The Mindful Eating Project Opens Brooklyn’s First Dedicated Eating Disorder Clinic
Across Brooklyn’s Jewish communities, struggles with food, body image, and self-worth are reaching into more homes than most people realize, and reaching them earlier. Eating disorders do not discriminate by age. They show up in children, teenagers, young adults, and parents alike. And when one person is suffering, the entire family feels it: the worry at the dinner table, the strain on siblings, the spouse who doesn’t know what to say. This is a family issue, and it demands a family-centered response.
The Mindful Eating Project (MEP), a division of The Safe Foundation, began as a pilot in 2022 to meet a community need that was outpacing available care. Since then, MEP has sponsored thousands of individual therapy and nutrition sessions, fielded hundreds of hotline calls, and built a network of clinicians serving families across Brooklyn. That pre-launch work proved the model. This fall, MEP takes the next step: opening a fully licensed New York State outpatient clinic dedicated entirely to eating disorder treatment. The fall 2026 opening will bring therapy, nutrition, family support, and medical oversight together under one roof, built for this community, located in this community.
MEP co-founder.
What MEP Does
MEP offers an integrated continuum of care designed to meet patients and families wherever they are in the process, and to give them tools that last a lifetime.
Confidential Hotline
One phone call is all it takes to start. MEP’s hotline is staffed by people who understand what you’re going through and can guide you to the right next step.
Case Management
Every patient is paired with a case manager who coordinates care, removes obstacles, and stays with the family through the entire journey.
Therapy
Individual and family therapy with clinicians who specialize in eating disorders. Treatment addresses the underlying drivers, not just the surface behaviors, and is tailored to the patient’s age and stage.
Nutrition Counseling
Registered dietitians work alongside the therapy team to rebuild a healthy, sustainable relationship with food, at a pace that respects what the patient is ready for.
Higher Level of Care Coordination
When outpatient treatment isn’t enough, we help families access and navigate higher levels of care, and MEP stays involved throughout, so no one falls through the cracks during transitions.
The goal is bigger than any single appointment: to equip the patient and the people who love them with the tools, language, and support they need to navigate this for the rest of their lives. Recovery is not a single moment. It’s a long road, and MEP’s mission is to make sure no family walks it alone.
Confidentiality and Safety
Everything is 100% confidential. You can call MEP at any time, and your information will be handled with the highest degree of discretion. Many of the people who reach out to MEP have not yet told a parent or a spouse. MEP takes great care to provide its clients with an environment that is a safe space where someone can begin to navigate treatment with full autonomy, privacy, and respect.
Prevention, Education, and Community
Treatment is only part of the picture. MEP also invests heavily in prevention and education, bringing the conversation into schools, homes, and community spaces where it used to be off-limits. Recent programming has included an Instagram Live with endocrinologist Maurice Mosseri and therapist Roberta Saban, LCSW, on body image and the cultural impact of weight loss medications, and an in-person panel with Laura Shammah, MS, RDN, and Rachelle Heinemann, LMHC, LPC, CEDS, on what these medications mean for growing bodies.
In schools, MEP’s partnership with Project SAFE continues to expand. In April 2026, MEP launched the Sari Dana Body Positive Online Program, giving students participating in Project SAFE schools free access to resources on body image, self-confidence, and self-acceptance. Other partnerships include Magen David Yeshivah on “Strong Together: Building Healthy Body Image,” a mother-daughter event, and Hillel Yeshiva on a community program focused on body image and parenting. Looking ahead, a summer 2026 community awareness event, expanded school programming, parent education, and digital campaigns will all tie into the new clinic.
The cultural shift this work represents is real. Where there was once stigma, there is openness. Where there was once isolation, there is connection. And where there was once silence, there is now a number to call.
If you’re concerned that you or a loved one may be struggling with an eating disorder, call The Mindful Eating Project at (718) 336-6363. Every call is confidential.
