National Center for Weight and Wellness

I’ve been going to NCWW, or «the Center» as most of us call it, for almost a year now. It’s hard to describe how meaningful that place is to me, but for their sake (and potentially yours) I will try. I’ve struggled with weight my entire life. I’ve gained and lost, lost and gained, and the whole time been deeply ashamed by the fact that my struggles and triumphs are so publicly displayed. It felt like I was like wearing a scarlet letter. I showed up at Dr. Kahan’s office desperate to change, but having no motivation or clue as to how. This is what happens when you’ve succeeded and failed and succeeded and failed as much as I have — you start to wonder what the point is in trying again. The clinical term for that is «amotivational syndrome,» but in emotional terms I’d simply call it humiliating.
From the moment I walked through the door, the Center offered compassion. The front desk staff, the nurses, the doctors, the nutritionists, the therapists… everyone at the Center exuded compassion. There is no judgment here. Their website says, «We meet you where you are,» and that’s exactly what they do. There’s no one-​size-​fits all approach. Everyone comes through the door with a different history and different needs. They listen before they offer any advice, and everyone’s plan is customized to that individual.
I met with Dr. Mansukhani first, and if there is a better doctor in D.C. I haven’t met her. She was warm, engaging, an excellent listener, incredibly smart, and most important, she was willing to extend herself as a partner in helping me solve my weight issues. She said being overweight is a medical condition, and she wanted to play an active role in helping me resolve it. And she has.
The MDs are only part of the team, though. I also met with a nutritionist, Kathy, whom I adore. She is enthusiastic and encouraging. She’s loaded with helpful tips and aware of the latest trends in nutrition. And she is mindful (as is everyone at the Center) that most human beings need choices and flexibility, not a hard and fast set of unsustainable rules. In addition to Kathy, I met with Sarah, who’s a trainer and exercise sports science guru. She, too, is enthusiastic and encouraging. She taught me a bunch of exercises I can do anywhere, and custom-​built a strength and conditioning program for my lower back (which causes me chronic pain). It’s like meeting with a trainer and a physical therapist all at once.
All of that said, the heart and soul of the Center is with the therapists and the groups they lead. They, the therapists, are all different, and they’re all wonderful. Robyn is passionate about cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which is a vein of psychology that has shown great promise in helping people manage their weight. She is an exceptional listener and teacher. She will really make you think about how your thought patterns affect your feelings, and how you can change and challenge them. Kelly is a very warm and caring therapist who does a little bit of everything. Her classes often blend CBT with acceptance and commitment therapy, which I think of as a school of thought that encourages you to sit with your feelings, to let them be. Kelly’s is a gentle approach. She’s someone you feel like you could say anything to, and it would be okay. She will help you see the good in you.
Bill (whom I affectionately refer to as «Dr. P») is a weight management sherpa. That’s how I think of him. He likes to say that weight managemet is a path we’re on, and various things may pull us from the path, and other things may give us energy and motivation for the path. But the metaphor is the path. I think of him as a sherpa because Dr. P knows every crook and cranny of that path. He’s led so many people through it, he’s seen so much, he has such a feel for it and such a respect for it, for the difficulty of it, that one can’t help but trust and revere him at the same time. He is calm and deliberate with his words, which gives them an air of gravity. And while he’s truly a gentle and compassionate human being, he can challenge you, in the best of ways, when he sees an opportunity for you to grow. In short, Dr. P is part man, part miracle-​worker. I would not be where I am today without him.
And with that, I will conclude my superlong and somewhat overdue review of NCWW. I should mention that they’ve helped me lose almost 60 lbs., without much of a struggle, but that is an afterthought to me (which probably says more about the program than everything else I’ve written).

Dr. Kahan and his colleagues at NCWW helped me to turn my life around. I have struggled with weight issues my whole life and had been to numerous in-​patient and out-​patient programs without lasting results. NCWW changed all that for me by focusing on my individual needs, rather than some sort of one-​size-​fits-​all formula. I’ve been slowly but surely losing weight for almost an entire year, over 50lbs now, and I’m not even trying that hard! There is no «do this,» or «do that,» only «let’s figure out what works for you.» That’s why they are the real deal.