Carol Kostynuk

At her private psychiatric practice, Dr. Carol Kostynuk treats patients with body image problems, eating disorders, and bariatric issues. Dr. Kostynuk has maintained her practice since 1985, when she completed her Fellowship Examinations in Psychiatry and earned recognition as a specialist from the College of Physicians & Surgeons of Alberta. After completing her medical residency through the University of Alberta, Dr. Carol Kostynuk began focusing treatment on outpatient counselling in both group and individual sessions.

As a resident, Dr. Carol Kostynuk served as a Visiting Doctor in two British hospitals: St. George's Hospital in London (where she studied with Professor Arthur Crisp, a trailblazer in the field of eating disorder treatment) and Atkinson Morley Hospital in Wimbledon, where Professor Crisp maintained his landmark Specialist Unit devoted to the treatment of anorexia nervosa. During her time in England, Dr. Kostynuk worked primarily in this highly specialized inpatient setting, but she was also able to visit many other Eating Disorder Units throughout the UK. The chronicity of this illness motivated her to begin treating patients with eating disorders outside of a hospital setting.

To help physicians and other health care professionals to tackle the challenges of treating eating and body image issues, Dr. Carol Kostynuk founded the Eating Disorder Education Organization (EDEO) in 1992, and served in the (volunteer) position of Medical Director for 17 years. Addressing a wider need to promote healthy non-dieting lifestyles for the population as a whole, she founded Body Positive Institute (Canada) in 2010.

BPI offers resources to medical professionals as well as the general public. Dr. Carol Kostynuk takes pride in the group's promotion of mindful eating rather than dieting, which teaches individuals to allow their natural hunger and satiety cues to guide eating patterns. Through BPI, Dr. Kostynuk encourages her patients and Alberta residents to engage in positive self-care such as adopting an active lifestyle and choosing healthful foods.

Dr. Carol Kostynuk maintains affiliation with the Canadian Medical Association, the Academy of Eating Disorders, and the AED's Health at Every Size Special Interest Group. Dr. Kostynuk lives in Alberta with her basset hound, Xena, and enjoys cycling, gardening, and travelling.