Challenging Diet Culture in the Therapy Room

Diet culture and weight stigma are pervasive forces that shape how individuals view themselves, others, and health. These harmful norms show up in therapy rooms across all specialties, not just in the treatment of eating disorders.

From body-image concerns to anxiety, depression, trauma, and more, the impacts of these societal pressures often influence our clients’ thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

As therapists, we are uniquely positioned to disrupt these narratives and promote a more inclusive, body-affirming approach. You don’t need to specialize in eating disorders to recognize the ways diet culture and weight stigma affect mental health—or to respond with compassion, curiosity, and care. This post explores practical, weight-inclusive strategies that all therapists can integrate into their work to help clients heal their relationship with food and their bodies.

1. Engage in Self-Reflection and Ongoing Training

Start by examining your own relationship to body norms and weight bias.

• Conduct a self-audit. Look at how your practice environment and language might unintentionally reinforce weight stigma. Consider your intake forms, waiting room resources, and how weight is discussed in sessions.
• Acknowledge personal bias. We all absorb cultural messages about weight, health, and eating. Reflect on how your beliefs and training may have shaped your perspectives—and how those might show up with clients.
• Pursue ongoing education. Seek training in Health at Every Size (HAES), body liberation, and culturally responsive care. This will strengthen your ability to create a trauma-informed, inclusive therapeutic space.
• Create a welcoming environment. Ensure that your space affirms people of all body sizes and identities. This includes accessible furniture, body-positive or body-neutral resources, and removing diet-focused materials.

2. Use Non-Diet, Weight-Inclusive Language and Approaches

The words we use in therapy matter deeply.

• Avoid moralizing food. Ditch labels like “clean,” “junk,” or “bad” food. Instead, use neutral terms that reduce shame and honor individual experiences.
• Model body neutrality. Shift focus from appearance to internal experiences. Invite clients to explore how food feels and functions in their lives rather than framing it in terms of”good” or “bad.”
• Rethink measures of progress. Frame progress around emotional insight, body trust, and values-based living, not weight or appearance.

3. Educate and Empower Clients

Therapists can play a crucial role in helping clients unlearn diet culture.

• Name diet culture. Help clients recognize how societal messages about weight and food shape their sense of worth, even if they’re not actively dieting.
• Normalize body diversity. Affirm that bodies come in all shapes and sizes. Challenge the myth that thinness equals health or value.
• Debunk health myths. Emphasize that health is multidimensional and not determined by appearance. Help clients focus on sustainable, compassionate self-care.

4. Support Clients in Building a More Peaceful Relationship with Food and Body

Many clients struggle with food and body image in ways that may not be obvious at first.

• Encourage intuitive eating principles. Support clients in reconnecting with hunger, fullness, and satisfaction. Help them tune in rather than follow external rules.
• Introduce body gratitude. Where appropriate, invite clients to notice what their bodies do, not just how they look. This can be especially helpful in times of stress or anxiety.
• Foster self-compassion. Offer tools that help clients respond to their bodies and behaviors with kindness, especially when they’re navigating difficult emotions or self-judgment.

5. Advocate Beyond the Therapy Room

Our impact extends beyond the individuals we see in session.

• Speak up against weight stigma. Challenge discriminatory practices in healthcare, education, and professional communities.
• Promote systemic change. Advocate for weight-inclusive training and policies that improve access and equity in mental health care.

• Model inclusive values. Use respectful, affirming language in your professional life. Your example can ripple outward and influence colleagues, institutions, and clients.

Conclusion

Diet culture and weight stigma impact nearly all aspects of mental health care, whether or not eating disorders are part of a client’s diagnosis. Therapists have a powerful opportunity to counteract these harmful norms by creating spaces where clients can feel safe, seen, and supported in their bodies. By practicing reflection, using inclusive language, educating clients, and advocating for change, we contribute to a culture of care where every body is respected.

These steps aren’t limited to a particular diagnosis or specialty; they’re part of showing up ethically and thoughtfully for the people we serve.

Let’s move toward body liberation, one session at a time.

To find a therapist, visit the Psychology Today Therapy Directory.