Fat Liberation is a movement that advocates for the rights, dignity, and respect of fat individuals. It challenges the stigma, discrimination, and harmful beliefs surrounding fatness in our society, including those perpetuated by the medical, media, and mental health fields. Rooted in the belief that all bodies deserve respect and that body size should not determine a person’s worth, fat liberation seeks to end weight-based oppression and celebrate body diversity. This movement is not just about self-acceptance but about confronting systemic fatphobia and creating a world where people of all sizes can thrive without facing prejudice.

Fat Liberation in Therapy

In therapy, a fat liberation approach involves creating a safe, affirming space where clients are free from weight-based judgment or pressure. It challenges the pervasive idea that thinness equates to health or worth, instead focusing on the client’s emotional, psychological, and holistic well-being. Fat liberation-informed therapy encourages clients to explore and embrace body acceptance, confront internalized fatphobia, and find strength in a community that values them as they are. This approach also helps clients unpack the impact of fatphobia on their mental health and daily lives, recognizing that societal bias, not body size, is the root cause of weight-related distress.

Therapists who practice from a fat liberation lens work to create a therapeutic space that is respectful, inclusive, and supportive of clients of all body sizes, understanding that mental health cannot be separated from the social stigmas and discrimination fat people often face. This approach values body autonomy, body neutrality, and body positivity as paths toward healing and self-acceptance.

Key Principles

• Affirming All Bodies: Fat liberation in therapy means that all bodies are valued, worthy, and deserving of respect. Therapists affirm the unique worth of each person’s body, rejecting weight-based biases and promoting unconditional acceptance.

• Challenging Weight Stigma: Therapy that supports fat liberation works to dismantle internalized fatphobia and external weight stigma. Therapists help clients recognize and resist the harmful narratives around body size that are perpetuated by culture, media, and even healthcare systems.

• Body Autonomy and Self-Determination: Fat liberation therapy respects each client’s choices about their own body without imposing weight-loss agendas. It centers the client’s goals and needs, recognizing that well-being is not defined by body size.

• Embracing Body Positivity and Neutrality: This approach helps clients build a more compassionate, neutral, or positive relationship with their body. It allows clients to explore body acceptance at their own pace, creating space for self-love and kindness.

• Intersectional Perspective: Fat liberation acknowledges that fatphobia intersects with other forms of oppression, such as racism, ableism, and sexism. Therapy from a fat liberation lens considers these intersections and how they uniquely impact each client’s experience.

How We Can Help

At Resilience, we are committed to providing a therapeutic space that honors fat liberation, challenging societal fatphobia while supporting you in cultivating self-acceptance and empowerment. Our fat liberation-informed therapy centers around:

• Weight-Neutral, Client-Centered Care: Therapy at Resilience focuses on you, not your weight. We prioritize your mental health and well-being, creating a space where you can feel safe, respected, and free from any weight-loss agenda.

• Healing from Internalized Fatphobia and Stigma: We offer a supportive environment to process the effects of fatphobia, helping you to challenge harmful beliefs and build a more compassionate relationship with your body.

• Body Acceptance and Empowerment: Therapy focuses on affirming and celebrating body diversity, supporting you in reclaiming confidence, self-worth, and pride in your unique body.

• Community and Resources: We connect clients with resources, support networks, and fat-positive communities, offering a foundation of solidarity and strength in the journey toward body liberation.

What to Expect

• Weight-Inclusive, Non-Judgmental Support: Fat liberation-informed therapists create an environment that rejects weight stigma and respects all body sizes. Therapy is about understanding and empowering you, not about changing your body.

• Self-Compassion and Body Acceptance Practices: Therapy may include tools for developing body neutrality, self-compassion, and self-acceptance, guiding you toward a healthier, kinder relationship with your body.

• Intersectional and Inclusive Approach: We acknowledge how weight stigma can intersect with other forms of oppression, creating unique experiences and challenges. Therapy supports your identity as a whole, respecting each layer of your lived experience.

• Education and Advocacy: Fat liberation-informed therapists often engage in advocacy work to challenge fatphobia within healthcare and mental health fields, supporting societal change that values body diversity.

Therapy through the lens of fat liberation is about affirming body diversity, rejecting weight-based discrimination, and supporting clients in building resilience against societal bias.

We are here to help you cultivate self-acceptance, resist harmful cultural pressures, and nurture your mental and emotional well-being, regardless of body size. Whether you’re navigating the effects of fatphobia, seeking body acceptance, or simply looking for an affirming space, we are here to support you in reclaiming joy, self-worth, and pride in who you are.