https://www.freedominfeeling.com/home daily 1.0 2026-03-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/4e7ae1fb-2f13-458d-ade6-e987ad7c4383/therapyden-web-badge.png Eating Disorder and Perinatal Mental Health Therapy, Syracuse, NY https://www.freedominfeeling.com/freedom-in-feeling daily 0.75 2026-03-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/49efee11-a819-488b-8963-f4acc9ae48e6/100786381_10218403344579132_72605833728360448_n.jpeg Freedom in Feeling In our diet and body-obsessed, perfection-seeking, hustle-praising, rest-rejecting, full-of-stimulation society, it can be so easy to get caught up. Anxiety can take over, try to shrink our bodies, compare ourselves to others, and cause us to deal with stress and emotional discomfort in any way we can—even at the expense of our ourselves. When you’re in the throes of racing thoughts and panic, trying to survive the moment, or believing lies that your thoughts tells you about your body, abilities, or worth, you are desperate to feel better any way you can. You might gravitate toward ways of coping that are familiar from your past, or that you think will help you avoid or numb pain (humans don’t want to be in pain). Sometimes the ways in which you try to cope and soothe yourself in the moment seem helpful at first, but in the long-term they only leave you more isolated, anxious, and sick. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be like that. I can help you feel better and more like yourself again. You can break cycles and patterns that are no longer helpful, and learn new ways of dealing and relating to yourself. There is so much freedom in not letting social media or the voices of others dictate how you live in your body—how you eat or how you move. So much freedom in not missing out on opportunities and experiences, because of judgments about your body, or anxiety around food and calories. There is so much freedom in saying yes when you want to do something, and saying no when you don’t. There is so much freedom in trusting yourself. Trusting your body around food, trusting that it’s safe to be in your mind and body, that your body is not broken, and that you know the best decisions to make for yourself and your family. Trusting your feelings not only is the most natural thing you can do, but your emotions can be your guide in life—not something dangerous you have to escape from at all costs. You were born doing these things, but somewhere along the way, with enough messages and life experiences, you might have forgotten that you can be trusted. There is nothing wrong with you. Are you ready to stop running from yourself? https://www.freedominfeeling.com/faq daily 0.75 2026-03-24 https://www.freedominfeeling.com/about-me daily 0.75 2026-03-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1638421095887-KRZP0TRJ1DI2GKVJEH3K/1AA76B51-7AAB-4863-8D22-E0E64D1CE70F.JPEG About Melanie Jennings, LMHC - Hi, I’m Melanie! I’m a Licensed Mental Health Counselor who is an unwavering Health at Every Size (HAES), anti-diet, celebrator of body diversity (and firm detester of BMI as a measure of health)-aligned therapist. In other words, I believe that all bodies are good, food has no morality, and your weight does not dictate your worth. You deserve to enjoy food, your body and life guilt-free, and to take up space in this world (both physically and through your voice and actions). What lights me up as a therapist is helping individuals heal their relationships with their bodies and food, find relief from their anxiety, and supporting women throughout the spectrum of motherhood (including infertility struggles and pregnancy loss), so they can feel better and get back to enjoying themselves in school and work, in relationships, in motherhood, and most of all in their own minds and bodies. I love working with individuals in different phases of life (college students and post-grads, millennials, women in different stages of motherhood), and teens. While your experience is uniquely yours, I understand the emotional anguish of the restrict/binge cycle, empty promises made by diets, connecting self-worth to numbers (on the scale, on a report card, through baby’s milestones). I’ve been there, going through an emotional rollercoaster to be a mom, and struggling to adjust to my body and mind once they were here. Because of my lived experiences, I also understand on a unique level that it’s possible to get off the hamster wheel of anxiety, self-sabotage, and people-pleasing. I believe that befriending your body just as it is and ditching rigid food rules is attainable (and SO worth it)! And I believe that you don’t have to suffer in pregnancy/ postpartum life, go through loss or infertility alone, or put yourself last as a parent. When you work with me, you work with someone who is human, active, and down-to-earth. I will compassionately call out patterns that keep you anxious, stuck, and in pain. I will help you find and capitalize on hope, celebrate your strengths and gifts, and create a plan to help you get to the other side of your struggle, and walk alongside you the entire time. Therapeutically, my practice is grounded in mindfulness-based, IFS (parts work), and somatic-based approaches. I also love drawing from ACT and DBT (and I can explain all of that if you’re unsure what any of that means!). I am a firm believer in the mind-body connection, in the power of self-compassion, connecting to our emotions, and the different parts of us in new and healing ways. My background as a therapist: I have spent 12 years working with college students, women, and teens. Before my own practice, I’ve worked in college Counseling Centers, and provided eating disorder treatment as part of a multidisciplinary treatment team at the Partial Hospitalization, Intensive Outpatient, and Outpatient levels. I've helped adolescents and adults work through eating disorders, anxiety, depression, high stress, relationship and family concerns, school/work issues, exploring their identities, and navigate times of transition. I have received comprehensive training in treating eating disorders and Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders, as well as different therapeutic modalities including: IFS (Internal Family Systems), DBT (Dialectical Behavioral Therapy), Polyvagal Theory, and TRM (Trauma Resiliency Model). I obtained my BA in Human Development at SUNY Oswego (‘13), and my MS in Mental Health Counseling from SUNY Oswego (‘15). I am a LMHC in New York State (License #007987). https://www.freedominfeeling.com/services daily 0.75 2026-03-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1638849817509-LLO5MNZ1MAIXI72FVAKV/Screen+Shot+2021-12-06+at+10.59.39+PM.png Services https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1638849843769-L7F7G0O8S7J0AEUMSQIA/Screen+Shot+2021-12-06+at+10.59.13+PM.png Services https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1638851256479-2SXJ5YQ4VASZKPTSW2U1/Screen+Shot+2021-12-06+at+10.55.52+PM.png Services https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1638852428069-6JTCEBT3F6GEJSDSY1KH/Screen+Shot+2021-12-06+at+11.41.41+PM.png Services https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/4d300696-b52c-4cf1-b452-68b2ac6cfa1a/IMG_4864.jpeg https://www.freedominfeeling.com/lets-do-this-together daily 0.75 2026-03-24 https://www.freedominfeeling.com/anxiety daily 0.75 2024-07-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1638988778156-YEFRAWC6IMHKT9AGXOG9/unsplash-image-betmVWGYcLY.jpg Anxiety - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.freedominfeeling.com/eating-disorders daily 0.75 2025-11-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1638901286978-32WUADX9OG0O6EOCAGKY/unsplash-image-TzVN0xQhWaQ.jpg Eating Disorders - Let’s help you get your life back. When you have an eating disorder, it becomes all-consuming, seeping into your relationships, affecting your focus, work/school performance, health, mood, mind, and your every thought. It promises you thinness, happiness, control, praise from others, relief from pain, and a loyal presence in your life. Sometimes, you might think it’s delivering on those promises. Maybe at first you’re enjoying the changes you notice in your body, having something to distract you from emotional discomfort, and feeling lit up inside by the compliments you might be receiving (“You look AMAZING. I don’t know what you’re doing, but whatever it is keep it up, it’s working.”). If they only knew what you were going through on the inside. Unfortunately though, you might have experienced these short-term gains and that feeling of “having it all” has started to wane. Maybe you haven’t lost more weight, and now you’re desperately trying to figure out how to cut out and burn more calories. Maybe bingeing is leaving you physically uncomfortable and feeling ashamed, or you’re realizing that not only is your emotional pain not going away, but it’s multiplying. In the meantime, you’ve held yourself back from relationships and experiences in life because you needed to wait until you got to “x” weight. You may have brain fog that’s making focusing at school or work a nightmare, or you’ve been irritable and isolating yourself, pushing away the people closest to you. Your health might be at risk, and now you’re riddled with anxiety and deep in depression. You don’t know how you got here, but you feel trapped. You’re scared to stop what you’re doing because you’ve been promised so much from your eating disorder. I won’t lie, breaking eating disorder patterns can feel terrifying. It’s not easy to even consider leaving something familiar, no matter how harmful it is. But you don’t have to keep doing this. You’re not stuck. You’re not alone. Take the first step. Together, we can talk more about what’s going on for you. We can not only work to help you with what’s going on under the surface (body image concerns, eating disorder symptoms, current stressors), but also get to the root of how these thoughts and patterns began and how they have manifested. We won’t be putting on a bandaid here. The goal is lifelong change so you can live confidently and freely in your mind and body. These patterns and beliefs you’ve been told or hold about yourself can be in your past. You can cope with life’s stressors in new ways without taking it out on yourself. You might start to LOVE your body. Or, maybe even better, you’ll feel neutral about it—where you can respect, care for, accept, and appreciate your body while recognizing that you are SO much more than your weight and your body shape/size. You deserve so much more than living with food guilt and rules, yo-yo dieting, and having constant thoughts about changing your body. Bad body image days don’t have to ruin your whole day or mental health, I promise! And you don’t have to live with an eating disorder or body hate forever. As described in my “About” section, I am an anti-diet, HAES-oriented therapist. You will never hear me prescribing weight loss or diets, but I will also always support and never judge your choices. https://www.freedominfeeling.com/maternal-mental-health daily 0.75 2024-05-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1666469124428-3LFFX35YZF4LA0QVTSKZ/unsplash-image-tCbTGNwrFNM.jpg Maternal Mental Health https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1666469186530-QGA9F2GL9MQ9CWLZTLM8/unsplash-image-SUm9yLyXmRU.jpg Maternal Mental Health https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1666469351777-4EVYANHRNP8U4XWAC3YZ/unsplash-image-5Goau2kMWXQ.jpg Maternal Mental Health https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1666469390285-AJG4ZTNEGYNH9EAQN9VJ/unsplash-image-httxBNGKapo.jpg Maternal Mental Health https://www.freedominfeeling.com/people-pleasing-and-perfectionism daily 0.75 2022-10-23 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1638932615296-ENK3BOUCMLOBK9QDBNUR/unsplash-image-YNM4KStg78I.jpg People Pleasing and Perfectionism - “If you avoid conflict to keep the peace, you start a war inside yourself.” ― Cheryl Richardson Do you often say “yes” to plans or extra responsibilities when you want to say “no”? Do you find yourself putting other people’s wants above your needs? If you look at your work or grades, which feedback or results stick out the most to you? Is doing a “good job” good enough, or do you have to succeed with flying colors? Do you stay firm in your beliefs, or tend to waver once someone expresses a different opinion than yours? Do you struggle to set boundaries in your relationships in order to avoid conflict or them being mad at you? What would it be like to trust yourself and use your voice, instead of using the voices of people around you as your guide? At its core, people pleasing doesn’t have to be a bad thing. What if this meant that you have the capacity to be attuned to the needs and wants of someone? What if that person was you? I can help you get to the bottom of where these tendencies began, and help you heal from the experiences that led you to use people pleasing as a way to survive and cope. You can finally live your life on your own terms, without having to apologize for apologizing, or without neglecting your own wants and needs. You can enjoy your relationships where you can trust they’ll not only stay, but respect and celebrate you when you set boundaries. And what if perfectionism means that you value your work, believe in yourself, and want the best for yourself? Maybe the signals have gotten crossed in messages growing up that left you believing you had to be perfect to be worthy, or perfect to create safety. Though you might have internalized those messages as your beliefs, this is simply not true. Your achievements don’t define you. You don’t need it to be perfect to be find safety and security. You are worthy of happiness and living the life you’ve dreamed of simply by existing. You might have been on the receiving end of conditional relationships in which you believed that someone you loved would only stay or love you back if you were “perfect,” or if you prioritized their every desire. Or maybe you grew up with a supportive family and teachers who praised you with every breath you took. Even though probably well-intentioned, maybe the bar of success seemed to get higher and higher with every compliment they gave you. Talk. About. Pressure. It might seem scary to let people see you without the illusion of perfection covering you up, but what if it wasn’t as hard as continuing to live with the weight of the world on your shoulders? You can choose another way—you don’t have to keep censoring yourself, editing yourself, and spending another minute not fully connecting with people you love. They deserve to see you, and you deserve to show up just as you are. Let’s partner together to help you break these patterns and live freely. https://www.freedominfeeling.com/parents-of-teens daily 0.75 2026-03-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1638993029446-QM4HC8779GPXZJR3GGUL/unsplash-image-WWkzHz24NPY.jpg Parents of Teens - Parents, this is for you. It’s overwhelmingly challenging to be a teen trying to manage anxiety and concerns around food and body image, and it’s heart-wrenching and can feel helpless to be the concerned parent of a teen going through these challenges. You’re seeing your once bubbly and full-of-life child all of a sudden seeming more irritable, isolating, and like a shell of themselves. You can tell their anxiety is through the roof. You notice they’re not eating, they’re bingeing , or they’re escaping to the bathroom after meals—you suspect to purge. You know there’s something even deeper going on. You don’t want to push them further away, but you’re worried about their health and happiness. You want to help them, but you don’t know what to say or do. I can help. Your child doesn’t have to keep feeling this way. It’s such an important time in their lives, and they deserve to enjoy it with friends, and feel comfortable in their own skin. I can help them gain control over their anxiety, ditch the food guilt, feel more at home in their bodies again, and cope with the unique stress that comes with high school and college. I have worked with teens who are going through all kinds of challenges (eating disorders, anxiety/worrying, stress- about friendships/academic pressure/graduation and what comes next, bullying, self-harm, depression, etc. Even though every teen I work with is unique with their own gifts, challenges, and goals, some parts of my approach stay the same. I’m a down-to-earth therapist who actively listens and also responds (I don’t blend into the wall and stare at my clients for 50 minutes), loves humor, embraces my client’s strengths, and talks to my teen clients in a conversational, casual, and relatable way. The first step is to contact me by using the form below so we set up a time to talk. During this phone call, I can learn more about your child from your perspective (their strengths, their struggles, etc.), and I can share my philosophy working with teens (building trust with my teen clients, and also how I include parents in the process), and we can begin to talk about how all work as a team to help your teen feel like themselves again. If your teen is struggling with an active eating disorder, I’ll assess and we can discuss the best plan—likely including an eating disorder-informed Dietician and medical provider in conjunction with our work. This approach allows for holistic treatment, maximum benefits and lifelong changes. We’ll possibly discuss other levels of care to start if more appropriate at this time. Let’s get your child feeling their best again. https://www.freedominfeeling.com/client-portal daily 0.75 2025-11-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61a838c120d914757f021835/1640831055965-3KJR6ICPTIUBX8P7E0ZS/unsplash-image-7qYduFkRI8U.jpg Client Portal and Information - No Surprises & GFE You will never receive a surprise bill from me. My fee per session is $165. The duration of treatment is an on-going conversation we will have together, and determined by you. We can continue to work together as long as you are finding it beneficial and effective. Payment is due in full at the time of session, and since I am an out-of-network clinician, I can provide you with a Superbill afterward for possible reimbursement from your insurance company. Please review my FAQ page to learn more about this process, and never hesitate to ask any questions you have about the financial aspects and investment of therapy. You have the right to receive a “Good Faith Estimate” explaining how much your medical care will cost. Under the law, health care providers need to give patients who don’t have insurance or who are not using insurance an estimate of the bill for medical items and services. You have the right to receive a Good Faith Estimate for the total expected cost of any non-emergency items or services. This includes related costs like medical tests, prescription drugs, equipment, and hospital fees. Make sure your health care provider gives you a Good Faith Estimate in writing at least 1 business day before your medical service or item. You can also ask your healthcare provider, and any other provider you choose, for a Good Faith Estimate before you schedule an item or service. If you receive a bill that is at least $400 more than your Good Faith Estimate, you can dispute the bill. Make sure to save a copy or picture of your Good Faith Estimate. For questions or more information about your right to a Good Faith Estimate, visit www.cms.gov/nosurprises or call 1-800-985-3059.