To make a long story short I am a student and I write quite a bit about the experience of becoming a nurse.
So with that being said I have decided due to some recent developments that I am going to write about the cultural war on fat focused on nursing.
I am acquainted with a woman who is a critical care nurse. I have to tolerate her toxic presence in my life due to her association with my dude's friend. Now, I would like to mention I am no small girl and have gained and lost, and gained again 100lbs. I have finally gotten to the point where I am not beating myself up about it and see efforts now as a matter of love for my body rather than hate. Recently she said this (to me of all people), "I hate fat people so much. They smell, they are hard to move around, and I think they should all die in a hole somewhere."
A member of my clinical group said, "You know these doctors will get upset at the COPD patient who is smoking like three cigarettes a day but say nothing to these fatties who don't follow their diets." I stood up, looked very serious for a moment and said, "HEY! I am one of those fatties that don't follow their diet." Then we went a few rounds with her saying she wasn't talking about me because I am "an attractive fatty."
What does my face have to do with my extra 100lbs? Seriously?
In any case I'd like an open dialog about the war on fat in nursing.
Do you see it in your practice? Are you militant anti-fat? If so why?
I've noticed that a good deal of the arguments that I've heard is fat is unhealthy, yet no one seems to see fat as being a symptom and not the disease.
There is a campaign called HEALTH AT EVERY SIZE which is in total agreement with this article. I recommend it! This blatant prejudice needs to be addressed!
I'd be interested in the study that found this, particularly what other factors were controlled for when making the comparison? Did it control for days of missed work? How did it control for the quality of PERFORMANCE of the "same" skill set? (e.g. I know that as I gained weight, I became slower, which I didn't realize until I began to lose weight and saw how much faster I could do some things.) There are just so many factors that go into deciding whether someone "deserves" a pay raise and/or promotion.
That said, I would not be surprised to find that there is at least some degree of discrimination (whether conscious or unconscious) against obese employees. I just wonder what percentage of that pay differential is due to discrimination vs other factors.
about 3/4s of the way down is the $6700 part, and it attributes it to the National Organization for Women foundation, but no specific realease (just "NOW Foundation nd")
Googling NOW Foundation 6700 didn't bring anything remotely connected, so I'm thinking it;s just one of those made up BS figures.
I am a student...Calories in, calories out. It ain't rocket science, but it is critical to your health and to avoid bad things happening that burden not just you and your family, but the health care system. Willpower and discipline is required. Simple as that.
You may need to do a little more studying on current obesity research that is finding that it may be considerably more complex than that.
"It is my professional responsibility to discuss the risks associated with unhealthy behaviors. I have probably lost patients over it. I don't care."
While I can see where you are coming from, I wonder how effective this approach can be if you are losing patients? Obesity, after all, is just one risk factor. Maybe you could help your patients achieve what they are actually capable of? It isn't as if most obese people have never tried to diet! The original post, for example, is from someone who lost an extraordinary amount of weight and gained it back. Yes, you have a responsibility to discuss risks with your patients, but don't we all also have a responsibility to evaluate the effectiveness of our interventions? Who is benefiting from the hard line you are taking?
Specializes in Trauma, ER, ICU, CCU, PACU, GI, Cardiology, OR.
pursuing the issue on hand, there comes a time that one has to accept their natural body dna. in order words their heritage, let me explain myself, it's like having high cholesterol even though you exercise and keep a sensible diet you still overweight and not sastifying your doctors suggestive bmi number. having said that, one also has to consider other factors that may predispose you to be overweight. however, i'm not suggesting by any means that this is an excuse, for those to stop their healthy regimen and eat till they drop. furthermore, the media, society, magazines, commercials, and lately some facilities are included on the war of fat. although, i don't approve on how the media portraits the overweight individuals, they are always the lonely characters in any given scenario or the loser. moreover, as a seasoned nurse i have encountered very healthy over weight people, and on the other hand some thin individuals with a cholesterol of 295 extremely unhealthy. unquestionably, what i'm trying to convey is that we as a society must stop the madness and embrace other people for what they are, don't place judgement base on their appearances. with that said, i'm aware that we as nurses must set an example to our pts. however, without losing ourselves and portraying a mirage base on society's image of beauty and health, which can lead to self destruction if one can't obtain societies approval. in conclusion, we must accept reality that humans come in many forms, shapes, and color, and stop the cycle of the nazi regiment if you will, in order to have a society of & barbie's and ken's.
All people deserve our very best care. Tall or short, skinny or fat, old or young. It shouldn't matter. We can always be nice. Of course we want people to be healthy and develop good healthy habits but I don't think badly or talk about my patients because they are overweight and neither does any other nurses on my unit.
You know I appreciated other POV's about this topic...but as an overweight person..obviously I both notice and hate the discrimination...and the only place I ever experienced it was in the medical field, especially nursing school.
I feel the problem is that we psych ourselves out...(with all the media and ect) to the point that it seems soooo impossible to lose weight, ect...When in reality it takes some work..but it is certainly not impossible..and that is the attitude we should be approaching it with.
However...people who haven't been there don't realize that once you get to a certain point with your weight, esp. if you have ANY kind if musculoskeletal injury, which then do not heal well, Like me, it can be really painful to exercise, even if you have the energy, and the will power. I hurt myself with anything too vigorous, am constantly having to wrap ankles and knees just so I can get through my walks...so it is a loooooong slow process for me (I currently hike about 15-20 miles per week even though I weight 330). It is extremely hard to lose weight just by eating low cal..Last time I tried just that I lost so much muscle mass that I had a hard time supporting my own weight anymore and had no energy. So I have come to terms with the fact that the only way I can lose weight is a little at a time...And I think that when you are talking about maintaining a low cal diet over a period of maybe years for some people..many people are going to have a hard time doing that. But lucky for me, I am a nurse, and I have the knowledge and tools I need, and willpower. Imagine!...Its actually my DREAM not to be thin, or cute, but just Healthy and In Shape and be able to do all the things I want to do with ease.
Most of my weight was gained prior to becoming a nurse. I did not gain my weight overnight...just 10 or so pounds per year..but over 10 or more years, that added up. I have always been active but i just like to eat, didnt understand calorie intake vs energy burned too well.or realize even though I wasnt eating huge amounts..what I did eat, apparently had alot of calories.
But If you met me on the street...trust me, you would think I don't try.....that I just sit home and eat all day, and that I dont care..you would never see that I spend many hours per week trying to get my weight down...I guess their is my biggest gripe...its hard enough to put that kind of work into making a major life change to start, but then to get the negative attitudes you get...it does not make it any easier. How about someone noticing the positive changes I am making once in awhile? People just make assumptions about you...that you are lazy or stupid or slow..without even knowing you..(AKA the Hiring problem) I "pull my weight" on the job, LOL, believe me..because I do not want those labels. I do every bit of the physical work as well as anyone else on the job. I resent that this is AMERICA...I thought that we decided that we are not going to discriminate in this country...all these other groups have protections...but not me? Not in the workplace? Its embarrassing so most overweight people do not want to fight this fight. Thats why it is acceptable....We need to be more vocal.
I am sorry for what some will feel is Too Much Information in this post but believe me when I say I already feel grossed out and stupid enough about this and I take full responsibility........I did this to myself..but I just thought maybe it would be helpful to share my perspective in an honest way.
i have never encountered a nurse with a militant anti-fat view. however, maybe if we adopt this view on obesity there will be less obese patients. i am an rn who is 86 lbs overweight and i just lost 15 lbs over the past month or so because i'm tired of being unhealthy and i don't like the negative message its sending to my patients. how can we expect our patients to take us seriously when we look like the exact thing we are preaching against. i am happy that you love yourself and your body but you need to be honest with yourself. fact: obesity is unhealthy! fact: obesity increases your risk for disease! this is what we should be preaching to our patients. some nurses may have a more abrasive approach when discussing obesity. maybe that's what we need to hear. the truth! the way i see it, obese people (including myself) needs to stop whining when someone hurts our feeling about being fat and get off of our a$$es and lose weight.
i have never encountered a nurse with a militant anti-fat view. however, maybe if we adopt this view on obesity there will be less obese patients.
do you really think shaming people is going to improve their behavior? most obese/fat people i know feel very ashamed and are quite aware that being obese is bad for them. people aren't stupid, they know that obesity is unhealthy. the problem is that treatments for obesity aren't particularly compelling.
sure, everyone can knuckle down and lose 10-20 pounds in a short period of time by working hard and eating less... but is that sustainable? can a person do that for months on end? once they get sick of feeling hungry and tired all the time, then what? how will they prevent the weight from coming back on, which it almost always does?
That's a myth, a lie, or outright hippie propaganda... take your pick.
I'm a "huge fat guy", and have been to ther hospital for injury a few times, (mainly stitches from doing stupid things, not weight related crap) but it's been over 15 years since I've been there for illness.
I average one sick day at work every second year.
What are your stats like?
andy, are you serious about obesity not increasing risk of disease/illness?
i don't know how old you are, but would be curious to see how your health sustains in your senior years.
obesity costs us all.
if that makes me insensitive, so be it...
but i personally, am incredibly frustrated with the state of our nation.
exorbitant healthcare costs, and increasing obesity.
and, i tire of having to walk on eggshells because *we* lack sensitivity or empathy or compassion for obese people and the subsequent CRISIS.
andy, here is the info you seek about health risks assoc with obesity.
i truly wish it was all a myth.
i seriously pray our govt, insurance companies, food marketers and the people, all focus on reversing the atrocities that are actively growing in our country.
YorkshirePudding
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There is a campaign called HEALTH AT EVERY SIZE which is in total agreement with this article. I recommend it! This blatant prejudice needs to be addressed!