Casa Serena Turns 67 With Expanded Eating Disorder Care and First Family Summit

The Santa Barbara women's treatment nonprofit served nearly 300 women and families over the past year while growing its clinical and family programs.

SANTA BARBARA, CA, UNITED STATES, October 1, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Founder Mildred Pinheiro opened Casa Serena's Main House to women struggling with alcoholism in August 1959. The Santa Barbara nonprofit marked 67 years this August. Over the past year it served nearly 300 women and families and added services across its clinical and family programs.

Casa Serena expanded its eating disorder treatment program for women. The program treats anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder, ARFID and OSFED, along with co-occurring substance use disorders. Care is available at residential, partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient and outpatient levels. Clients meet with a registered dietitian and eat supported meals and snacks, and treatment includes CBT, DBT, EMDR and family therapy.

Clients in the women's outpatient program now receive care in a newly renovated space. Full and half-day schedules follow a rotating curriculum so women can keep working or attending school.

Music therapy grew through Rock to Recovery and its sister organization BandJAM. A professional musician leads each session as the group writes and records an original song in one sitting. Casa Serena also added sound healing to its holistic wellness program, which includes restorative yoga, meditation, gardening and culinary arts.

In September, Casa Serena held its first Fall Family Summit, a free three-day weekend in Santa Barbara for current clients and alumni along with their families. The agenda included multi-family skills workshops, a multi-family process group, a sound bowl session and a community BBQ lunch. The Summit adds to Casa Serena's year-round family programming.

Chief Clinical Officer Sandra Mistretta, LMFT, was a keynote speaker at the West Coast Symposium on Addictive Disorders (WCSAD) and the East Coast Symposium on Addictive Disorders (ECSAD). Her third keynote came at the California Addiction Conference (CAC), hosted by the California Consortium of Addiction Programs and Professionals (CCAPP). Casa Serena also provided three free continuing education (CEU) events for the community.

Two children lived in Casa Serena housing over the past year. At Millie's House, the organization's transitional living home, women reunifying with their children have the option to live with them. Serving children dates back to Casa Serena's first four years, when it admitted 322 women and served 289 children, according to its timeline.

About Casa Serena

Casa Serena is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit treatment center in Santa Barbara, California, that treats women for substance use and eating disorders along with co-occurring mental health conditions. Founded in 1959, it is Santa Barbara's only licensed and Joint Commission accredited nonprofit residential treatment and rehab program for women. Levels of care include sub-acute and medical detox, residential treatment, PHP, IOP, outpatient care, transitional living and lifetime aftercare. For more information, call (866) 936-9740 or visit www.casaserena.org.

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