Why the Lancet Report Is a Significant Step: A Lived Experience Perspective
Why the Lancet Report Is a Significant Step: A Lived Experience Perspective
When I say I bring a lived experience perspective to discussions about obesity, it’s worth noting that I’ve had access to some incredibly well-placed medical professionals who’ve helped answer my questions. However, my insights are rooted in something deeper—decades of firsthand experience living with obesity during the 1980s and 1990s, a time when understanding and empathy around the condition were far from what they are today. Growing up, I wasn’t referred to as a person with obesity. Instead, I was often subjected to cruel labels, even by relatives who were leaders in the church I attended. Being called a “fat f***” during my formative years wasn’t just hurtful—it was dehumanising. But surviving that kind of stigma taught me resilience. The first time I encountered the term "obesity" in a medical context was when an emergency doctor wrote to my general practitioner (GP), describing me not just as “obese” but as “morbidly obese.” My GP initially dismissed the “morbid” part as unnecessarily harsh. At the time, even he didn’t fully grasp that it was a medical diagnosis. Later, after consulting his colleagues, he corrected himself at my next appointment and focused on diet and exercise as the solution. What he didn’t acknowledge was that I was already on high doses of pain medication for chronic back pain—220 mg of oral morphine equivalent daily—which made exercising nearly impossible. The suggestion to simply “move more and eat less” felt not only dismissive but entirely out of touch with the realities of my situation. One particularly scarring moment was when a doctor in the emergency department told me, as I lay in agony, that I “obviously didn’t care about my health” and shouldn’t waste their time by coming back. Moments like these reflect the stigma many of us face when seeking help for a condition that is now recognised as a chronic disease. Fast forward to today, and the release of the Lancet report feels like a monumental shift. It offers guidelines that recognise obesity as a complex, chronic condition requiring nuanced diagnosis and treatment. This progress excites me, but I’ve noticed a divided response among medical professionals—some celebrate the report, while others downplay its significance. To those who believe stigma no longer exists in healthcare: I urge you to step outside your office and engage with people living with obesity. Their lived experiences tell a different story. For years, I lived with a BMI that classified me as obese but experienced few physical complications—until I did. By the time my condition significantly impacted my health, the only advice I could get was “diet and exercise.” This approach, while well-meaning, failed to address the complexities of my situation. Today, we’re seeing a shift in how obesity is understood—not just as a result of personal choices but as a multifaceted medical condition. If you’re a medical professional and you don’t embrace this evolving perspective, you risk perpetuating the very stigma that the Lancet report aims to combat. For those of us who’ve lived through the stigma, these changes represent hope. They signal progress towards a future where people with obesity are treated with the dignity and understanding they deserve.
You can check out the lancet report here
