Food Psych #214: Fatphobia, Eating-Disorder Recovery, PCOS, and Food Peace with Kimmie Singh

Photographer: Khali MacIntyre

Fellow anti-diet dietitian and friend of the pod Kimmie Singh joins us to discuss her experiences being diagnosed and living with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), fatphobia and racism in healthcare and dietetics training, how reframing beauty ideals helped in her eating-disorder recovery, why eating-disorder providers need to talk to their clients about fatphobia, and so much more! Plus, Christy answers a listener question about how to get schools to stop teaching disordered-eating behaviors to kids. 

Kimmie Singh is a fat Registered Dietitian-Nutritionist based in New York City. She completed her Bachelor of Science in Physics from St. John’s University, her Master of Science in Nutrition at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and her Dietetic Internship from The City University of New York-Hunter College. Kimmie is an associate at LK Nutrition, a Health at Every Size private practice that supports people to heal their relationships with food and body. Kimmie specializes in Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome and co-hosted the PCOS and Food Peace Podcast. She also presents and consults on the harmful effects of weight stigma in dietetics, eating disorder treatment, and healthcare. Kimmie is a believer in kindness, compassion, and the power of advocacy. Find her online at BodyPositiveDietitian.com.

We Discuss:

  • Kimmie’s relationship with food and body growing up, and how it was influenced by her size, racial identity, and age

  • The desire to assimilate and belong, and the importance of representation and connection

  • The nuances of thin privilege

  • Her experience with being diagnosed, and living with, polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)

  • Common symptoms of PCOS, and why it’s problematic that difficulty conceiving is often named as the main symptom 

  • The patriarchy and ableism inherent in common narratives of PCOS and other chronic illnesses

  • Self-compassion, and its importance in managing chronic illness

  • The lack of resources for trans folks with PCOS

  • Kimmie’s experience with fatphobia and racism in the medical system

  • Her “diet rock bottom,” and what motivated her to pursue eating-disorder treatment

  • Reframing the idea of beauty, and its role in her recovery

  • How relationships can change in eating-disorder recovery

  • How she started unlearning her internalized fatphobia

  • How intuitive eating motivated her to become a dietitian

  • Fatphobia in dietetics training, and how Kimmie contributed to a Health At Every Size® rotation at her university

  • Navigating dietetics training as a fat person recovering from an eating-disorder

  • The lack of fat representation in dietetics and intuitive eating, and why it’s important to have more fat providers

  • Why eating-disorder providers need to talk about fatphobia with their clients

  • Having difficult conversations

  • Fatphobia amongst healthcare providers, including ones who claim that they are anti-weight stigma while providing “weight management”

  • Physical manifestations of fatphobia

Resources Mentioned

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Listener Question of the Week

How can we get schools to stop teaching disordered-eating beliefs and behaviors to our children? What are some strategies for telling teachers and staff that calorie counting is harmful? Why is calorie counting unnecessary, especially for children? How can food restriction for any reason lead to The Restriction Pendulum? What makes food restriction harmful for children? What are some ways that schools are contributing to diet culture, and in turn harming our children? What are some resources that can be shared with teachers and school staff?

Resources Mentioned:

 
Christy HarrisonFatphobia, racism, assimilation, thin privilege, polycystic ovarian syndrome, PCOS, patriarchy, ableism, chronic disease, chronic illness, self-compassion, eating-disorder recovery, eating disorders, intuitive eating, dietetics, healthcare, medicine, Health At Every Size, representation, intersectionality, children, schools, teachers, restriction, diet culture, S719