Melissa Gerson, LCSW
Founder and Clinical Director, Columbus Park
In addition to providing overall clinical supervision of the practice, I work with parents and families navigating eating disorders, with a focus on Family Based Treatment. My approach is direct, strategic, and focused on early change, helping families take effective action quickly when it matters most.
Specialties: Eating disorders in children, adolescents and young adults
Personal Pronouns: She/Her
How I work
✓ Parent-led treatment grounded in Family Based Treatment (FBT)
✓ Clear, structured guidance that helps parents take an active role
✓ Strong focus on early change and rapid symptom interruption
✓ Specialized work with ARFID and exposure-based strategies at home
✓ Direct, practical approach that prioritizes what actually works
✓ Decades of experience in eating disorder treatment and leadership
We’re a good fit if…
✓ Your child or teen is struggling with eating, and it’s starting to impact daily life
✓ You’re unsure what to do next and need clear direction
✓ You want to intervene early and avoid higher levels of care
✓ You’re ready to take an active, hands-on role in recovery
✓ You’re looking for an experienced clinician who will help you move quickly and effectively
About me
I’m a native New Yorker who moved to Miami, Florida at 18 to dance with the Miami City Ballet. This experience shaped my personal understanding of the pressures around controlling one’s body shape and size to meet an often impossible aesthetic, and sparked my interest in eating disorders. I chose to leave ballet in my mid-twenties and returned to New York to complete college, graduating in 2000 with a degree in psychology from Columbia University. I went on to earn my master’s degree in social work at NYU, along with post-graduate training at NYU’s Psychoanalytic Institute, the Center for the Study of Anorexia and Bulimia, and the William Alanson White Institute.
Over the past 20 plus years, I’ve trained in a wide range of evidence-based treatments for eating disorders, including CBT-E, CBT-AR, DBT, FBT, IPT, SSCM, and more. One of my most meaningful professional achievements has been becoming certified in Family-Based Treatment. Through this work, I’ve treated hundreds of young people and families, helping them move toward recovery with structure and support. While I now focus primarily on my leadership and management roles at Columbus Park, I continue to maintain a small caseload of FBT clients. Since founding Columbus Park in 2008, I’ve trained multiple generations of eating disorder professionals and have dedicated my work to a combination of clinical practice, writing, and presenting to both professionals and the broader community.
Graduate: New York University, MSW
Undergraduate: Columbia University, BA Psychology
Licensed: New York, LCSW