Why Are We Enabling This

A woman weighs 600 pounds. She cannot walk. She cannot bathe herself. She cannot leave her bed. Her caregivers bring her food. Her followers send her money. She posts videos from her bed. She talks about body positivity. No one tells her the truth. No one wants to be called fatphobic. The woman is dying. Her followers are helping her die faster.In this episode, I examine the culture of enabling that has grown up around the fat acceptance movement. The movement has done important work in reducing stigma. But it has also created an environment where people are afraid to tell the truth about obesity. Doctors are called fatphobic for recommending weight loss. Family members are called haters for expressing concern. The result is a generation of people who are dying of preventable diseases because no one wants to hurt their feelings.The episode explores the difference between support and enabling. Support helps people get better. Enabling helps people stay sick. The fat acceptance movement has blurred the line. The people who claim to be helping are actually harming. The episode calls for a return to honesty. The truth may hurt. But it also heals.Turn down the lights, put on your headphones, and press play because enabling is not kindness. It is cruelty disguised as compassion.