
As the new year kicks off, there can be an increase in diet-culture capitalism. This can overlap with individuals going to doctors appointments in the beginning of the year. Everyone deserves comprehensive care that doesn’t focus on fatphobic and biased practices. With the increase of anti-fat-bias in health care systems, it can be helpful to prepare ahead of time if any of your practitioners focus on weight and size. Here are some things to keep in mind and ways to advocate for weight inclusive care.
Finding an inclusive provider
This can be a way to guarantee body liberation within the appointment. Healthy at Every Size (HAES) is a framework that practitioners utilize to focus on medical conditions without focusing on weight or size of someone’s body. This framework is being utilized more and more and providers will usually indicate that they follow HAES methodology within their practice description. You can also ask when making your appointments if your practitioner is aligned with this framework. This may take some of the work out of articulating your boundaries or confrontation down the line.
Declining to be weighed
While we have been weighed since babies, there has been an uptick in patients declining to step on the scale during appointments. While this can be an intimidating thing to ask, there is usually an agreement with the request from the patient. If saying ‘no’ feels too direct, you can provide additional reason as to why you would like to opt out. We do believe no is a full sentence when needed though.
Have your boundaries conversation upfront
Although it can feel intimidating, labeling your needs prior to beginning the actual appointment may be helpful. These needs can include (but are not limited to) no weight loss medication as treatment for an issues, receiving the same treatment options as that of a thin person, not being weighed, not being assessed for BMI, being given the opportunity to consent to treatment that is not stigmatized, etc. We also suggest looking into an alternative provider if it feels like these boundaries are being crossed.
Use doctor’s office boundary cards
These have been floating more and more around the internet in the past five years. They are little handouts (or screenshots) that have helpfully articulated boundaries on them that you can ask to be scanned into your file. Sometimes, it can feel helpful to have these so you know that your boundaries are in writing and accessible. Check these ones out in the link below.
When navigating the health care system, there is plenty to be thinking about. Being scrutinized due to your weight or being concerned about quality care, shouldn’t be one of them. Again, it is never your fault that a practitioner isn’t well trained or able to dismantle the systems of oppression that continue fat-biased care, and we would always want you to feel prepared to protect yourself if you need to.
The information on this website is not intended to diagnose or treat any medical or psychological condition and is not a substitute for therapy. If you are experiencing an emergency please call/text 988 or go to your nearest emergency room.
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