#110: From Weight-Loss Surgery Dietitian to Anti-Diet Dietitian with Kirsten Ackerman Morrison, RD

Kirsten Morrison (@intuitive_rd on Instagram) joins us this week on the pod to discuss her experience as a former weight loss surgery dietitian. We explore the consequences on physical and mental health, her journey from working in bariatrics to now specializing in intuitive eating, how dietitians often experience their own disordered eating, and the overlap of disordered eating and bariatric surgery.

I really appreciate Kirsten’s perspective as someone that was closely involved in the weight-loss surgery practice. She and I discuss her firsthand observations on the process and its impact on the patients involved.

Whether or not you have had weight-loss surgery or are considering it, I hope you listen to this episode. This is by no means a conversation that spans this entire topic, as we want to have folks on here with lived experience with the surgery soon. But I hope it's an informative and helpful discussion about the realities of weight-loss surgery from the perspective of someone who worked in a clinic. Our goal here is to provide you with the information you need to make an informed, compassionate decision for yourself and your body, always. 

Tune in to hear more about…

• Role of a dietitian in clinics offering bariatric surgery and lack of consistent post-operative support for patients

• Lack of informed consent in weight loss interventions

• Patients not fully informed about potential side effects and outcomes

• Pressure to undergo bariatric surgery as the "gold standard" solution

• Blaming and shaming culture surrounding weight loss efforts

• Ineffectiveness of weight loss surgeries in some cases

• Patients not achieving expected weight loss results post-surgery

• Surgical interventions not addressing underlying issues with food relationships

• Upgrading surgeries or blaming patients for lack of success

• Problematic approach of trying to eliminate hunger cues

• Red flags in trying to suppress a necessary biological cue

• Negative impact on food relationships and potential for binge eating

• Restrictive diets post-surgery exacerbating food-related issues

• How suppressing hunger cues doesn't work in the long run and leads to emotional, mental, and physical struggles

• The definition of "success" in weight loss surgeries and the misleading statistics often used to measure success

• Acknowledging privilege, stressing body autonomy, and exploring alternatives such as healing relationships with food and body image

Kirsten Morrisson is an Anti-Diet Registered Dietitian and Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor. She is the Host of Intuitive Bites Podcast and runs her own virtual private practice helping women heal their relationships to food and body. Visit her online at @theintuitive_rd (Instagram), theintuitiverd.com and her podcast, Intuitive Bites.

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Podcast Cover Photography by Anya McInroy

Podcast Editing by Brian Walters

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