Meet the Team

Carolyn is owner and founder of the Upstate New York Eating Disorder Service which includes partial hospitalization program, Sol Stone Center, and outpatient program Nutrition Services of Upstate New York. She opened one of the first eating disorder clinics, The Nutrition Clinic, in upstate New York over 30 years ago. While providing outpatient services she soon realized the need for more intensive treatment programs. Since 2004 she has opened two partial hospitalization programs in Elmira and Syracuse and three additional satellite outpatient programs in Ithaca, Liverpool (Syracuse), and Vestal (Binghamton). Carolyn has always been passionate about the nutritional care of individuals and specialized in nutritional support early in her career. She began working with metabolic testing (indirect calorimetry) and body composition analysis over 30 years ago. She pioneered using metabolic testing and body composition analysis in the treatment of individuals struggling with an eating disorder and other nutritional concerns using a Health at Every Size approach while addressing the nutritional needs of the body. She championed the use of this technology at national and international conferences. She co-authored “Measuring Health From The Inside” with Annika Kahm, MS and co-authored a chapter in “Trauma-Informed Approaches To Eating Disorders” with Edward Tyson, MD. She is committed to educating clinicians, community, clients, and family members in the field of eating disorder care and has co-sponsored the annual conference, Erin Leah Robarge Memorial Seminar for 20 years. She consulted for the Cornell Healthy Eating Program, initially helping develop the program and providing nutritional care and then working with high risk clients and those needing higher level of care. Carolyn enjoys keeping active. Travel, golf and skiing have always been popular and more recently lake time and enjoying her dog Benji who is often seen at her clinic, are other leisure favorites. She received her undergraduate degree from SUC Oneonta and her Master’s degree from Marywood College. She has been a presenter at regional, national, and international conferences. She is a member of IAEDP, AED, AND, IFEDD and STDA.

Dr. Bezirganian has been Medical Director of Sol Stone Center partial hospitalization program for 15 years. She received a MPH from Columbia University, did her residency in Psychiatry and Neuropsychiatry at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and received her medical degree from Medical College of Pennsylvania. She has had a number of publications in the American Journal of Psychiatry and Pediatrics. She has worked with children, adolescents, and adults in a variety of mental health facilities. Most recently her work has focused on the treatment of adults with Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, and Binge Eating Disorder in a partial hospitalization setting. She is passionate about the process of psychiatry which focuses on healing patients by being mindful of their stories. Effective management of the patient allows them to discover their own strengths and achieve their personal goals. She is dedicated to providing high quality patient-centered care. In her spare time she can be found on the ski slopes in upstate New York or out west.

Stacey is the Program Director of Sol Stone Center partial hospitalization program, bringing with her a wealth of experience and dedication spanning over 18 years in the field of eating disorder treatment. Stacey earned her undergraduate degree from Ohio State University, followed by graduate work at the University at Buffalo, where she received her Master’s degree in Social Work. Throughout her career, Stacey has been deeply committed to supporting individuals on their journey to recovery. She has honed her expertise through extensive training in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), and Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT). These evidence-based approaches allow her to provide comprehensive and compassionate care tailored to each individual’s unique needs. Stacey’s leadership at Sol Stone Center is characterized by her unwavering passion for helping clients build healthier relationships with food and their bodies. She is known for her empathetic approach, strong clinical skills, and her ability to inspire both her team and the clients they serve. In her spare time, Stacey enjoys reading, spending time with her son, and playing with her dog, Roxy.

Jess recently joined Sol Stone Center as a Mental Health Therapist. She graduated from Keuka College with a Masters in Occupational Therapy in 2011 and recently graduated from Amberton University with a Masters in Professional Counseling in 2022. Jess has experience working with individuals with depression, anxiety, mood disorders, eating disorders, and trauma history in private practice along with facilitating groups for grief counseling and eating disorders. Jess is passionate about helping people find the adventure in life and find their true self through a variety of modalities including DBT, CBT, and expressive therapies. In her spare time, Jess enjoys traveling, spending time outside, art/music, sitting in coffee shops enjoying a good cup of coffee, and spending time with her 4 nieces.

Andrea joined Sol Stone in 2022 as the Program Nurse and Utilization Review. She obtained her Licensed Practical Nurse from Elmira BOCES in 2005. Over the past 18 years she has worked in skilled nursing, OBGYN, Urology, Internal Medicine, and most recently Utilization Management. Andrea is devoted to helping and caring for others. In her spare time, she can be found at her kids sports being their biggest fan, playing with her dogs, going for walks, and just enjoying the outdoors.

Abby joined Sol Stone in 2024 as the Therapeutic Intake Coordinator. She obtained her Bachelor's Degree in Social Work from Mansfield University and completed her internship with Family Service Society. She was able to gain experience in many different areas of social work such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), the healthy use of coping skills, and motivational interviewing (MI). Abby is excited to step into this role to better help individuals struggling with an eating disorder. In her free time, Abby enjoys spending time with her family and friends, playing guitar, reading and helping others.

Bruce is a Registered Dietitian who earned his Bachelor’s degree in Nutrition and Institutional Management from Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana. A Master’s degree in Nutrition was earned from Marywood University, Scranton PA. He has had a long career focused on both food and nutrition with the enjoyment of food. Bruce has had much work in creating a positive food experience both in the hospital and hospitality settings as well as having owned an operated a fine dining restaurant focused on enjoyment of food with the farm to table focus. He has also had a wide range of clinical experience having worked in both psychiatric hospitals as well as acute medical hospitals. Bruce has been with Upstate New York Eating Disorder Service since 2004. He was previously the Nutrition Director for Sol Stone Center/Elmira, and most recently has been an outpatient nutrition counselor with the Nutrition Clinic and the Nutrition Service of Upstate New York. Passionate about food and food being good, Bruce works with individuals helping them make peace with food and helping them find smiles and laughter and peace in creating meals for themselves to feed body, mind and soul. As a long time resident of the Finger Lakes, Bruce has a love of the water and also a love of gardening and exploring the gardens and the bounty of the Finger Lakes.

Lauren is a Registered Dietitian who earned her Bachelor’s degree in Nutrition and completed her internship at Marywood University, Scranton PA. She furthered her education, receiving a Master’s degree in Nutrition at Boston University. Lauren began her career working in long term care supporting the geriatric population. With the desire to expand her client population, she started working as an outpatient dietitian at a primary care location. She was able to help individuals reach their nutrition goals and create a healthy relationship with food. Lauren lead individual and group diabetes education classes, supporting individuals through their journey. When Lauren is not working, she enjoys running, reading, and trying different restaurants.