Shades of Hope was featured on two episodes of the Emmy-nominated “The Dr. Oz Show”. Both episodes featured Sandi, a single mother of two, who battled food addiction for 20 years. Sandi remained addicted to food despite seeing multiple doctors and therapists for her issues. Sandi used food as medication and routinely binged in private. Dr. Oz compared her food binges to drug fixes. He told her that an inpatient treatment center was her “absolute best shot for recovery”. Overcoming food addiction requires creating a new set of habits that satisfy your mental, physical and spiritual needs. During the initial episode, Brad Lamm conducted a successful intervention that ended with Sandi entering a three-month inpatient treatment program at Shades of Hope.
The second episode was a follow-up on Sandi’s progress after completing her treatment at Shades of Hope. When Sandi came out on stage, Dr. Oz commented that she was “glowing”. Sandi revealed she feels like a different person and cannot believe how much her life has changed for the better. She told Dr. Oz she learned new coping skills at Shades of Hope for her food addiction. The single mother of two adopted a new lifestyle and has not binged once since her treatment. Brad Lamm explained that Sandi did a lot of work at Shades of Hope and learned to work through difficult moments to stay in recovery. The interventionist said she had to take control over “the things that inhabit your life that inhibit your dreams” to have a better life.
During the show, a special message was delivered live via Skype from Anne, a client still in treatment at Shades of Hope. Anne thanked Sandi for embracing her when she arrived at the treatment center and for sharing her story. Anne said she could relate to Sandi’s story and derived inspiration from her. Anne told Sandi, “If you could get better, then I could get better. You changed my life.” Dr. Oz stated the purpose of his show was to inspire others to take charge of their lives. He proclaimed that Sandi was changing a lot of lives and served as a role model for others by sharing her story. Dr. Oz thanked Brad Lamm for his guidance and thanked Shades of Hope Treatment Center for giving Sandi a place to rebuild her life.
Everyone at Shades of Hope wishes Sandi continued success in her recovery efforts.
Sources
The Dr. Oz Show, “A Food Intervention,” aired November 17, 2009
The Dr. Oz Show, “Ask Dr. Oz: Celebrity Edition,” aired May 14, 2010
