Rebekah “Bekah” Bardwell Doweyko is a renowned psychotherapist licensed in CT, GA, FL, MA, NY, NJ, PA, SC and VT. She earned her Master’s degree in Mental Health Counseling from Florida Atlantic University, where she was inducted into Chi Sigma Iota, The International Honor Society in Mental Health Counseling. She is also a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist and Approved IAEDP Supervisor.

Bekah found her true calling in 1999 when she began working at The Renfrew Center of Florida – the country’s first eating disorder residential facility - while completing her master’s degree. She was immediately struck by how long the people who were there receiving treatment had gone without specialized knowledge or care, and she knew she had to help break through the stigmatized and low-resourced world of eating disorders. 

Bekah held various clinical and managerial positions at The Renfrew Center, and also founded and directed the Intuitive Eating Program (IOP) at Hollywood Pavilion Hospital in Florida. Upon her return to her home state, she served as an Intensive Care Manager – handling every Medicaid eating disorder case at the Connecticut Behavioral Health Partnership. 

From 2013 until 2024, Bekah was a fearless and passionate member of Walden Behavioral Care’s senior leadership team.  There she worked in multiple levels of care to treat patients, train clinical teams and develop innovative and effective programming. She also worked to educate providers of all disciplines around the nuances of eating disorders, with a focus on the importance of early detection and prevention. Under her direction, Walden’s clinics were the first in the country to offer full PHP and IOP programming at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic. She has developed and implemented various specialized treatment tracks including a virtual electives program, and the country’s first specialized programming for LGBTQ+ populations and Jewish populations with eating disorders. Additionally, she founded and developed Walden’s Weight Inclusivity Task Force – a truly multi-disciplinary initiative focused on challenging weight stigma and individualizing weight restoration and/or weight neutral goals. 

In 2021, while at Walden, Bekah was painfully aware of the growing wait lists for outpatient therapy – especially eating disorders – and wanted to help. She decided to dedicate some of her free time in the evening to respond to the growing need for Outpatient Therapy as a result of the pandemic. It wasn’t long before Bekah’s availability was expended, and it was painful to turn folks in need away. Bekah decided that it was time to expand her business, and as such, assembled a team of like-minded practitioners. At Bardwell Behavioral, Bekah passionately shares her eating disorder knowledge with a diverse group of new and seasoned clinicians who have similar goals – to support people along their healing journeys toward improved functioning and well-being. In 2023, due to her success and unique experience in both clinical and managerial realms, Bekah was approached by Nick and Annika Kahm who were looking to open Vermont’s first Eating Disorder treatment center, as they recognized the need to offer strong clinical supervision and support for a new vision, a new team, and a new clinic. Bekah was honored to join their endeavor, and has been a part of the Kahm team since 2023 – helping them ultimately operationalize their dream - developing their program, policies and curriculum.

In Bekah’s free time, she enjoys spending time with her family, camping, boating, playing softball, and planning her next travel adventure.