#rhetoric #fat #fatliberation #leftist #anticapitalist #antifatbias #fatliberationtion #profat #anticap #thinculture #dietculture #antidietculture

Fat Counselling: Therapy and Fat Liberation with Jo Reader and Cat Chappell In this episode Ninna is joined by Jo Reader and Cat Chappell, known as The Fat Counsellors, for a rich and affirming conversation about therapy, fat liberation, and the need to challenge fat bias in therapeutic spaces.Jo and Cat share how their personal experiences and professional paths led them to create The Fat Counsellors and develop training that supports both therapists and the wider public in unlearning internalised fatphobia. Their work is grounded in compassion, activism, and the belief that everyone deserves to feel safe and seen in therapy.We explore: - The story behind The Fat Counsellors and their mission - What inclusive therapy looks like in practice - How therapy roles differ across countries and why that matters - Fat bias in medical and social systems, and how it shows up in the therapy room - Practical steps for finding or becoming a fat-inclusive therapist - What it means to be anti-diet and why it is not anti-dieter - The intersections of fatness, privilege, and oppression This episode is for anyone navigating therapy, working in mental health, or wanting to better understand how to challenge fat bias and support body liberation.Mentioned in this episode - The Fat Counsellors: thefatcounsellors.co.uk - Jo Reader: joreader.com | Instagram: @fatacceptancetherapist - Cat Chappell: catchappell.co.uk - Facebook Group: The Fat Counsellors (for therapists) - Aubrey Gordon’s film Your Fat Friend Transcript Available at thefatpsychologist.com/podcast 00:05 – Intro 01:13 – Today's Episode 03:33 – The origins of The Fat Counsellors 05:46 – Training Beyond Therapists 08:10 – Understanding the Role of Therapists and Counsellors 10:00 – Biases in Medical and Social Contexts 17:47 – The Importance of Anti-Diet Culture 24:47 – Practical Steps for Inclusive Therapy 27:48 – Jo, Cat and their bodies 30:04 – Oppression: centering fatness 31:18 – Find Jo and Cat 32:55 – Outro

In this deeply personal and thought-provoking episode, Ninna is joined by author, activist, and future priest Amanda Martinez Beck to explore the powerful idea of diet culture as a religion. Together, they unpack how societal norms around body size, food, and morality mirror religious structures—and how we can begin to unlearn these harmful beliefs.From shared experiences of Catholicism and fat liberation to reflections on disability, theology, and representation, this conversation is rich with insight, vulnerability, and hope. Amanda and Ninna challenge the cultural narratives that equate thinness with virtue and fatness with failure, offering instead a vision of radical self-acceptance, spiritual abundance, and embodied joy. Mentioned in This Episode - Amanda’s books: - Lovely: How I Learned to Embrace the Body God Gave Me - More of You: The Fat Girl’s Field Guide to the Modern World - Amanda’s Substack: The Fat Dispatch - Fat and Faithful by Nicole Morgan - Fearing the Black Body by Sabrina Strings - Life of the Beloved by Henri Nouwen - Poodle Science by Stacy Bias (animated video) Connect with Amanda - Website: https://www.thefatdispatch.com/ - Instagram & Threads: @thefatdispatch Connect with Ninna - Website: https://www.thefatpsychologist.com/ - Instagram, Threads, Facebook, BlueSky: @thefatpsychologist Links on shownotes 💌 Get Involved - Want to be a guest? Reach out via the website or socials. - Have a question or topic idea? Send it in! - Interested in sponsoring the podcast? Ninna is actively seeking sponsors—get in touch! 00:00 Intro to The Fat Psychologist Podcast 01:31 Today's Episode: Diet Culture as a Religion  08:55 Amanda's Background and Fat Liberation Work 14:35 Diet Culture and Body Positivity  22:49 Diet Culture as Religion   31:18 Fat Representation in Religion 34:35 Embracing Fatness and Disability 37:31 Finding Happiness and Acceptance 40:41 Outro