Food Psych #210: Finding Comfort in a Larger Body with J Aprileo

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Fat activist and Comfy Fat founder J Aprileo joins us to discuss how to find comfort in a larger body without weight loss; how improving accessibility for fat people can benefit people of all sizes; how fatphobia shows up in progressive spaces and in healthcare; the intersections of gender identity, body size, and body acceptance; learning to embrace their nonbinary identity without shrinking their body; and so much more! Plus, Christy answers a listener question about how to deal with plantar fasciitis (and why weight loss is NOT the answer). 

J is a nonbinary freelance writer and the founder of Comfy Fat, a site dedicated to sharing resources for plus-size people, trans advocacy, and the intersections of size and gender. J creates content not only to help make the world a little more accessible for fat folks, but also to try and just be the representation they wish they'd had growing up. They live in the midwest with their partner Corissa of Fat Girl Flow, two lovely pups, and one very independent calico cat. Find them online at ComfyFat.com.

We Discuss:

  • How being placed on a diet at a young age affected J’s relationship with food and body

  • Disembodiment, and how it can be a survival mechanism

  • The factors that contributed to their eating disorder

  • Healthism, and how it intersects with diet culture

  • The effect of growing up in poverty on J’s relationship with food

  • How parents’ relationship with food can affect their children

  • The intersections of gender identity, body size, and body acceptance

  • The importance of intersectional representation in LGBTQ+ communities

  • Complicating the “born this way” narrative, and how the belief that our life path is set in childhood can shut down self-discovery

  • How certain environments can nurture self-discovery

  • Fatphobia, particularly in progressive spaces and in healthcare

  • How movement helped J reconnect with their body

  • How fatphobia contributes to unrealistic beauty standards for trans and non-binary folks

  • The harmful belief that weight loss is necessary for a gender transition

  • What inspired J to coin the phrase “Comfy Fat,” and eventually turn it into a website

  • Southwest Airlines’ passenger of size policy

  • Comfy Fat’s mission to share resources on accessibility for fat people

  • How to find comfort in a larger body without weight loss 

  • Self-advocacy as a tool for problem-solving in an unjust world

  • Shame, and how it can be a barrier to advocacy

  • How improving accessibility can benefit people of all sizes

  • The untapped market for fat accessibility

Resources Mentioned

Some of the links below are affiliate links. Affiliates or not, we only recommend products and services that align with our values.

Listener Question of the Week

How can someone deal with plantar fasciitis without losing weight? Why is weight loss not a valid intervention for plantar fasciitis, or any other medical condition? Can thin people get plantar fasciitis? What are some possible causes of plantar fasciitis? What are some ways to treat plantar fasciitis for people of any size? How can thin privilege affect the medical care that people receive? Why is it important to meet with a doctor as opposed to self-diagnosis? What can a person do if a doctor is focused on weight?

Resources Mentioned:

 
Christy HarrisonDieting, diet culture, diet mentality, disembodiment, eating disorders, disordered eating, healthism, poverty, food insecurity, parenting, family, children, gender identity, body acceptance, LGBTQ, self-discovery, fatphobia, weight stigma, movement, advocacy, accessibility, problem-solving, shame, plantar fasciitis, healthcare, medical care, thin privilege, S719