes to finish suppy after snack, 15 after meals. You are expected to complete 100% of your fluids as well, or they will not mark it down as a complete. If you have a tube, you are given feeds/flushes based off of how much you completed of your meal and/or supplement.
Do they use NG tubes? Yes. A little too often, I think. You basically have 3 days to complete above a certain threshold before they tube you. They also tend to keep the tubes in for a long time. I would say the majority number of patients have a tube at any given time. If you do have a tube and you need a feed, it will be given to you during the next group, so you will miss groups to do feeds. In some instances, your dietitian may require night feeds, which is where you are getting a constant feed throughout the night.
Are you able to eat vegetarian? Yes but not vegan
What privileges are allowed? Go outside once a day, phone calls once a day, plating your own snacks/meals, skype video chat 4x a week
Does it work on a level system? Yes
How do you earn privileges? You earn by completion and effective behavior. They base everything off of a point system. So you get points for completing your meal/snacks (water included), participating, engaging in “safe behaviors,” following directions. There is a total of 76 points in a day, and the amount of points you earn determines what level you’ll be on the next day: platinum, gold, or silver. Platinum you get 30 mins of phone time, gold 20 mins, silver 10 mins. Staff can take off points at their discretion. If you engage in any self-harm behaviors, you’re immediately dropped to silver for at least 24 hours
What sort of groups do they have? DBT, body image, nutrition, culinary, behavior chain analysis, sleep hygiene, meal planning, boundaries, community meeting, unit cleaning, yoga (if you’re on movement level 2 or 3), outdoor rec (if you’re on movement level 3), multifamily DBT, outing (if you’re on platinum for 6/7 days a week and otherwise cleared by your team).
What was your favorite group? Boundaries because the therapist who runs it is fantastic
What did you like the most? I liked the TA’s the most. They all very clearly cared about the patients. I also liked how you’re eventually able to plate and portion your own food, and how there is a culinary group where you’re able to make food. They also give you the opportunity to do a solo meal, where you eat alone and you also cook and prepare the food yourself in the kitchen. I also loved sleep hygiene, because it is the one time a day were allowed to just lay in bed.
What did you like the least? In my opinion, veritas Atlanta uses a punishment system. You are not rewarded or given positive encouragement for doing well, you are punished for not. They will not hesitate to tube you or put you on a behavior plan. My behavior plan consisted of “hallway rest,” which was when I was literally forced to stay in the hallway all day long, no groups, no socializing with my peers, no phone calls or classroom time, unless I met my goals. So I spent 2 weeks sitting in a hallway alone, isolated, without therapy. Another part of my behavior plan was that I had NO individual therapy or sessions. All of my sessions (with my therapist, psych, and dietitian) were meal support. So I always had to deal meals/snacks with my team but wasn’t allowed to have actual individual sessions with them until I started eating more. This seemed counterproductive to me, because 1) you’re not letting me attend groups or socialize with my peers or family, and 2) you’re not allowing me to have individual therapy/sessions until my behaviors “prove I don’t need meal support.” Why wouldn’t we have individual sessions to figure out why I DO need meal support, instead of taking therapy away from me?
Would you recommend this program? Honestly no. I don’t think they know how to treat eating disorders effectively. They don’t understand the importance of positive reinforcement versus punishment. they treat everyone the same. They do not have an individualized approach.
What level of activity or exercise was allowed? There were 3 movement levels. Everyone starts on movement level 1 (although you could be on movement level 0, but that is really only if you’re in a wheelchair). On level 1, you can’t really do anything but go outside once you earn that privilege/are medically stable enough to go outside. On level 2, you can participate in yoga, go on walks around the building with your team, and push wheelchairs. On level 3, you can do all of those things and outdoor rec group, which is like kicking around a soccer ball or something.
What did people do on weekends? Basically nothing. There is one group on Saturdays that is multifamily DBT group. No groups on Sunday. Basically, the weekend consists of watching movies and sleeping
Do you get to know your weight? No
How fast is the weight gain process? Pretty quickly I would say. A few lbs a week
What was the average length of stay? They say that it is 6-8 weeks, but most people stay there at a minimum of 2 months, but usually longer. They tend to keep people as long as they can
What was the average age range? There are 4 units based off of age. Sycamore unit is ages 10-12. Woodruff is 13-15, Fernbank is 15-17, and Morningside is 18-26.
How do visits/phone calls work? You get phone time every night between 8:30-9pm depending on what level you’re on. In person visits are on the weekends, and you can only have 1 visitor (so for example, if your parent wants to visit you on the weekend, they can only visit you on Saturday OR Sunday, not both, no matter how far they have traveled to see you). There is also virtual visitation 4x a week, on Wednesdays for 30 mins, Fridays for an hour, Saturdays for an hour and Sundays for an hour. You won’t get any privacy; you have to take your phone calls around everyone and same with skype video. Staff can (and will) take notes on your phone conversations if they deem it important to.
What is the electronics policy (e.g., cell phones, iPods, Kindles, laptops, tablets)? No personal electronics that have access to wifi, the internet, or a camera. You can have an ipod or mp3 as long as it doesn’t have a camera or internet access, but you’re only allowed to have it during sleep hygiene group unless your team approves otherwise.
For inpatient/residential: Are you able to go out on passes? No
What kind of aftercare do they provide? Do they help you set up an outpatient treatment team? If you’re located in Georgia, you can step down to their php which is in the same building as ip/res and you would keep your same team. If you’re not in GA, they’ll probably encourage you to relocate to GA temporarily if you have the means to do so. Otherwise, they will help you find a php/iop in your area and will connect with your future team to coordinate care.
Are there any resources for people who come from out of state/country? Nope. They will provide a list of hotels in the area but they don’t offer financial aid or discount prices. Although I think you can reach out to your insurance directly and see if they can help pay for housing.
If applicable: How is the program responding to COVID? (Less patients, virtual programming, no visitors, masks, social distancing, etc) No passes and outings have to be outside only. When I was there, staff had to wear masks but patients didn’t unless there was a covid outbreak. In that scenario, patients who had symptoms would be quarantined in their room (their roommate included, even if their roommate didn’t have symptoms) and all patients and staff had to wear masks. If someone tested positive for covid, they would be sent home for at least 10 days. As of right now, all patients and staff are required to wear masks.
Other? There is a LOT of free time, so expect to be watching a ton of Netflix or Disney plus (only Morningside has access to Netflix). The dress code is pretty strict in how much you’re allowed to bring. You can only bring 4 pairs of pants, 2 pjs, 4 t-shirts 5 sweatshirts (no hoods or pockets or strings on sweatshirts, but you can get away with pockets and strings in sweatpants), 5 pairs of underwear and socks and bras. The unit looks very much like a psych ward, everything is locked, absolutely no plastic or metal. You’ll only be allowed to have safety pens, and they’ll do room checks occasionally, but more often if you’re struggling with self-harm or they catch you with contraband. Both ip and res are the same building/unit; you’ll only know if you’ve dropped to res or been increased to ip if your team tells you.
If there’s any other questions, let me know! 🙂
Hi! Thanks for all of this! I admit next week, and definitely had a lot of unanswered questions.
I know you said patients get 30 min of phone time, can we use our iPhone or is it still the no internet/camera rule?
What is the rule for books or craft supplies, if you know? I read that patients are only allowed one book on the unit.
No, you won’t have access to your iphone your entire stay. You can bring a flip phone though! Like one of those older phones. They are more lax about the books than the rules say. You’re only supposed to carry one book around at a time, and the rest can stay in your room, but they really don’t monitor that. You can’t have personal craft supplies (like colored pencils or markers or crochet) unless it’s approved by your therapist (which, honestly, they rarely approve)
Does that mean that they just want you to use supplies on the unit, or are you not allow to use these types of things at all?
Use supplies on the unit! Always supervised and you cannot take them into your room (writing utensils). They have some markers and colored pencils in the common room
I’m assuming that it functions more like an IP even in residential than a “true” residential? It sounds more hospital like and less like the mansion type residentials that allow a lot of more leeway.
You can’t take your iPhone. Nothing with a screen. I had a flip phone that my parents had from years ago
Do you know if any of the phone rules have changed ? Durham they can have their iPhones? Also, do they only go up to 26 in Atlanta ?
Jumping in here. I was at Veritas Durham Jan-Mar 2023.
You are allowed to bring smartphones, tablets, music devices, and sometimes laptops. Your psych has to approve laptop use, I don’t know why.
Rules were NO electronics while in groups, or during treatment team meetings, unless there was a necessary reason. Sometimes your team will ask for things you need your phone for, such as contact information, or to illustrate a point of reference such as pictures, social media, etc.
Your treatment team can approve additional phone time outside of what is listed below, but it’s not a guarantee. I was allowed to have my phone 24/7, as a bribe to stay in treatment. (They specifically told me this, and outlined it in a written plan. I wouldn’t expect it, though.)
Weekdays:
10:30am-11:10am IF you were in the computer lab (Study) and actively using a computer. I never understood this.
4:45pm-6:00pm You turn your phone in at dinner, and you get it back afterwards.
6:45pm-8:45pm You turn it in before night snack.
9:15pm-10:00pm You can usually have it back until bed time, but it was iffy depending on who was in charge that night.
Weekends:
1:00pm-10:00pm It was more lenient on weekends.
Durham, NC has both Adult (18 and up) and Adolescent (up to 18) full spectrum of programming (IP through to OP).
Atlanta, GA has full spectrum of programming 8-24 years old.
So I’ll chime in a bit. I was at Veritas Durham (Adults) from July-Dec 2023 and got to the new IP unit on March 15 for reference (I won’t be reviewing this as I just got here). They updated Durham quite a bit in the past few months. They have now split the inpatient and residential units into completely separate facilities. The res unit is still a 25 bed facility I believe over by Duke’s campus and the Inpatient unit is a 12 bed facility located in the same building as the PHP. You still get your smartphones and devices all the time, even at night, at both locations. Same for writing utensils and craft supplies.
My experience at the Douglas location (now residential) was overall good but like all other treatments not without flaws.
For the first 2 months I dealt with being misgendered, by nursing staff in particular, several times daily and could not get much help or support with it from upper level staff during my 6 months there. I don’t really recommend Veritas for anyone who is transgender as it did not feel like the most affirming/safe space to recover in.
They have an awful time keeping staff and the staff they do hire like to no-call no-show more often than is okay for a medical facility (mostly BHT’s). That in itself isn’t the part that is worrying, it’s the part where management likes to tell you it’s not their problem to fill the open spots when people don’t show up so it become you the patient’s problem. There were many many meals that were not only a few minutes off schedule but like an hour off schedule because of it.
It wasn’t all bad though. The staff in general are very kind and the ones that show up really do care. The clinicians across the board at both the residential and the inpatient locations are some of the most solid clinicians I’ve come across in any of the treatment centers I’ve been to. They are kind, they work together with you and don’t write off your concerns as just your “disorder talking” as so many others have done in the past.
All that said, I don’t like how much you notice that Veritas prioritizes the profits ultimately over people. There are good people here doing good work but the company as a whole is just another money hungry corporation that looks at us as dollar signs… Case and point, I have an order for a wheelchair right now and the armrest is held on by scotch tape and there’s a spot sharp enough to SH on and despite being aware of the issue staff will not replace it due to cost.
This is all excellent information, and I’m so happy you gave us a very current review of your experience.
I’m so sorry for the challenges you are facing right now, and I am praying you are able to find healing so that you can discharge appropriately.
I agree with all of what you said, but I am very surprised to hear about the misgendering! This was not at all my experience, and it pains me to read it has been yours. (And I want to be clear, I believe you, wholeheartedly! I am not trying to invalidate you in any way.)
Hey Rachel would you mind when you’re ready on course if i emailed you about the durham IP location? j have an intake with them and am leaning toward it bc i don’t really want to go out of state but i will if there are better options. tysm if you can 🙂 also, congratulations on getting help!!
can i please have the rules and updates for adult inpatient
Hi! Thanks for sharing all that. I was wondering now that the IP and residential are in separate buildings, if you would still have the same therapist and dietician when you move from IP to RTC? Thanks!
I don’t know if anyone has posted this already, but inpatient and res are now
combined again in Durham.
?Review from the Past Year?
Location: Durham, NC Adolescent Program
– i went to the adolescent program in durham nc, this place was an absolute joke to me, the groups were awful, so many staff members were triggering and didn’t seem to know anything about eating disorders, some of the staff also got mad when someone was upset or wouldn’t even help the person calm down, they were also very understaffed and because of it us patients didn’t get to go outside or have much down time. the nurses were transphobic and also very triggering, i was on bed rest and one nurse who was watching me told me “i would never feed my kids that much food” and “i sometimes think they overfeed ya’ll” i couldn’t even speak after she said that to me, it made me feel awful. i do think some staff members genuinely wanted to help us and i really appreciate those people.
– also everyone was mostly worried about weight restoration and not the mental part of it, i only met with my therapist maybe once or twice a week for like 30 minutes.. and my psychiatrist once a week, sometimes not at all. this place did try there best and i appreciate that too. but i wouldn’t go here again, and i wouldn’t recommend it. this place can help you, i’m not saying it can’t, but there are so many problems with this place that made it feel impossible to recover. i also had a friend that was sent to the hospital because of his heart and they didn’t even let him back in, they sent him back home and he was not ready to go back home, that really upset me… i guess i can understand why they didn’t let him come back, but they shouldn’t have sent him home.
– ALSO they had ranks for phone time.. we only got to talk to our loved ones for 30 minutes and if we were on a lower rank it would only be 20 or 10.. i feel like at the state that we are all in we should all be able to talk to our loved ones for at least an hour a day and not be ranked.
– and a lot of people struggled with self harm including myself and i feel that it just wasn’t talked about enough and no one did anything until kitchen utensils went missing.
some things might have changed, maybe they fixed some of these problems, but i just wanted to try and say everything that was wrong with this place.
?Review?
Location: Durham, NC, Adult
I was at the Adult Hospital in Durham, NC from 2/21-7/21 for IP/Res. I would not recommend this treatment program for anyone with medical complications or co-morbid medical conditions. They say that they provide inpatient care, but really they are only equip to provide residential-level medical care. For example, the physicians ignored clear signs of complications before I was transferred to Duke Hospital. However, when I came back, they decided that they weren’t going to follow Duke’s recommendations because they “know better”. Basically, they almost let me die.
In terms of meal support/nutrition therapy…I actually really liked their philosophy. They do work on an exchange system, but it is much more flexible than other exchange systems that I have used in the past. Also, my dietician was pretty knowledgably and felt like she had my best interests at heart and met me where I was at most days. I wish I could take their nutritional philosophy and put it to use at a better treatment center.
In terms of therapy, there is very little. I felt like this was another major downside to this program!! Most of our time was spent sitting around and when groups did occur, it was strictly worksheet based and little room for processing was made. It made the whole process so much harder because there was such a lack of therapeutic support. Also, the lack of process groups really made it hard to connect with other patients, which can be helpful during any treatment stay (peer support can be a blessing).
Overall, I would steer clear of this program but if it is your only option be prepared for little therapy and poor medical care. However, they do provide good nutritional rehabilitation.
?Full Review?
Location: Veritas Atlanta, Georgia
(Child, Adolescent, and Young Adult Hospital – Inpatient & Residential)
When were you there?
April 16 – June 15 2021 (Atlanta location, both inpatient and residential)
How many patients are there on average?
Up to 13 per unit, there are 4 units
Does it treat both males and females? If so, is treatment separate or combined?
It treats all genders, and they are combined. However, they will not allow AMABs to share rooms with AFABs
How often do you see a medical doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist (therapist), nutritionist, etc?
Psychiatrist: 1-2 times per week
Medical Doctor: 3 times per week for residential, every day for inpatient
Therapist: 1-2 times per week for individual sessions, 1 time per week for family sessions
Nutritionist: 2 times per week
What is the staff-to-patient ratio?
Generally 2 therapeutic assistants (TAs) per each unit (12 patients) and 1 nurse per unit
What sort of therapies are used (e.g., DBT, CBT, EMDR, etc.)?
Only DBT. That’s literally it.
Describe the average day:
What were meals like?
You have 30 minutes for meals and 15 minutes for snacks. They will redirect any unproductive conversations, but it is rare for them to redirect behaviors unless it drastically impacts your recovery (hiding food, spreading food out)
What sorts of food were available or served?
They served a vast arrangement of things in 4 week rotations. If you are vegetarian (which they very rarely allow) you will see a lot of soy nuggets and tofu
Did they supplement? How did that system work?
They did supplement. If you complete over half of your meal you receive one Boost plus, if you complete under half you will receive two Boost plus. If you want supplement pudding, they will give you 2 Boost puddings for over half of your meal and 4 Boost puddings for under half of your meal. You have the option of strawberry, chocolate, vanilla, chocolate pudding, or vanilla pudding. If you are still in the weight restoration phase they will add one Boost Breeze to your supplement protocol.
What is the policy of not complying with meals?
If you do not comply with meals you will have an NG tube inserted. If you continue to not comply with meals for an extended period of time you will likely be transferred.
Are you able to eat vegetarian?
Technically? Yes. Realistically? Your dietician will keep pushing you for months on end and feeding you meat at every meal until one of you gives in.
What privileges are allowed?
Flushing the toilet by yourself, plating your own meals in compliance with your exchanges, and doing small levels of activity.
Does it work on a level system?
Yes. There are three types of leveling systems:
Bathroom level: If you engage in purging behaviors frequently, you will likely be put on Bathroom 0 where a TA must watch you use the restroom. You will also not be allowed in single-stall restrooms. Most people start on Bathroom 1. This is where a TA must check before you flush the toilet. If you are using a single-stall restroom they must watch you. Bathroom 2 is where you strive to be. You are allowed to flush the toilet of your own free will and use single-stall restrooms. However, no matter what level you are on, you may not use the restroom for 30 minutes after snacks and 1 hour after meals unless you count and have someone watching you.
Plating level: If you are not completing meals, you will not be allowed to plate anything. If you have completed for a short period of time, your dietician might allow you to plate snacks. If you have completed for a longer and somewhat consistent period of time, you will be allowed to plate snacks, breakfast, and dinner. If you have completed for a longer and more consistent period of time you are allowed to plate all meals and snacks. The highest level is being allowed to plate all meals and snacks and sit wherever you want, though this is not a thing with COVID.
Movement level: If you are consistently completing meals, you will be allowed to do yoga. The next level is being allowed to do yoga, go on walks, and move freely “around the cabin”. However, if you have not completed for 24 hours, you do not qualify for these levels, no matter what your movement level is.
How do you earn privileges?
You complete meals and avoid engaging in behaviors. Plating levels are determined by your dietician, bathroom levels are determined by your psychiatrist, and movement levels are determined by your dietician also.
What sort of groups do they have?
DBT groups, culinary (baking) groups, family DBT groups, yoga/movement groups if you qualify, and dietetic education. A lot of time is spent watching the television or jokingly making plans to elope.
What was your favorite group?
My favorite group was culinary. It felt nice to have the freedom to bake again without a fear of engaging in behaviors.
What did you like the most?
My favorite part about Veritas was the community. The nurses were always so supportive. If you engaged in a behavior and felt guilty, there was always someone to talk to. The patients would help keep you accountable by watching you during meals and making sure you weren’t engaging in other behaviors. You always had community, and (almost) everyone was recovery-focused. (Out of everyone I knew in my 2 months there, only 1 person still didn’t want to recover after a few days of therapy).
What did you like the least?
My least favorite part was the long-term support. A lot of residential care is about reteaching. You relearn to eat, use the restroom, and move around safely. However, there was not a lot of lessons that would last long-term, which is why I relapsed multiple times.
Would you recommend this program?
I would recommend this program if it is easily accessible to your family and community is what you are looking for. However, it does not seem worth traveling out of state for (at least for me).
What level of activity or exercise was allowed?
It depends on you movement level. If you are not allowed to do body movement, they will redirect you for things as simple as fidgeting excessively. This was extremely problematic to me, considering that I fidgeted a lot during my panic attacks.
What did people do on weekends?
Watched movies. Obsessively. There was little else to do.
Do you get to know your weight?
No. Not even my parents could easily find out my weight.
How fast is the weight gain process?
I have no idea, considering that I never knew my weight. It is also vastly different for everyone depending on their metabolism.
What was the average length of stay?
6-8 weeks for ip/residential and 4 weeks for PHP
What was the average age range?
Anywhere between 10-22. The maximum age was 26 I believe.
How do visits/phone calls work?
You are not permitted to visit people because of COVID. However, you are allowed 15 minutes of phone call time a night and 30 minutes of Skype time every day.
What is the electronics policy (e.g., cell phones, iPods, Kindles, laptops, tablets)?
No electronics. They will provide landlines and desktop computers.
Are you able to go out on passes?
Not in IP/residential unless it is an emergency situation or you are getting a COVID vaccine. However, passes are allowed in PHP for up to 4 days.
What kind of aftercare do they provide? Do they help you set up an outpatient treatment team?
They do help you set up an outpatient treatment team, and they recommend the teams based on who they think will work best with you.
Are there any resources for people who come from out of state/country?
Not sure, I don’t believe so though.
If applicable: Do they support the gender identities of transgender and nonbinary people?
They do! I was nonbinary, and was only deadnamed by one person there, out of all the people I knew (a lot)
Hi! I’m going here tomorrow and do you know if they have any rules with acrylic nails / length? I’m getting mine done today and my mom swears she read somewhere that our nails have to be short but I wasn’t sure
As far as I’m concerned, they won’t force you to cut your nails. However, I’m not positive, as my nails were already short when I got there. When you need your nails trimmed, a nurse must do it for you, you are not allowed to do it yourself.
Hi I was wondering if anyone could leave a review of their php
?Full Review?
Location: Veritas North Carolina
(Adult Hospital and Center)
When were you there?
December-January 2018
November-March 2019/2020
April-present 2021 (here currently)
How many patients are there on average?
Around 20
Does it treat both males and females? If so, is treatment separate or combined?
Yes, it is combined, but females are roomed with females, and males with males.
How often do you see a medical doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist (therapist), nutritionist, etc?
Medical doctor- everyday on inpatient, as needed once you step down to residential
Psychiatrist, therapist, dietician- 2x per week each
What is the staff-to-patient ratio?
Probably like 1:4 for the TA’s plus there are always therapists and dieticians around
What sort of therapies are used (e.g., DBT, CBT, EMDR, etc.)?
Mainly DBT and there is an ACT group
Describe the average day:
7:00-8:15- wake up, weight, meds, shower, get ready
8:30-9:30- breakfast and meal processing
9:45-10:05- room break (to get a break from your mask during COVID)
10:05-10:30- community support meeting
10:30-11:15- morning snack if you have it or free time
11:15-12:15- group
12:15-1:30- lunch and meal processing
1:30-2:15- nap (they call it sleep hygiene)
2:15-3:15- group
3:15-3:45- snack
3:45-4:45- group
4:45-5:45- room time, free time, outside time, phones allowed
5:45-6:45- dinner and meal processing
6:45-8:45- free time, phones allowed
8:45-9:15- snack
9:15- meds, get ready for bed
What were meals like?
You get thirty minutes to eat and they will give you extra time if needed. There a several different tables and you sit with the people who are on the same level as you. Blue 1 you don’t plate anything by yourself. Blue 2 you plate your snacks only. Yellow you plate breakfast and snacks. Green 1 you plate everything. Green 2 you plate everything and get to eat in a separate room without supervision. When you get to yellow you have to eat what is being served on the hot bar for breakfast and dinner but can choose your own lunch. Green you eat all meals from the hot bar, which is what the culinary staff has prepared. If you are blue or yellow you meet with the dieticians on Thursdays to menu plan.
What sorts of food were available or served?
Lots of chicken and rice, wraps, sandwiches, pastas, Mexican food, salmon, lasagna, pizza on Fridays. Breakfast in on a weekly rotation of bagels, cereal, oatmeal, bacon, sausage, pancakes, waffles, French toast.
Did they supplement? How did that system work?
Yes. If you complete less than 50% you get two boosts and if you complete 50-99% you get one boost. You don’t have to supplement if you finished everything.
What is the policy of not complying with meals?
They will eventually do a feeding tube, but not very often this happens. I was the only one with a tube while I had one.
Are you able to eat vegetarian?
Yes, but there aren’t a lot of options.
What privileges are allowed?
Once you get to level C you can walk around by yourself and use the single bathroom without observation. Technically if you are still on level A you can’t be in your room by yourself, but they have been letting everybody stay in their rooms during phone time with COVID. As you move through movement levels you can to mindful walk, yoga, and outdoor rec.
Does it work on a level system?
Yes.
How do you earn privileges?
Complying with meal plan, not self harming, not using behaviors.
What sort of groups do they have?
Medical education, DBT, process, community support, movement therapy, nutrition, culinary, education vocational group, art therapy, body acceptance, ACT, outdoor recreation
What was your favorite group?
I don’t know. I’ve been here three times so the groups are repetitive.
What did you like the most?
That we can have our phones and be in our bedrooms during free time.
What did you like the least?
Night shift staff and disorganization in the evenings
Would you recommend this program?
Right now, probably. In the past, no.
What level of activity or exercise was allowed?
Yoga, mindful walk, outdoor rec as you move up in the program.
What did people do on weekends?
Lots of free time, watch Netflix or movies, play games, there is an inning (during COVID) and some TA led groups
Do you get to know your weight?
No
How fast is the weight gain process?
I don’t know
What was the average length of stay?
Probably like 6-8 weeks. Depends on the person.
What was the average age range?
Right now mostly early 20s. There are a couple of older people though and some 18 and 19 years olds.
How do visits/phone calls work?
Right now with COVID you can have one 30 minute visit per week and have to schedule it with your therapist. You will sit in the waiting room or outside. We get to use our phones now in the evening which we couldn’t in the past and they call that time virtual visitation
What is the electronics policy (e.g., cell phones, iPods, Kindles, laptops, tablets)?
You can have your laptops and phones right now due to COVID.
Are you able to go out on passes?
Not right now. The do “passes” but you just go to have a meal or snack by yourself in a consult room and get to have your phone or computer.
What kind of aftercare do they provide? Do they help you set up an outpatient treatment team?
Yes.
Are there any resources for people who come from out of state/country?
Not sure.
If applicable: Do they support the gender identities of transgender and nonbinary people?
Yes.
Can you have your laptop daily for school, etc.? (Can you use them whenever you’re not in a group?) Are all groups mandatory? Are all snacks mandatory? What are some of the snack options? Vegetarian options? Can you include supplement in your meal plan if you struggle with volume? What kinds of outings used to happen? How does Veritas compare to other tx centers? Do they ever court order people or make them stay beyond what they are willing?
Can you have your laptop daily for school, etc.? (Can you use them whenever you’re not in a group?)
Yes. You can use them during phone times, which is 4:45-8:45 during the week and throughout the day on the weekends.
Are all groups mandatory?
Yes, unless you are able to get an order from a therapist not to be in a group.
Are all snacks mandatory?
Only some people have morning snack but everybody has afternoon and night snack.
What are some of the snack options?
Wheat thins, triscuits, cheese it’s, goldfish, pudding, yogurt, fruit, bagels, English muffins, chips, baked goods, candy, ice cream, cheese sticks, cottage cheese, are some examples.
Vegetarian options?
Black beans, tofu, not much else
Can you include supplement in your meal plan if you struggle with volume?
Yes.
What kinds of outings used to happen?
Duke gardens, goat farm, movies, target, bath and body, Barnes and noble
How does Veritas compare to other tx centers?
There are other treatment centers that I prefer but it has gotten better since the other times that I have been here. It is very heavy on DBT and using skills, which I don’t like.
Do they ever court order people or make them stay beyond what they are willing?
I don’t think so, at least I haven’t seen that happen to anybody here.
are you in adult inpatient? is it hospital food? do you feel institutionalized or treated like a human? can you step down to res somewhere else
are you still there now? I have an intake assessment on wednesday and this is a place I can get into faster than others. If possible, i would really like to message you about veritas!:)
Yes! I will be here for a couple more weeks.
I’m looking at admitting on Thursday, could I message or text/call you? My phone number is ***, feel free to contact me anytime. Thank you so much!
*Admin note:
*I will redact your number once you get a reply, since this is a public website — so please let me know when you are ready for me to do so!*
*update- Redacted since K replied! 🙂 Moriah, if you’d us to un-redact it again at any point just let us know*
Yes, I just texted!
Moriah, hi. I was wondering if you are still in treatment? I am admitting this Thursday. I was also wondering about your experience.
Thanks so much for your review, K. I noticed you said you can have your laptops and phones right now due to COVID. Can you not typically have electronics during certain times even without COVID?
When I was there in 2018 and 2019/2020 you were not allowed to have electronics. With Covid going on right now you can have your phone and laptop during the evening since family and friends can’t visit right now.
hi. I am looking into treatment centers and I wanted to know if I could get your honest opinion about what you liked and did not like about veritas. thank you so much in advance
K, your review is very helpful. Are you still at Veritas? I may be coming in October and was wondering if this is a good program. I am 49 and have had my eating disorder most of my life. I am very scared about entering treatment.
Hi Susan, no I’m not still there- I discharged in July, but I am happy to answer any questions that you have!
Thank you for getting back to me K. I so appreciate it. I am much older and was wondering if there are any patients that are in their 30’s and 40’s? Plus how did you like your stay. Were the people helpful and the groups? I am just so scared. Anything you could tell me about Veritas would be great. Would you go there again or is there another place you would recommend. I could call you if you wouldn’t mind. Plus how big are the groups? I am more of a small group person.
Sorry for just now getting back to you. While I would say that the majority of people have been in their early 20s, there have been handfuls of people in their 30s-50s all of the times that I have been there. I strongly disliked Veritas the first two times that I was there in 2018-2020. However, in my opinion it has gotten a lot better as of my most recent stay (April-July 2021). I don’t particularly like the groups, but that is because I have been to treatment so many times that they feel very basic and repetitive. I know that for people whose first time it is in treatment the groups have been very helpful. When it comes to staff, some are better than others. Like you get with all places, there are great people and there are awful people. In terms of unit drama, that depends on when you go and who is there at the time. My first time there, I felt like there was a lot of drama. This past time, everybody was really chill and sweet for the most part and I didn’t feel like there was much drama. Let me know if you have any other questions!
Thank you again for all the information! How many people are there? Are inpatient with residential? Are the facilities nice? Do you feel this time there helped you? Again sorry for all the questions… just want to make sure I am making the right decision. I live in NC and don’t want to travel out of state. Would you recommend any other facilities?
Is there a lot of drama….I am a drama free person. Do not handle that well.
There are around 25 patients at full capacity. That’s one thing that I don’t like about Veritas- there are a lot of patients. Inpatient and res are together. There aren’t many differences between the two except you see the medical doctor/nurse practitioner daily on inpatient and as needed if you’re res. The facility is really nice and always very clean. That’s one thing that I really like about it. It’s hard to say if my time there helped me. My eating disorder is chronic and although it definitely helped me in the moment, I have unfortunately already relapsed again, but this is no fault to Veritas. My team this time around was great and I did find them very helpful. I understand not wanting to leave NC- I would suggest giving Veritas a shot and if you don’t like it you can easily transfer somewhere else. I’ve done that before at other facilities. The best treatment center that I have been to is Center for Change. It is in Utah, but is amazing. In terms of wanting to stay in NC, I would go with Veritas. I would strongly advise against Carolina House.
I am likely either going to Veritas Georgia or Center for Change. Would you be willing to share w/ me your experiences w/ both?
Hey!
im going to veritas or center for change too and i was wondering which one you went to? And do you mind if i ask a few questions?
Hi
I have been to both if you still have questions
K, thank you for responding did you get my other messages?
Can I ask you some questions about your treatment at Veritas? Do you recommend it?
Hi! What location are you going to? I’m going to the Atlanta one this Wednesday is my admission day, maybe we’ll be there at the same time
I would be going to Durham:(
Hi Susan! What are the fears/concerns that you have right now about going to treatment? It can help to write them out. Logical, “illogical,” doesn’t matter – fear is fear, and just because other people out there (“normies” as I sometimes call them 🙂 ) may not understand some of the fears, I bet a lot of us here will.
I want you to know you aren’t alone. Is there anything we can do to help you get on that admissions list? Or to support you in getting ready for treatment? Treatment is scary enough as it is, I can’t imagine what it must be like after having your eating disorder your entire life! But the things is, you so so SO deserve it. Sometimes it is hard, feeling like if you go to treatment you are deciding to let your ED go. If you’ve had your ED a long time, that’s an insurmountable decision to make all at once! Sometimes it’s easier to think of it as: I deserve a break from the ED! I don’t have to make that life-altering decision of what the rest of my life will be like in order to go! Frankly I just need a breather, and that’s why I deserve treatment right now. Because you DEFINITELY deserve a break! Ya know? Your ED has been torturing you for decades. Let yourself be taken care of and the burden of the ED lifted for a little bit, so you can relax for a little bit. ❤️
Rachel, you don’t know how much your post meant to me! I am so scared of being the oldest one there, the number of others that will be there, what to wear, and countless other worries. I wish you would be at Durham you sound so sweet!! I wish I could connect with someone at Durham or would be going to Durham. I will not be close to home so that is scary as well. If you can give me any specifics on Veritas and how it is I would appreciate it. I have heard more bad than good☹️
age is my concern too. I’m 39…
Don’t be! I was there with patients from 18-65+. It is very inclusive of all adult ages. 🙂 Staff definitely skews younger, though.
I would love to talk to someone who has been there recently.
Hi Susan, I don’t know how to connect but I am 37 and looking to admit to Durham
Amazing! Nikki and Susan, I can connect you to each other this way: please each email me at admin@edtreatmentreview.com confirming that you would like to be put in touch and letting me know what email you’d like to share with the other. As soon as I get that email from each of you, I will loop you together so you have each other’s email addresses and connect directly. So happy for both of you!
Niki, when do you plan to admit? I know they are full right now. They told me 2 weeks. You could me my number is X. I would love to connect!!!! Just let me know it’s you. This makes me so happy!
*admin note: contact info redacted now that they have gotten in touch! 🙂
Niki,
I would love to connect with you. Veritas told me they were full for the upcoming week so it might be 2 weeks before I could be admitted. What date are you lookin to be admitted? I am just very anxious and scared. I would very much like to be in touch. My email is X My number is X, just let me know it is you through a text.
Susan
*admin note: contact info redacted now that they have gotten in touch! 🙂
K, Hope you are doing well. I am looking to be admitted to Veritas this week and am very scared. I have a lot of questions. Is there anyway I could get a hold of you to answer some of my questions? I hope you don’t mind.
Sure! You can email me: X
Rachel, can you please take my email
down? Susan and I were able to connect!
Done!
?Full Review?
this is a review for the adolescent unit in durham, nc!
if you want more details, feel free to message me, there’s a lot
When were you there?
fall 2020
How many patients are there on average?
there are three units; greystone (inpatient and really young kids), brightleaf 1 (adolescents 15 and under) and brightleaf 2 (16 and up), and each unit had about 10 patients at a time. i think one time it went up to like 14 on my unit though
Does it treat both males and females? If so, is treatment separate or combined?
it treats all genders, and treatment is combined
How often do you see a medical doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist (therapist), nutritionist, etc?
usually once a week, but sometimes more if needed. you’ll see your therapist about 3 times a week though, because you have 2 individual sessions and one family session. if you’re on inpatient, you’ll meet with your doctor every day.
What is the staff-to-patient ratio?
usually 2-3 TA’s per unit, plus nursing. we were often understaffed though
What sort of therapies are used (e.g., DBT, CBT, EMDR, etc.)?
a LOT of dbt.
Describe the average day:
there’s about two or three actual groups per day. the rest are filler groups or down time. for example, activity craft was a dumb group we had a couple times a week where they’d just put out some play doh or paper and markers or something and expect us to entertain ourselves for an hour. you can only watch movies during provider check in, which is basically where your team is supposed to pull you but they usually don’t. we also watched movies sometimes after dinner or if the weather wasn’t good enough during patio. the rest of the time we kind of lied around doing whatever. there was usually a board game going around and the rest of the people sleep, journal, read, stuff like that. every day we would have school for about two hours, but in the summer they just do “enrichment” (stupid crafts).
What were meals like?
it depends on the people you’re with and the TA’s that day. usually they were awesome, full of talking and table games and everything, but sometimes they were super stressful and tense. you get 30 minutes for meals and 15 minutes for snacks, but can get an extra 5 minutes if your team approves it. if you use any behaviors, like cutting things up/smooshing/wiping things off/eating in the wrong order, you will get redirected. once i got redirected for eating my exchanges one by one, which made no sense. honestly, staff pretty much determined how the meal went. some were awesome and played music, games, and started hilarious conversations. others…not so much.
What sorts of food were available or served?
first of all, your first couple weeks when you’re not plating yourself your dietician may not plan you a lot of challenges. for example, if it’s sweet bread day, she might just plan you toast instead of donuts, so keep that in mind.
breakfast: this was on a weekly rotation. mondays were hot bar (biscuits/oatmeal/french toast/quiche), tuesdays were cold cereal (they had basics like cheerios, froot loops, frosted flakes, rice krispies, granola and yogurt), wednesdays were free choice, thursday was hot cereal (oatmeal or grits), friday was sweet bread (cinnamon rolls, muffins, bagels, donuts), saturdays were free choice, and sundays were pancakes or waffles. the only protein they usually had was scrambled eggs, although on certain days they would have sausage patties or hard boiled eggs. you had to get the required exchanges of these foods, but if you’re on yellow/green could choose your own milks, fruits, proteins, and extra exchanges.
lunch/dinner: there was a four week meal rotation, which was fun because by the time i got out i had it all written down and a bunch of people always came to me to find out what we were having. some meals were pretty easy, lots of variations of chicken or fish and rice/rolls. others were more challenging, like cheeseburgers or nachos. for lunch, there were a couple different options if you plated yourself. for example, if there was a southern style lunch, you could choose between mac and cheese or chicken nuggets with buttered rolls, and green beans or okra, etc, honey mustard vs butter, etc. for dinner it is always just plated for you though. and every friday you will have pizza. they rotate between domino’s and make your own.
snacks were things like goldfish, granola bars, fig newtons, toast/bagels with spread, crackers, pretzels, nuts, etc. veritas uses an exchange system, and typical snack exchanges included starches/fats, fruits, milks, sometimes proteins or add ons
milk: yogurt, cottage cheese, milk, and soymilk
fruits: they had grapes, apples, pears, oranges, bananas, applesauce, mandarin oranges, fruit juices, and melon/pineapple.
add ons: clif bars, granola bars, fig newtons, oreos, pot-tarts, cookies, etc.
Did they supplement? How did that system work?
yeah, they have different supplement protocols. refeeding is 4 oz boost plus for snacks and 8 for meals, regular is 8 oz and 16 oz, and advanced is an extra boost breeze on top of regular. they also have boost pudding and v-shake, which is essentially a milkshake.
What is the policy of not complying with meals?
you get a bunch of privileges taken away and if you don’t comply for long enough you will get put on COM (constant observation), side dining, or tubed.
Are you able to eat vegetarian?
yes if you fight really hard. expect LOTS of tofu, beans, and soy nuggets.
Does it work on a level system?
no, but you gradually earn more privileges.
What privileges are allowed? How do you earn privileges?
after your first week or so if your vitals are stable and you’ve completed 24 hours, you can go outside on patio. privileges are individual and determined by your team.
everyone starts out on bathroom 1, where they check before you flush. if your team allows it, you can be moved to bathroom 2 where you flush your own toilet outside of emergency. 1 hour after snacks and 30 minutes after meals, you always have to have the toilet checked and you have to count while you go.
What sort of groups do they have?
dbt based groups (3 dbt groups, interpersonal effectiveness, boundaries, mindfulness, etc). there were some other random groups like dietetic ed, body acceptance, culinary, etc….. but yeah mostly dbt. we even had a whole group just for dbt chains.
What was your favorite group?
i liked dietetic ed because it was actually educational and i love nutrition and stuff. body acceptance tended to have the best discussions though.
What did you like the most?
i loved my friends that i made. we had so many inside jokes and deep conversations and it was just the best.
What did you like the least?
first of all, the staff was super hit or miss. we had so many complaints about this, because there were SEVERAL inappropriate incidents with many staff members that were basically ignored. i won’t go into much detail, but it sucked and everyone was super pissed. also, leadership didn’t listen to us very much and kind of just treated us like eating disorders.
also, a lot of the day was pointless and there were so many stupid rules.
Would you recommend this program?
not sure. it’s definitely good, and they know what they’re doing medically. veritas is hard on you and very strict, but if you want recovery it’s worth it.
What level of activity or exercise was allowed?
once you’ve reached a certain percent of your EBW, you will get body movement and can do yoga 1 and outdoor rec. when you’re almost done weight restoring, you can be on yoga 2 and full body movement (stairs, occasional just dance if you have the “good TA’s”)
it depends on the TA’s, but they’re pretty strict about “EBM” which is excessive body movement. some TA’s let you do full cartwheels down the hall (although people got in a lot of trouble for that when they reviewed the cameras), and some will yell at you for standing up/shaking your leg.
What did people do on weekends?
we basically just watched movies.
Do you get to know your weight?
absolutely not
How fast is the weight gain process?
usually 2-4 pounds per week
What was the average length of stay?
this literally varies so much. i saw one girl leave after a week, and i knew another that was there for 8 months. i was personally there for about 3 months, but average was about 2.
What was the average age range?
depends on which unit you’re on.
How do visits/phone calls work?
visitation might be different now because it kept changing while i was there, but i think your family can come visit during visitation hours (usually before lunch), but it needs to be scheduled. also, you can have 1-2 “family meals” per week where a parent comes to cook and eat a meal with you.
What is the electronics policy (e.g., cell phones, iPods, Kindles, laptops, tablets)?
no electronics except music devices which are only allowed during down time in your room. they have school computers but they monitor the usage and you can only do non-school related work during homework time for about an hour at night.
you can have your flip phone during phone time, which is for about half an hour on the weekdays and an hour on the weekends. there’s also Skype time about 4x a week.
Are you able to go out on passes?
i don’t think so with covid.
What kind of aftercare do they provide? Do they help you set up an outpatient treatment team?
usually you’ll do their php program, but i know a couple people who go straight to outpatient.
Are there any resources for people who come from out of state/country?
yeah, people come from all over.
If applicable: Do they support the gender identities of transgender and nonbinary people?
yes!
Other?
Hi! I was wondering if you could send me a treatment handbook for the adolescent unit? If possible, could you also send me a sample of the 4-week menu rotation? Thank you so much!
Can you please message me at [redacted]? I have a few questions regarding the treatment protocol at the adolescent inpatient unit in Durham, NC.
Specifically,
– What does the menu rotation look like? You said that you had a copy; could you send me a picture of some of the options for breakfast/lunch/dinner and snacks?
– What are family meals? Are the parents or the staff responsible for plating the meal?
– How do outings work in light of the COVID-19 pandemic?
Thank you so much!! 🙂
yes can you send me the menu also
Hi! Could you send me a copy of the menu rotation as well? Thanks!
This was very helpful! Since your contact was removed and you may not come back to read all the comments, I really hope you see this.
I have a question- Can you take stuffed animals that aren’t machine washable or dry clean? Their website is indicative of having the same rules as their sister program- The Emily Program- which prohibits bringing anything that can’t be dry cleaned.
Thanks!
could you send the meal rotation?
i’m recently going to this place, could someone tell me what’s different now?
?Full Review?
This is a review for the adult residential/inpatient unit in Durham, NC for when I went there from September to November in 2020.
I went here in a rather terrible state and chose it as it provided inpatient care in the same facility as residential (only difference is your privileges and how often you see a doctor, inpatient is seen every day while res a few times a week) The facility itself is very well kept and I was in the Foster unit which was the smaller and much calmer/less dramatic of the two which are currently separated because of COVID. The rooms here are two per person and do there best to look less clinical though all main doors are locked and you cannot freely go about the facility so keep that in mind.
The Treatment Team
My psych provider was incredible, she put an incredible amount of time and effort into my treatment. The dietitians here are harsh as to be expected but they work with you. My major concern going in was being forced to reach a weight that I had never been even when healthy, as I have always been smaller, but when I put in the work and saw progress they were good about being honest with me about what I needed to do in terms of weight restoration.
My only issue with my team was my therapist who did happen to quit a week in and I did not really have a permanent therapist till mid week two which was difficult though not entirely the programs fault.
The Food/Program
To start I am vegetarian and that was honored though I have been for over ten years, others who came in were put on a meal plan with meat to challenge ED thoughts. It is very individual though but know if your vegetarian they will challenge it, and vegan is of course off the table quite literally.
I came in [redacted] and was quickly put on an NG tube, about 1/3 of incoming patients end up on it and the choices are to either eat, accept the tube, or the hospital.
The food overall was good, definitely better for those who are not vegetarian, if you are prepare for a lot of tofu and soy nuggets. The exchange system us pretty good and not as rigid as other one’s I have experienced, they honestly want you to recover at your pace while pushing you to expand your food choices and overcome food rules.
They have levels for the food portion of the program, you start off not plating and with time start plating snacks, some meals, and finally your able to plate everything and have the choice to eat alone. Portions get aggressive as they have an aggressive weight restoration process, it’s hard, but living with an ED is much harder.
Day to Day
You get vitals between 5-6 and get ready from 7-8. Which includes meds and weights. Breakfast follows and you often see your providers after or attend group. To be honest the groups are not the best and not the most helpful compared to other programs but they keep you busy so there is that. You spend most of the day in the day room which had couches, tables, games, we had a puzzle always going. Bring books, knitting/crocheting, and anything they allow to entertain yourself. Morning snack is around 10 while lunch at 12:30. After is what always felt like the food olympics which was a group, afternoon snack, dinner at 5 and evening snack at 8:30. Our group on the unit liked going to bed early so we went to bed once bathrooms were open again after snack, but you could stay up till 10 most days and 11 on Friday and Saturday.
Weekends are much duller so be warned as there are few groups and only inpatient typically see the providers. I will mention outings and passes in the COVID section as it might have changed from when I was there.
Restrictions/Non ED
This place has pretty much standard restrictions that they will provide when admitting. No sharps, no alcohol in products, no blankets or water bottles, limited reading material, and no electronics other than phones allowed for virtual visitation because of COVID. Now I admitted with issues with self harm and suicidal ideation and was able to stay in the facility. They will restrict loops and strip rooms and I was on one to one observation for several weeks total while here. That being said they will do there best to try and keep you on site when in crisis which for me was vital as acute inpatient care is rarely a good or helpful experience. If you have struggles with these types of behaviors this place is a very good setting to keep you safe and also focus on your ED.
COVID (this may be changed if reading at a later date)
So normally at this facility you can be eligible to go on passes outside and even unsupervised, like going to eat somewhere or shopping or just seeing friends or family not at the facility. But because of COVID the only outing when I was there was to a farm every other week. Passes are instead in the facility and typically you order food delivered and eat alone in one of the individual rooms. They also changed their resteraunt outings to innings where the dieticians order food and eat outside with you, typically these are more challenging meals.
When I went they had just started allowing visitors again but only once a week and for 30 minutes outside, six feet apart with masks. They put a lot into getting this limited visitation approved so I always figured it was better than just FaceTime which for the first month was all I even got.
Summary
If you can handle a clinical setting go here. It saved my life and I came in crying over a [redacted] and left eating things I hadn’t in a long time. It does have kind of a bubble effect as everything is very structured and regulated, so please consider taking them up on PHP or IOP after your residential stay. I will gladly answer any questions about this place.
My fair warning
I alluded to being at a different program in my review and while I would never deter any form of treatment, if looking in the NC area this place is superior to Carolina House. Veritas has flaws but CH suffers from what I can only say is gross neglect of patients. I don’t want to bash another program as it does not pertain to a review of Veritas but I had to mention this to post with good conscious.
Do you get to go outside at all since it is in the city?
Hi can I ask what the place you said was bad…CH? Thanks
CH is Carolina house
I am considering going to this location but had a few questions. How are the staff at meal support? What type of groups are offered? Do they practice from a Health At Every Size approach? I am technically a healthy BMI but far below what I weigh normally. Do they treat all patients the same or do they only cater to sicker patients?
I was at the adolescent unit in Durham so I’m not sure if this applies to the adult unit, however I know a lot of the staff came from the adult location and vice versa.
The staff varies quite a bit in their ability to do meal support, but it is generally pretty good. If you are struggling, they will come meal coach you one on one and offer to step outside, get an ice glove, talk through it, etc.
There are a lot of DBT based groups like interpersonal effectiveness, coping ahead, chain analysis, mindfulness, and general DBT groups. They also offer culinary group, art therapy, body acceptance, etc.
Veritas does practice HAES. I know they use growth charts rather than BMI. They set my target weight much higher than a “minimum BMI” because I’ve historically had a higher BMI and lost to a slightly underweight one, so they restored me back to my higher BMI.
They treat patients similarly, obviously with different approaches depending on your diagnosis and symptoms, but with the same amount of care. Many patients were of different sizes and conditions.
I was slightly overweight suffering from Bulimia and I read my chart after discharge to see that they were “not concerned” by my behaviors because my weight was fine.
Also, I’m friend with a former dietician at one of the locations who had some overweight BED patients and they were going to make them drink 50% of a supplement for skipping their veggies or something. She told them to skip the supplement because it was such a ridiculous thing to have them get all those extra calories for a few veggies.
I did not find Veritas to be very “individualized”. It literally wasnt.
I was on the adult unit.
I worked at veritas until 2019. They were not HAES, refused to claim a HAES position. They just started a virtual IOP for binge eating disorder and note that they “educate about HAES” and that is the closest I have seen to a HAES positive position. This was a sticking point for me with the company and was the reason I left.
SH- thank you so much for the detailed review. I hope you don’t mind if I ask a couple of questions. You mentioned electronics…if not for COVID, were electronics not allowed at all? Did you do their PHP? I just wondered if they provide housing or what the program hours are. Is it a community bathroom or do the rooms have bathrooms? Also, are you allowed in your room during the day? Okay, sorry, that turned into a lot, lol. Thank you!
?Full Review?
Been to both Atlanta and Durham (adolescent).
Schedule-
7:00-8:00- AM Hygeine & Vitals
8:00-9:00- Breakfast
9:00-10:30- School (unless it’s wednesday or the weekend, wednesdays have art therapy and weekends have free time)
11:00-11:45- Patio
11:45-12:45- Lunch
1:00-2:00- Group
2:00-3:00- Nap time
3:00-3:30- PM Snack
3:30-5:45- Groups
5:45-7:00- Dinner
7:15-7:45- Phone Time
7:45-8:30- Homework/computer time
8:30-9:00- HS Snack
9:00-10:00- PM Hygeine
10:00- Lights out
Types of groups- Body image, Culinary, Yoga, DBT, Processing group, Outdoor rec, Dietetic ed, Med ed, Movement therapy, Exercise ed, Craft time, Multifamily DBT
Do they supplement?- Yes. If you complete less than half you get 16oz of boost plus, 8oz for if you complete less than half. Refusal of the supplements will eventually lead to a tube
Phone/electronic rules- No personal smart phones or devices allowed. There’s unit computers, but theres a lot of restrictions on what you can do and are usually used for school. Flip phones are allowed though, during designated phone time.
Is there levels?- Theres plating levels and privalege levels. Plating levels you slowly level up, privalege levels vary per day based on how “compliant” you are. For plating levels:Blue 1 everything is served to you. Blue 2 you plate snacks. Yellow you plate snacks and breakfast. Green 1 you plate everything. Green 2 you plate everything AND get to sit at your own table without staff. The privalege levels are based on a points system which i found stupid honestly. You can use points to buy stress toys and coloring books from the points store, and the points you earned the day before decide your privalege level for the day. The only difference in privalege levels is really just phone time. Platinum you get 30 minutes, gold you get 20 minutes, and silver you get 10 minutes. If you’re at the Durham facility, 7 days in a row of platinum will get you “alone time” which means you can go in the music room, library, or game room alone without any other patients or a staff member there. Atlanta did not have alone time though.
How long is the average stay?- Really depends. Usually 30-90 days though. I was there for about 40.
Are the staff nice?- This one really depends too. Some of the staff were really amazing and wonderful and made my stay worth it. Some of them were absolutely awful and rude. You just kinda had to guess what you were gonna get each shift. The staff would be my biggest critique of Veritas. They needed to hold them more accountable for inappropriate or rude comments.
What’s the food like?- Typical treatment center food. Kinda like school lunch. If you don’t like school lunch, do not expect to like the food here. They say it has gourmet chefs on their website but the food is… average.
Do they allow vegetarianism?- Yes, but only if they know it’s not eating disorder related. They let me be one purely because I have been one my whole life, and there was another patient there who was vegetarian in Atlanta because they had been one for years.
Veganism?- Yeah no. I don’t really think any treatment center allows this.
Would you recommend this place?- It wasn’t great; but yeah I would recommend it. It’s not really *travel accross the country* worth it. But it’s worth it if convinient for you to go.
Any other comments?- If you go here, please do not be afraid to advocate for yourself. You may find yourself with a better experience if you talk to your treatment team about any concerns you have or any privalges you feel you should earn. This can only go so far, but it helps a lot to advocate for yourself.
?Full Review?
Veritas Collaborative in Raleigh, NC for Adolescents has many ups and downs.
The inpatient and residential patients are together and results in a rather large patient capacity (around 20 or so patients) although the facility is rather large. There is a separate unit for much younger adolescents, less than 13 years old. You work off an exchange program, and the food is actually wonderful, prepared daily by qualified chefs. The meals are cycled but have several weeks (about 6) between rotations. Snacks are always customizable besides challenge snacks and dessert snacks which are once and twice a week. Food is themed per day, for example there is a hot and cold cereal day, a sandwich lunch, pizza every Friday night, and breakfast breads for one morning a week. Food is portioned for you initially and you gradually work up to plating your own food WITH the following of your exchanges.
Care is typically quite long if you have to restore weight. They prefer you to leave at 100% of EBW/IBW and the gain is about 1-3 pounds a week depending on how big your meal plan is, your starting weight and goal weight. Weights are blind and conducted either every morning for inpatient or every other day as residential. Most patients stay 3 months on inpatient and residential levels combined, and another 1-2 months for PHP, however I was in RES/IP for five months and PHP for 1. They DO drop tubes if you do not complete meals and snacks, you are medically unstable, or you need to speed the weight gain process and cannot handle the volume of food. You see your therapist and dietitian once a week and doctor depending on your level of care. Most staff is pretty good except for several uneducated therapeutic assistants, to which several violations of privacy have occurred.
Once residential you have a lot more freedom, passes typically every weekend and on days where your family can accommodate. Family therapy is highly emphasized and used, including Saturdays being devoted to family DBT and lunch/ snacks with family. Veritas is restrictive non materials allowed within the facility, including no leggings or moderately tight clothing, no pens (except safety pens which is only the ink cartridge), no electronics (except minute to minute phones), etc. Fresh air is only if you are medically stable and cleared for access.
Groups occupy most of the day but are extremely repetitive as they focus around DBT almost solely. Movement is granted once you are almost completely weight restored and even then it is only yoga once or twice a week and a dance group on Friday.
The facility itself is clean, organized and bright. No complains there. The MAJOR issue with this facility is the length of stay. They are certainly money hungry and will keep patients as long as possible. Hence, full weight restoration which almost never goes well with discharge unless you have a great dietician. Patients are also very quick to take to gossip and spreading drama which is not handled well with the staff.
The facility is beautiful and the idea behind the program is ideal, but beware of getting too comfortable there.
Any recent reviews for the inpatient adult unit in Durham?
Is there any updated info on the Georgia location?
Does anyone have a recent (this year) review for the Durham location inpatient for an older adult? I (43F) am looking perhaps to go here but would like to get a feel for the demographic in the milleu. Also are the rooms for one person? or do you have a roommate?
I will likely be inpatient as in need of reefeding while being kept medically stable. Any feedback would be appreciated!
Inpatient and resi are in the same place there are 2 single rooms normally used for males in my experience. i was there for 8 months about two and 1/2 years ago but i dont think much has changed
I see that there is a review on here for residential. But does anybody have one for inpatient recently?
Does anyone have a recent review of the inpatient in Durham?
I am not going to do the whole template…but its really a good program…There are a lot of freedoms and you have to be very self-motivated, but the staff truly cares.
I’m also interested in a recent review for Durham Inpatient program as I am thinking of going there. As an older adult, (43F) I would like to know of the adult side of things mainly. And one important question is if you get your own room or if rooms are shared.
This is a review of the Durham RTP location.
I am writing this as a 17 – almost 18-year-old patient who was sent here from a residential facility.
I would not recommend this facility for anyone who genuinely wants to recover. It is so easy to get away with behaviors here, I have continuously watched it happen, and they will just let it happen. They do not take things as seriously as they should be taken. I am writing this as someone who would not normally write a review, but this place has genuinely just left me with more problems than I came in with.
There is not one productive group AT ALL, and I would not recommend sending your child here.
Sorry if this has been asked already, but if it has, I can’t find anything. Has anyone been to adult IP/res in Durham since they combined the two units again? I’m just wondering how it’s set up now, how many patients, etc. (admissions people seem to know very little about the specific locations)
Are you still needing an answer to this?
I would !
no they don’t combine. i was there in 2024 and inpatient and residential are two different locations
IP and res were separate then, but they are together now. My friend was there a few weeks ago.
Georgia location
• When were you there?
early May to mid-June 2025
• What level(s) of care did you do (e.g., inpatient, residential, PHP, IOP)?
Residential (I was IP @ Johns Hopkins for three months and transferred to TEP)
• If applicable: Is it wheelchair accessible?
Yes! Depending on your vitals, you may be wheelchair bound when going to and from the unit. There isn’t a designated person to wheel you around; usually good staff will do it. Sometimes patients would wheel wheelchair-bound patients around, even though the staff should be doing it.
• How many patients are there on average?
13 beds per unit (4 units; Sycamore for younger kids, Woodruff for teens, Morningside and Fernbank for adults).
• What genders does it treat?
All
• If applicable: Do they support the gender identities of transgender and nonbinary people?
Yes. One trans-femme person used the same bathroom as the rest of the females.
• How often do you see a medical doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist (therapist), nutritionist, nurse, etc?
Doctor 1x week, psychiatrist 1-2x per week, therapist 1-3x per week [originally my therapist saw me once a week and I told them I wanted to see them twice because I felt I was making no mental progress (more on that later). You can see them up to 3x per week, but with less time. Ex. One 90 min session, two 45 min sessions, or three 30 min sessions], dietician 2x per week. My whole team was absolutely amazing, and unfortunately there are also bad therapists. My therapist challenged my rigid thinking, my dietician reassured me that my extreme hunger and overshoot/“recovery body” was normal and part of the process and allowed ranges for my snacks depending on how hunger I was, and psychiatrist highly encouraged me to work on my other values away from appearance and size.
• What is the staff-to-patient ratio?
Usually two BHCs and one nurse on each unit.
• What were meals like?
I was at Morningside, where the daily schedule was structured as follows: breakfast at 8:45 AM, morning snack at 11:15 AM, lunch at 1:30 PM, afternoon snack at 4:30 PM, dinner at 6:45 PM, and evening snack at 9:15 PM.
Meal times were generally manageable, though there was often an additional 10–20 minute wait after the designated 30–35 minute eating period. Upon entering the cafeteria, each unit waits at one of two assigned tables. Fernbank patients are usually already eating when others arrive. Whether or not a patient plates their own meal depends on their assigned meal level (Blue 1, Blue 2, Yellow, or Green).
In some cases, staff struggled with timely execution of meal procedures, particularly when it came to dividing portions or managing supplements. It’s worth speaking with your psychiatrist about getting permission to bring a quiet activity—such as a journal, Sudoku, word searches, or crosswords—to help pass the time. The post-meal waiting period, often spent idly while BHCs pour supplements and calculate meal completion, can be frustrating.
Overall, the most challenging aspect of the experience was the amount of unstructured downtime. While some staff members were highly competent and efficient, others appeared less consistent in their responsibilities.
• Did they supplement? How did that system work?
It was 50% or 0% completion, and you had the choice between Ensurw, Boost, or Boost Breeze (usually more volume). You needed an order for 0%, 25%, 50%, or 75% completion (4 oz, 8 oz, 12 oz, or 16 oz depending on completion).
• What is the policy of not complying with meals?
You have 15 minutes with supplement after each meal/snack, and they will tube for non-compliance after many attempts to restrict.
• Are you able to eat vegetarian? Vegan?
Yes — both. There is usually a vegetarian option at each meal.
• What privileges are allowed?
The adult unit was allowed their smartphones for an two hours every night and you could also use them on hour-long outings on Sundays (you can go to Barnes and Noble, the mall, Target, etc). On Thursdays, you get classroom time during the day, and during every evening you get the option to go to the classroom to work on your laptop, if you brought one, or one of the many computers in the classroom.
• Does it work on a level system?
Yes! This includes plating privileges, body movement levels, and bathroom check levels.
Plating:
Blue 1 – all meals are plated for you.
Blue 2 – can plate snacks only
Yellow – can plate and portion breakfast, snacks, and receive a plated dinner portioned by kitchen staff.
Yellow – can plate and portion breakfast, snacks, and lunches, and receive a plated dinner portioned by kitchen staff.
Body movement:
Level 1 – no outings or yoga
Level 2 – outings and yoga
Level 3 – BM 2 & outdoor rec
Bathroom:
Level 1 – flush checks
Level 2 & 3: flush without checks
[note: after meals, emergency bathroom break lasts for about an hour. You need to count or sing while using the restroom (to prevent behaviors). For snacks, it’s thirty minutes]
• How do you earn privileges?
No behaviors
• What sort of groups do they have?
Patio daily for 30 min 2x per week day and 1x each day on the weekend. There’s phone time one hour before dinner and one hour after.
Mon: meal planning, yoga, DBT, goal setting
Tues: discharge planning, psychoeducation, art therapy, thought record
Wed: CBT, yoga, DBT, art process
Thurs: outdoor rec (common room time if no one is BM level 3), CBT, restaurant inning (for lunch if applicable and there is one), structured discussion, community meeting
Fri: music group, body acceptance, nutrition education, weekend planning
Sat: art group, health education, unit cleaning, chain analysis
Sun: WRAP, outing, thought record
• What was your favorite group?
Meal planning (if Blue, Blue 2, and Yellow) & structured discussion. Some times there is downtime where we can watch TV.
• What did you like the most?
My team was phenomenal, as mentioned above. The meals weren’t terrible and there were always choices for vegetarians and they also have vegan diets.
• What did you like the least?
Idling after meals & downtime, limited snack options imo
• Would you recommend this program?
I would probably recommend Center of Discovery over TEP, but if you need something near Georgia or not far away, this is a solid place. I’m grateful for some of the good BHCs and I loved my providers. 🙂
• Do you get to know your weight?
No. They won’t tell you trends either.
• What was the average length of stay?
Varies on the person. Since I was already restored coming in, I stayed for 6-8 weeks. Some people stay for months.
• What was the average age range?
For Morningside, 18-30s on the unit.
• What is the electronics policy (e.g., cell phones, iPods, Kindles, laptops, tablets)?
Only allowed during classroom and phone time in the evenings. You can have an old Kindle if cleared. No Switches or gaming consoles are allowed during phone time — only headphones and your phone.
• For inpatient/residential: Are you able to go on outings/passes?
if on inpatient, no. If on residential, yes, if you’re BM 2 or above.
Has anyone been to the Durham residential location recently and would be willing to do a review or answer some questions?
Does anyone have any updated reviews for the program now that it is called the Emily Program?
I have ARFID due to IBS pain and looking to admit to residential in Durham ***. I am terrified because of all the restrictions, having a roommate, etc and wondering about others experience recently, especially those with ARFID but open to other responses too. I do eat and want to gain weight so there’s the main difference between most patients I would feel like. I already have a hard time sleeping and not being able to have my phone and a charger or a noise machine, fan, at night is hard to grasp. I understand not having phone during programming or meals. I am also going through medication changes for mental health which may affect my GI tract even more which could affect appetite or cause me to lose more weight. They say they can manage this but can they? I have anxiety/OCD and some depression as well which I’ve been working on in therapy outpatient.
• When were you there? Fall of 2024
• What level(s) of care did you do (e.g., inpatient, residential, PHP, IOP)? inpatient/residential
• If applicable: Is it wheelchair accessible? yes
• How many patients are there on average? 13 is max in adult units.
• What genders does it treat? All
• If applicable: Do they support the gender identities of transgender and nonbinary people? yes
• How often do you see a medical doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist (therapist), nutritionist, nurse, etc?Depends if res (med doc- 1x weekly, psych provider x 1 weekly, dietician 1-2X weekly, therapist- 90 minutes a week) or inpatient (med doc-~3 weekly, psych~2 x weekly, dietician- 2 x weekly, therapist-90 minutes weekly
• What is the staff-to-patient ratio? 6 patients and under only 1, over 6 there are supposed to be 2 TAs.
• What sort of therapies are used (e.g., DBT, CBT, EMDR, ACT, exposure therapy, somatic experiencing, etc.)? DBT/CBT
• Describe the average day:
• What were meals like? Cafeteria quality, will always be cold and will need to be heated by staff)
• What sorts of food were available or served? pretty good variety, 4 week rotation for lunch/dinner, weekly rotation for breakfast
• Did they supplement? How did that system work? yes- couple of different methods, some were on quadrants, I was not as lucky. During refeeding, 4 ozs for 50% or more, 8 ozs for 50% or less. Regular was 8 ozs for 50% or more and 16 ozs for 50% or less.
• What is the policy of not complying with meals? supplement, but not shamed
• Are you able to eat vegetarian? Vegan? yes from my understanding
• What privileges are allowed? Privileges with residential and also determined by individual teams
• Does it work on a level system? kind of- depending on res or inpatient
• How do you earn privileges? Get out of inpatient (also means off the tube) and meal completion for 24 hours for outings
• What sort of groups do they have? cbt/dbt/body acceptance/community/art therapy/”music therapy”What was your favorite group? Probably body acceptance because it was led by an actual therapist and not a TA.
• If applicable: Is the program trauma-informed? I know many patients were upset that they did not deal with trauma issues, mine were not addressed.
• What did you like the most? augh, I am not sure. I don’t think I really liked any of it. I did like some of the TAs and nurses. Not a good thing- but I also liked that many of the “groups” were not actually groups but a worksheet to complete (thought records, weekend planning) that were not required to complete. I realize you get out of treatment what you put into it, but by the time I had received a thought record for the double-digit time and knew it was never referenced in any of my sessions, I stopped caring.
• What did you like the least? Art therapy. They call it therapy but there is absolutely no therapy involved.
• Would you recommend this program? This program did help me to weight restore and got my vitals on track. But the focus is truly on stabilization and does not really get into the therapy needed for long term recovery.
• What level of activity or exercise was allowed? Level 1- you basically did nothing but groups. Level 2- you can attend weekend outings (If food compliant), Level 3- there was only 1 person I know who had level 3 and she didn’t get to do “rec” because it was just her.
• What did people do on weekends? A whole lot of nothing- crosswords, puzzles, reading, sleeping. Make sure you bring stuff to keep you occupied.
• Do you get to know your weight? Nope
• If applicable: How fast is the weight gain process? I gained ** pounds but it was definitely not steady with feeding tubes and such. I would say 2-3 pounds a week, maybe faster if being tubed.
• What was the average length of stay? I saw everything from 4 weeks to 4-5 months.
• What was the average age range? Adults were mainly those in there 20s, there were a couple of older ones in their 30s and a couple in their 40s on our unit. Definitely represented a college student/young professional maturity vibe.
• How do visits/phone calls work? Visitation every weekend. Phone time daily
• What is the electronics policy (e.g., cell phones, iPods, Kindles, laptops, tablets)? Two phones times daily for a total of about 3 hours.
• For inpatient/residential: Are you able to go on outings/passes? Yes, once off inpatient
• For PHP/IOP: What support do they provide outside of programming hours? ???
• What kind of aftercare do they provide? Do they help you set up an outpatient treatment team? I already had outpatient team set up
• Are there any resources for people who come from out of state/country? not really
• If applicable: How is the program responding to COVID? (Less patients, virtual programming, no visitors, masks, social distancing, etc) outdated
• Other?
Hi! I was wondering if anyone could answer this question: If we can’t have pockets/hood on our sweatshirt, does this mean no pockets on sweatpants/leggings?
No you can have pockets in your sweatpants and leggings if I am remembering correctly. (Make it make sense lol)
Yea, they were fine with that. Just no hoodies or sweatshirts with pockets.
I am planning on admitting to the Durham location (IP) next week. Are there restrictions on clothing you can bring (i.e. hoods, drawstrings, etc)? Are you allowed to bring stuffed animals and blankets?
Someone else might be able to answer this better than I can since I was there a year ago when the units were still combined however I will do my best. I was on IP and they took away any clothes that had logos of food companies or movement companies. (My trader joes shirt and climbing sweatshirt). We could not have hoods and they literally took the hood off my winter jacket in order for me to have it. I can’t remember about shoe laces (I think we could have them). Yes to stuffed animals and you can also order or bring (STRONGLY RECOMMEND) your own blankets and pilliow.
Location: Durham
In Durham, some of the BHT’s are very rude and shamed me for coming back. They made me feel bad for getting help and always said things like “what are you gonna do just come back again?”. They called me dramatic and made me feel like a bad person. I loved my team but the people i interacted with the most made me feel awful and like i wanted to hide. i hope to never go back to treatment but if i did i would not go back there because of the way i was treated. i do think it’s a good program but even the leadership is condescending and rude. when i asked for a new therapist the clinical director told me i should just leave, especially since i had been there before. it is not uncommon to go to treatment multiple times and i don’t believe that anyone should be shamed for how many times they have been in treatment. I had a good experience there the first time but not this time and i regret going.
I’m so sorry for your experience.. ? If you don’t mind –
Did you get to plan your own meals or was it a standard plate by plate approach? Was water limited for everyone? And how much coffee was allowed / could you have coffee before breakfast?
Thanks ❤️
yes you get to plan your meals when you get there until you move up to yellow/green. you get 8-16 oz of water at snacks and 16oz of water at meals and you can always get 4oz extra but that’s it. you only get coffee during breakfast. 🙂
what about outside of meals? thanks!
no just at bfast
sorry – i meant water!
at durham did they do strip searches? or body checks at all?
I am getting mixed results about whether or not Veritas/TEP locations accommodate vegans. Can anyone speak to if they do as of recent in North Carolina or Ohio?
they do in north carolina
June-September 2024
IP/res, php (adult)
yes
25 beds max
all genders
yes
Medical Doctor 1x week, (IP everyday) Psych 2x week Dietician 2x week therapist 2x a week
DBT, CBT, ACT, some exposures depending on your goals
Describe the average day:
typical 3 meals and 3 snacks
Im vegan, so i got a lot of veggie burgers, toast, oatmeal, pb sandwiches, tofu, veggies, vegan cheese, soy nuggets, pasta, salad, tofurky, etc
Boost, Boost breeze, or kate farms. (i got kate farms due to veganism) less than 50% completion 16 oz supplement, more than 50% 8 oz supplement, for snacks it’s 8oz supplement regardless on how much you completed
If you don’t comply and refuse to eat at all you would get sent to ip and get tubed or be discharged, or if you don’t complete 100% for a pass then you lose the pass
Thank you for this- a few follow ups:
• weights start at 6:30, vitals/meds/hygiene 7-8:30
• yes, bring blankets and hoodies
• patio time everyday for 45 minutes
• yes, one cup of caffeinated coffee per day, and decaf tea is available for every snack
At the inpatient level, Were you allowed to have coffee before breakfast? And at the Veritas inpatient locations can you be vegan?
Thank you for your quick reply! So you were there since the change?
What does the phone policy look like now that it is the Emily Program?
Are you water restricted or allowed to ask for gatorade/electrolytes if you want them?
How does meal planning work? Thank you❤️❤️
Could you please comment on the following (BTW your responses are invaluable- thank you so much)
Cat- thank you so much for your review and answering questions! I might be going soon to Durham inpatient. IP and res are in separate locations, right? What kind of environment/setting is IP in? Just trying to picture it. Thank you!
I am also wondering if IP and Res are in separate locations or combined and what the primary differences are! Thank you… and about rooms, is there designated room time and what meal plan structure do they use? (Plate by plate or exchange/tally based)
Hey sorry for the late reply! Yes, IP and res are two separate buildings. The buildings are similar and it’s a locked unit for both. It’s kinda sterile but they try to make it look as not hospital like as possible. They use an exchange based meal plan. If you have any more questions pls let me know
Hello! I am potentially admitting to the Atlanta GA adult inpatient/res location next week. I have some questions. If you are an adult and you have been there recently, can you please email me at peanutbutter45654@gmail.com
Thank you!
Hi, is anyone currently on the IP unit at their RTP location? Just trying to get a sense of what I might be walking into vibes-wise haha
This is such a valid question! I haven’t ever been but I wish more people realized that a huge part of your experience in a facility is the community. Obviously you have no control over that, and you can start with a good group and end with a dud, or vice versa, but it truly can shape an experience. Even a crummy facility with a great milieu can do wonders. I hope you have a positive group!
Do they have an inpatient for adults? thanks!
They do! In Durham, NC. It’s on their website. It’s very nice, very clean, but FREEZING COLD 24/7, and very… sterile.
What are the current cell phone policies here? Thx!
as someone with experience with other eating disorders facilities, this is the worst treatment i’ve ever received.
the staff here is completely ignorant, authoritative, and undereducated.
over the weekend two people were outside having panic attacks in the hallway, crying and frantic. instead of the TAs being supportive in a time of such distress, they just completely walked past us, not even acknowledging our existence. the next day, a similar event happened, but instead the TA just authoritatively told me i need to get inside the group room, never asking what was wrong or how they could support this time of distress.
the uneducated staff makes remarks mocking clients of privileges we are unable to have in a time of suffering. saying “how cold they are and how they are going to grab their coat and blanket” as we are unable to have either. i’m from the midwest and traveled down to georgia for the treatment needed. yet i was dressed as if i was going skiing, wearing 2-3 layers.
as i could go on and on, i have never felt something so inhumane. entering atlanta as someone who needed medical stability and emotional comfort, this place only saw me as a case number. this place is a buisness, and it shows.
I, too saw things like this happen while I was there. Unfortunately, as patients, our concerns would often go unaddressed/unresolved, and we were often gaslit to believe we were in the wrong.
I truly believe that Veritas (now The Emily Program) is best for individuals who struggle only with AN-R, and maybe co-occurring depression. Other than that, their staff has absolutely zero idea how to treat anyone else.
(Also, I wore my blanket around 24/7 because the facility was kept so unbelievably cold at all times. My mother called to complain almost daily, and staff could not have cared less. I wasn’t the only one making a stink about it, either.)
I’m sorry you, and others have experienced this, and I hope you are in a better, or at least, much more neutral place. ??
has anyone done the inpatient program recently and could answer some questions? 🙂
I have experience from January through March 2022, but from my understanding, a lot of my information is still the same. Happy to help, please don’t hesitate to ask. Rooting for you, friend.
will they let you do just ip then leave? or do they give a lot of pushback
They pushed for everyone to complete every level of care. They will support you transitioning to a different program, but as far as leaving before you finish a level successfully, you’ll be leaving AMA no matter what. (I did.)
Just a note because I don’t see it. Veritas is there but no longer Veritas it is just The Emily Program now.
Do they accept people in their 30’s? Based on the reviews, it sounds like Veritas is only for people in their teens and 20’s. Also, how are they with SH, SI, Complex PTSD, Autism, and non Ed related chronic health issues (I have a serious autoimmune disorder and a serious neurological disorder that is similar to MS) and I struggle with chronic pain and mobility issues as well
They accept all adults 18+. Sometimes the population will skew younger or older based on who is there but they won’t deny you based on age! I have found that a lot of places tend to have more people in their 20s than any other age group as the majority but don’t let that stop you from seeking help. in my various stays at various places i have found that regardless of age there are always always people who can relate and support you because outside of anything you have something in common and are going through a shared experience.
Their Atlanta location only goes up until age 24, but their North Carolina location takes all ages.
Do you know how good they are with SH, SI, PTSD, and Autism?
Elizabeth have you looked into a regular mental health facility that can also work with EDs? It sounds like you have a lot of comorbidities that need equal attention. I know that Pathlight in WA specializes in most of these, and works closely with their ERC Partner facility. I’m autistic and have a lot of mental health comorbidities, and ERCWA really helped me in 2016.
Thank you! I’ll call them!
Unfortunately, I’ve been having lots of difficult finding mental health facilities that are willing to work with a significant active ED, but I’ll try them, thanks!
can you tell me more aboyt program
I’d suggest calling Veritas to ask about your specific situation and needs. Only the treatment program can tell you whether they have medical care for your health conditions and how they handle co-occurring mental health conditions. You might need to have an admissions intake to see if the program is a good fit.
Has anyone ever had veritas do a SCA?
currently in the process of investigating this, I talked to them on the phone today and they’re calling my insurance case manager to see what needs to happen on both sides for an SCA? so it seems they’re willing to at least investigate it.
how long did y’all stay in the inpatient setting?
Read the posted reviews. Multiple people have answered this question. It is a different amount of time for each person, so to get the best answer, you’d need to call Veritas and do an intake assessment.
Hey, I’m trying to decide between Monte Nino Vista (California) or Veritas Collective (North Carolina).
I did my intake call already but just wanted some honest answers. Thanks!
is the 30 day quote accurate? or do they keep you there longer? what if you decide you want to leave earlier?
how do they determine you are ok to leave?
do they let you eat vegan or is it only vegetarian?
how often can you go outside or exercise?
is the therapy actually good?
can you have a phone or laptop?
what if you don’t complete meal?
I know this place is well known but I want to make sure it is actually good before I commit to going. Thank you!!
Are you allowed to have ur phone whenever (adult unit)
If you look at the recent reviews they answer this (and many of the other questions you have!). Or just do a keyword search in the comments on this Veritas page for RileyyJ, he’s answered almost all of the questions you’ve asked before (aside from the current waitlist, of course). ?
do they allow caffeinated coffee?
Does anybody know what the current waitlist looks like for Veritas adult inpatient in Durham?
i’m trying to figure it out too
Call Veritas.
Anybody know what the waitlist is like for Veritas adult inpatient in Durham?
Does anyone happen to know the current wait time for durham adolescent ip or res?
*TW*
Can u request a tube
So I just had a strange experience with the admissions coordinator and intake counselor with Veritas, Durham. I thought I would share just so that people like me who are self-referring might get an idea of what that process is like, also because it seemed kind of atypical to me as someone who has been through this before…
Full disclosure- I have been through IP/residential before and at this point in my life am not looking for the whole “residential experience.” I know I need some more help managing behaviors and restoring my health but I do not need a lot of groups, or time with peers, or the environment that is residential ED treatment. I am looking for a shorted-term stabilization.
What I found odd was that when I said this to the person doing my intake she said she could only recommend residential because “IP is only for people with tubes.” Furthermore, when I followed up with the admissions counselor she said that they would clear me for residential OVER ZOOM with a medical doctor, they do not ask for labs, EKG, etc to be reviewed before giving you an admissions date. What I found odd about both of these things is that it seems very strange if not slightly negligent to assess someone’s medical stability over Zoom, and also not require medical tests to assess level of care. Someone can be in need of IP without meeting the single criterion of having a feeding tube. How could they determine if someone is medically ready for res without actually having medical information first?
I don’t know, it was just very odd, and seemed like a way to more quickly get me to commit to an admission without really assessing my health, first. I do think for people who have a hard time getting access to tests and lab work not requiring that for an admission could be beneficial but it just struck me as odd considering literally every other place i’ve been to or contacted requires these things before moving forward.
This is SO odd! I had to send them so many tests, my head almost spun around. I also had to physically see my PCP, nothing was done via Zoom, whatsoever. And also, IP was absolutely NOT only for people who needed NG tubes. I didn’t have one for the first month I was there, and there were many patients who never received.
yeah it was very very weird. kind of triggering tbh like…i’m so “healthy” i don’t even have to bother! it also seems pretty negligent on their end and a bit like, rushing to get an admission? needless to say i’m going to keep looking. i really want to thank you for your feedback, too. you have really provided a lot of great insight and i know it’s hard but i really appreciate your comments/perspective.
Thank you, Emme!
I will say, don’t completely discount Veritas. Although my experience was less than stellar, they really did tailor a protocol specifically to my personal needs.
I didn’t have to attend any groups, and I was able to rest in my room for the entire day(s). I was certainly welcome to attend any group(s) I like, and that option was really nice.
Also, they now house IP, and Res separately, which I assume has done a world of good!
Wishing you luck with wherever you choose. I’m here if you have any Q’s! (And more than willing to provide answers privately.)
thank you so much Rileyy- separating the two definitely sounds a lot better, a large milieu is always kind of a disaster imo. i really appreciate your help!
You’re very welcome! 🙂 Here for you all of you guys <3
hi can i e-mail u with some questions?
It’s always nice if you can post your questions so future people can benefit from the response. The whole point of the site is for us to all share information. Please consider posting openly here!
do they separate adult ip from adolescent ip
They are separate, yep.
*TW* can you request a tube bc i probably need IP
RileyyJ has answered this question (and many others) in the past. If you search the page, you will find the answer.
Thank you Anonymous! Cat can you please make sure you only post questions that haven’t been answered already? It’s best too if you can combine your questions into one post rather than posting each question individually. If you take a look at the sidebar of recent comments you can see how much everyone else’s posts get buried when one person makes a new post for each question while everyone else puts all of the questions they have into one post.
Have you called Veritas yet to set up your admissions call? I think the longer you put it off the more anxious you will get! And questions like waitlist are ones they can answer most accurately.
what’s the intake call like? if u don’t think it’s a right fit can u decline at the end
Yep you absolutely can! It’s YOUR treatment, not anyone else’s. Intake calls in general never obligate you to go to the treatment center afterwards. That would be very illegal, to the point you could sue them.
okay thank god
it’s pretty standard- onset/brief history of symptoms, current presentation, drug/alcohol use, previous tx history if applicable, current ht/wt. it took 30 minutes, including her going over insurance info. then they am off you’re interested in continuing to work on getting admitted and go over the next steps.
i was just a little concerned about the fact that they were ready to go ahead with just a virtual doctors visit, without requiring any labs or vitals in order to make a decision about why LOC was appropriate…like she said “inpatient is reserved for people with tubes, that’s it.” and told me that because i do not have a tube i would be placed in residential.
i mentioned that i’m looking for a shorter term option, with stabilization/symptom interruption as my main goal right now and she said that IP wasn’t an option unless i had a tube, regardless of anything else. and then she said “we could always ‘bump you up’ to inpatient if your vitals were unstable.” which i thought was really weird verbiage and also why not just get my health info beforehand? idk.
just a weird experience in general, for me.
*TW*
i’m not motivated to recover at all so would they still bribe me to go even if i’m not motivated
*TW*
can you request a tube? like i feel like i would need one if i went
You’ve asked this multiple times…call Veritas and ask them.
Thank you K. ❤️
You’re welcome. It’d be great if people who have multiple questions about a program could ask all of the questions in one post…much easier for community members who have been to the program to provide helpful feedback.
I agree, that ideally someone would search to see if they can find the answer to their question before posting it repeatedly and clogging up the page. There are excellent current Veritas reviews already that community members have put a lot of time and energy into providing help to people seeking treatment.
At a certain point, you’ve got to pick up the phone and contact the center yourself…
this is a silly q but does anyone know the smoking/vaping policy at the NC adult IP?
Was there Dec 23-Jan 24 and they didn’t allow any smoking or vaping
May I have an updated full review on the new separated (I believe this happened only a month ago in mid March) adult inpatient program please? Thank you very much!
**TW**
Will they discharge patients home with a tube? I need an ng placed but due to a medical condition will not be able to get enough oral intake
Hi Rose,
I don’t believe they will, unfortunately. They only place tubes when you are in the Inpatient level of care, and they typically won’t discharge a patient from IP. I certainly can’t say 100%, I just know from my experience, that was not an option. (Unless you discharge AMA, and then, I don’t know if they’d remove the tube before you left),
I’m sorry I can’t be more helpful.
I’m here for any other Q’s.
XO, Riley
Thank you! That’s good to know, [*TW*] I don’t want to have to stay in res or inpatient until [I no longer need the tube*] [*END TW*], I’ll do my intake assessment with Veritas but I’ll look for other places in the mean time!
*admin note: number redacted per site policy
What are some examples of food/meals that are served? Please be as detailed as you can.
Res meals preferred, but all answers are helpful.
I have a bunch of documents with meal, plan information, however, they do not let their patients leave the program with the weekly meal rotation menu, or the list of readily available daily food options. According to them, it is proprietary information I can send you what I have. Unfortunately, I can’t remember everything that was offered, however, I can, based on what I was given, figure it all out if you’d like.
My email is ryanjmonaco@gmail.com 🙂
Feel free to reach out anytime and I will answer you.
does anyone have any thoughts on the adult residential Atlanta (Dunwoody, GA) program vs the Monte Nido (Sandy Springs, GA) program?
how about the PHP/IOP vs the monte nido/walden behavioral care Alpharetta, GA program?
any info is appreciated:)
Has anyone been to the Atlanta (Dunwoody) location somewhat recently? I’m interested in getting some thoughts about the facility. I’d be going to adult residential (Morningside: 18-24 years old)! Tysm in advance ?
I have was there from march to June of 2023 on the morningside unit
it is an ok program not the best I’ve been to but ok. I felt that most of the staff weren’t properly educated I also felt like they didn’t support me enough in some areas
when you said didn’t support well in some areas, do you mean like eating/behavior-wise or therapy-wise? or all of the above ig?
also i’ve seen some comments/reviews talk ab a punishment-style system, too – do you have any feedback on that?
just a lil nervy/anxious bc idk anyone whose gone to any Veritas programs (last experience was w/ ERC & it was relatively good overall/for the most part)! ty for your response, Fighter!!
oh also! do they have IP and res together? or separated by floor/something?
They didn’t support well in both areas the therapist were not well trained
I did not find th to be to punitive it took a lot to get put on hallway rest and they were not quick to tube me but that was my experience i also went pretty much weight restored
ip and res are together
the staff was nice but I felt like a lot of them were uneducated
there were a few who were really good and I liked my psychiatrist
Hey!
How does veritas treat co-occurring disorders?
Like BPD and depression?
do they treat them at all?
I’ve heard they’re good with BPD, but I don’t know firsthand
*TW*
Hey i had a question about the NG tubes,
do they do poles or backpacks for feedings?
Poles
Hi! I just wanted to post to let everyone know that at the NC adult location they separated IP from Res and the IP adult clients are in the Child/ adolescent building, completely separate from the child/ adolescent program. Which is also where their OP (PHP, IOP, and OP) is also for all ages (now triangle outpatient).
This is GREAT news, thank you for sharing!! Sounds like they took the feedback from patients on how difficult it was having IP/RES combined and actually did something about it.
Does anyone have updated information about how the new ip unit operates? Also what happens when you step down to res
Hey! Im currently hospitalized, they’re looking to refer me somewhere asap. We’re interested in veritas because it’s the only adolescent facility that seems to allow technology. Would I go straight in, or is there still a wait list regardless of a hospital referral? I need placed asap, they’ve already held me an additional 3 days despite me being medically stable. [*TW*] They won’t release me due to my low weight, and significant weight loss in a short period of time. [*END TW*] Are there any other adolescent facility’s that allow personal phones? Also, is there a possibility that I could be taken out of veritas once at a minimum bmi and transferred to an IOP in my own state? I’m completely dedicated to recovery, and even started on my own, [*TW*] but was placed in a hospital due to major cardiac complications after attempting to receive blood work for a nutritionist. [*END TW*]
Generally speaking ED units that are in hospitals will be able to “transfer” you from where you currently are to their unit by doing a doctor-to-doctor admission, so that rather than having you/your parents go through the full admissions process and then going on the waitlist you will simply be able to admit to the program as soon as there is an available bed. Usually this type of admission can only be arranged as long as you are still in the hospital and this still a current patient of the doctor, so it may actually be to your benefit that you’ve had to stay longer!
My assumption would be that Veritas will do this, because they are technically a hospital, and because they provide medical stabilization Make sure your doctors contact the numbers here at this link if they haven’t yet, not just the main numbers on the site: https://veritascollaborative.com/for-professionals/refer-a-patient/
As far as adolescent programs that allow electronics, we have a community member who runs a fantastic nonprofit organization that helps young people and their families find programs that fit their needs, so I bet they would be able to give you a list! Email Esti at esti@ayeleth.org and tell her Rachel from EDTR sent you, and she’ll get right back to you.
I think walden allows phones, correct me if I’m wrong
Can someone explain the new separate inpatient unit? Urgent as this is my only option! Does it have the same rules as res re having your phone? Terrified it’s become like the erc itu
Have you been in ERC Denver IP recently? I’d be interested in any feedback on their current program.
I am admitting to Veritas IP in Durham on 1-2 weeks. Is there an updated schedule? Packing list ? Are there any single rooms ? Electronics allowed (I.e. kindle , computer, iPad, phone for music)?
3 single rooms, reserved for male clients, unless they had more than 1, that could be roomed together with another. I had my own room for my entire 2-month stay.
I have the packing list from exactly 1 year ago, and I can’t imagine it’s updated much. I can send it to you, if you like. The dress code/packing list is much more relaxed than the paperwork shows. Like, you absolutely can wear open-back slippers/shoes.
While I was there, phones/electronics had specific time slots each day, but from what I have been told by patients since I left, that has been updated to pretty much 24/7 access, at least to phones. You can tablet/smartphone/media player, portable DVD player, and laptop. You need an order from your Psychiatrist to approve any laptop use, no clue why.
Would you be willing to give your first impressions on Veritas after you’ve been there a week or so?
how was it
Can anyone compare the North carolina and Atlanta adult program? What is better?
I was just wondering if anybody knew how long veritas NC inpatient stay for adults is typically?
Every person is so different, so we really can’t say. Typically, from my experience there, they guesstimate longer stays. I think it is to keep you realistic, and to lessen disappointment if you are there for a while. It also depends on which level of care you are “classified” as. IP through Res will most likely be longer than Res-PHP. I’m not sure if I am allowed to share their proposed timeline for me, but it shocked me when I was told.
I’m only going through their inpatient and transferring somewhere else for residential so I wasn’t sure if that changed anything
Any recent reviews for adult inpatient