Memorable Messages About Fat Bodies Before, During, and After Pregnancy

ABSTRACT

Weight bias is prevalent for people in large bodies who are trying to conceive, pregnant, or postpartum. Using the theory of memorable messages as a framework, we explored the sources, valence, and content of messages that fat individuals (N = 237) recalled about their bodies before pregnancy through the postpartum stage. The most common source of memorable messages was healthcare providers, and most (77.2%) messages were negatively valenced. Thematic analysis revealed four overarching themes (fat mothers are bad mothers, denial of competent treatment, weight-normative commentary on fat bodies, and weight-inclusive counter-narratives). Our findings illuminate the significance of patient-practitioner communication across the pregnancy trajectory and highlight how counter-narratives can disrupt negative messages about fat pregnancy.

Acknowledgment

The authors would like to extend their gratitude to Dr. Amy Delaney for her help in conceptualizing this study, her comments on drafts of the manuscript, and her advocacy for fat pregnant people.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. Because weight-inclusive research assumes there is no ideal weight set-point (e.g., body mass index), we avoid terms like “overweight” and “obese,” which medicalize weight and are based on weight-normative principles. Instead, we opt for descriptive language about weight (e.g., “higher weights”) and bodies (e.g., “larger bodies,” “fat,” “plus size”).

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.