Compassionate Approaches to Eating Disorders in Higher Weight Bodies

1 day, In Person, Workshop

Naarm, Melbourne

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Empower Your Practice and Support Clients in Higher Weight Bodies

Are you a health professional who works with individuals struggling with eating disorders?

Gain the tools, knowledge , and confidence to provide compassionate, weight-inclusive care to clients in higher weight bodies.

In this transformative course, we’ll explore the impact of weight bias in healthcare, guide you in creating safe, inclusive spaces for your clients, and teach you how to shift your approach to treatment by challenging harmful weight-centric practices. You’ll also learn how to navigate sensitive topics like body image, oppression, and the anger and grief often experienced by those facing societal discrimination.

Whether you’re a therapist, dietitian, counsellor, or other healthcare provider, this workshop will help you build a more inclusive, trauma-informed practice and empower you to become an advocate for systemic change in healthcare. Let’s work together to dismantle weight stigma and provide healing that truly honours the diverse experiences of those in higher weight bodies.

Join us in transforming your approach to eating disorders—because everybody deserves compassionate care!

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IS this workshop for you?

Do you struggle with how to discuss bodies in a way that feels empowering, not harmful?

Do you find yourself unsure how to help clients in higher weight bodies without reinforcing harmful stereotypes?

Learn how to navigate conversations about bodies with sensitivity and respect, create a safe, inclusive environment, and support clients in higher weight bodies in their healing journey. You'll discover how to shift evidence-based treatments to be inclusive; celebrating body diversity and fostering self-compassion. Learn how to address weight stigma, navigate challenging conversations, and create a supportive, safe space. 

Whether you’re a counsellor, therapist, dietitian, or any health professional, you’ll leave with the tools to help, not harm, and empower your clients through their eating disorder recovery.

Workshop Content 

Learning objectives [CB1]  : 

1.     To understand and analyse the historical and socio-cultural roots to fat phobia within eating disorder treatment and care

2.     To identify eating disorder safe principles when working with people in a higher weight body 

3.     To utilise communication that is empowering, de-pathologizing and person-centred

This course will be highly interactive encouraging reflective skill and provide new tools to empower your practice and skills. A number of resources will e suggested for you and your clients to use ongoing. 

Workshop Outline

Client Connection

Creating Safe and Supportive Spaces for Higher Weight Clients

• Practical tips for building a space that acknowledges and supports individuals in higher weight bodies (both in-person and virtual settings)
  
  

• Non-judgmental language: How to be mindful and inclusive of body size when communicating with clients virtually and in session.
  
  

Client Assessment Considerations

• How to assess eating disorders and other co-occurring mental health issues while acknowledging weight bias
  

• Supporting clients in developing their own body narrative: empowering them to understand and reclaim their story
  

• Navigating language: From “ob$%^ity” to “higher weight” — understanding the implications of terminology
  

• Discussing the intersection of body oppression and eating disorders
  

• Managing our own biases as clinicians, recognizing how we, too, exist within the system of weight bias
  
  

Sitting with Clients’ Anger, Grief, and Acceptance

• How to support clients in processing anger and grief as part of their healing journey
  

• The significance of acknowledging and validating the emotional toll of living in a higher weight body
  

• Tools for helping clients work through these emotions without rushing toward resolution.

Supporting Acceptance of the Body

• Facilitating self-compassion and body acceptance, moving away from the pursuit of weight loss
  

• Working through body image challenges in a compassionate, non-judgmental way
  Embracing and celebrating body diversity
  

• Shifting the blame from the individual to societal structures and systems of oppression; Supporting clients in expressing anger toward societal systems that have harmed them
  

Exploring barriers to Weight-Inclusive Care

• Recognizing the obstacles for consumers to access and clinicians to provide effective, weight-inclusive support
  

• Tools for advocating for clients within the healthcare system and fighting against weight-based discrimination
  

• Evidence-Based Treatments for Eating Disorders Through a Weight-Inclusive Lens
  

• A critical examination of traditional eating disorder treatments: Are they weight-inclusive?
  

• Exploring possible  weight-neutral or weight-inclusive adaptations 
  

• Case studies
  
  

Where to from Here?

• What steps can participants  take to move beyond the traditional weight-centered approaches to care?

• Building a community of practice around weight-inclusive treatment for eating disorders
  

• How can we, as professionals, advocate for systemic changes in health policy and practice?

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All the Details 

Dates:

Saturday 21 st June 2025 

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Wednesday 27th August 2025 

Max 12 participants per day

Location:

Eat Love Live/ Exhale Consulting Suites 

101/134-136 Cambridge St 

Collingwood, Melbourne VIC 3095 

Cost: $420 (AU) inclusive GST 

For our inaugural workshop cohort we will be offering a special price of $420  which will include not only the in-person workshop but also access to our online course 'I have done the basic ED training now what' valued at $325 (AU)

This is a total value of $745 for $420

What's included in the Cost:

• Attendance for the day 
• Morning Tea and Afternoon Tea and Lunch 
• Online, life long accsess to our online course: 

"I've done the basic training: now what?

Intermediate skills in supporting individuals with eating disorders.

Is this course suitable for me?

Suitable for all Health practitioners currently working with clients with disordered eating and eating disorders .

Ideally Have completed Introductory Training (in an NEDC approved course): Introduction to Eating Disorders for Health Professionals training

and

Treatment Provision Training (in an NEDC approved course): For your profession.

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Your Workshop Facilitators:

Still Not Sure this is the right course for you ?

THis course is for all Health Practitioners who:

1. Work with individuals affected by eating disorders, including psychologists, Gp, Nurses, Psychiatrists, therapists, counselors, dietitians, and social workers, seeking to expand their knowledge and tools in weight-inclusive care.

2. Are committed to exploring, understanding and addressing weight bias in healthcare and want to learn how to provide more inclusive, compassionate care to clients of all body sizes.

3. Want to create safe and supportive spaces for individuals in higher weight bodies, ensuring their clients feel seen, respected, and empowered in both physical and virtual settings.

4. Seek to understand the intersection of weight stigma, body image, and mental health, and are curious to reflect on treatment that addresses these complex issues without reinforcing harmful societal norms.

5. Are interested in adapting and challenging traditional treatment approaches to eating disorders by incorporating weight-neutral and evidence-based practices into their clinical work.

6. Desire to deepen their practice by engaging in ongoing reflection and learning about how their own biases might impact client care, and how they can actively dismantle weight stigma within their practice.

This workshop is for any health professional who is passionate about providing inclusive, supportive, and trauma-informed care to individuals in higher weight bodies and is looking to make a meaningful difference in their clients’ lives.

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Check our some of ELL Education's other Resources: 

Welcome to Eat Love Live Education   What to Expect from ELL Education	Radical Client Centred Frame work	"I've done the basic training: now what? Intermediate skills in supporting individuals with eating disorders.
Digital Client Resource package For dietitians and Allied Health Professionals supporting individuals with disordered eating and eating disorders  24 Educational Handouts + 7 where to find more information resources +2 bonus client worksheets	"What I wish I knew as an emerging dietitian in the eating disorders and mental health spaces." Free Recording to watch of a panel with experienced dietitians working in Mental Health and Eating Disorders reflecting on what they wish they could tell their younger selves.
THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON BODY IMAGE  Supporting young people in a digital landscape	Understanding supervision - the key to improving your practice Supervision is recognised by many dietitians & health practitioners as one of the most important factors in reducing burnout & improving quality of care provided to clients. But what exactly is supervision? Who is it suitable for? And what can you expect ?

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