Episode 227
Dec 27, 2025

Affirming All Bodies: Dismantling Anti-Fatness in Therapy and Everyday Life [featuring Sabrina Longley]

Hosted by: Patrick Casale
All Things Private Practice Podcast for Therapists

Show Notes

In this episode, Patrick Casale talks with Sabrina Longley about what it means to truly build a fat-affirming therapy practice. This topic is especially important as we head into the new year, and toxic resolution/fitness culture starts ramping up.

Here are 3 key takeaways:

  1. Assume Less, Listen More: Approaching clients from a place of curiosity rather than assumption is crucial. Don’t make judgments about health, habits, or desires based on body size.
  2. Representation Matters: The resources, images, and stories we use in our practices should reflect the identities and lived experiences of all bodies—including larger bodies. Take the time to diversify your media, office environment, and marketing materials.
  3. Challenge Industry Narratives: The weight loss industry cashes in on insecurity and shame—often with little focus on actual health. As providers, let's not become agents of these narratives. Instead, support every client’s autonomy, dignity, and humanity.

More about Sabrina:

Sabrina is passionate about offering lived and clinical experience support to both clients and other mental health providers related to topics including racial justice, neurodivergence, fat liberation, teen mental health, and DBT. She works to honor her own lived experience and the lived experiences of other marginalized folks to promote ethical and just mental health care.

 


🎙️Listen to more episodes of the All Things Private Practice Podcast here
🎙️Spotify

🎙️Apple

🎙️YouTube Music
▶️ YouTube
✈️ Check out available Retreats
🗨️ Join the free Empowered Escape FB Community
🗨️ Join the free All Things Private Practice FB Community


A Thanks to Our Sponsors: The Receptionist for iPad, AlmaPortland, Maine, Summit 2026& Resilient Mind Counseling!

The Receptionist for iPad

I want to thank The Receptionist for iPad for sponsoring this episode.

This podcast is sponsored by The Receptionist for iPad, a digital check-in system that eliminates the need to walk back and forth from your office to the waiting room to see if your next appointment has arrived. Clients can securely check-in for their appointments and you'll be immediately notified by text, email, or your preferred channel. Break free from interruptions and make the most of your time. I've been using them for almost three years now and it saves me hours in my week.

Start a 14-day free trial of The Receptionist for iPad by going to thereceptionist.com/privatepractice. Make sure to start your trial with that link. And you'll also get your first month free if you decide to sign up.

Alma

I want to thank Alma for sponsoring this episode.

Building and managing the practice you want can be challenging. That’s why Alma offers tools and resources to help you build not just any practice, but your private practice. They’ll help you navigate insurance, access referrals who are the right fit for you, and efficiently manage administrative tasks — so you can spend less time on the details and more time delivering great care. You support your clients. Alma supports you.

Visit helloalma.com/ATPP to learn more.

Portland, Maine, Summit 2026

 The 2026 Doubt Yourself Do It Anyway Summit is happening for the first time in the United States in beautiful Portland, Maine, on September 1st–3rd, 2026. Portland, Maine, is a beautiful coastal city in the Atlantic Ocean. There's a lot of history there, and it's a very funky, creative, safe, walkable, diverse, and progressive city. You will get 9 NBCC CEs. We have ASWB pending—we'll make an announcement when that's finalized—and have 13 prolific industry leaders. This summit has always been about showing that our skills are applicable in so many different ways, and to motivate you to think bigger, grow in this profession, take more risks, work through self-doubt, and really embrace the doubt-yourself-do-it-anyway mentality. Spots are limited. Reserve your spot here: empoweredescapes.com/portland-maine-summit
Doubt yourself. Do it anyway. See you in Maine.

Resilient Mind Counseling

My name is Patrick Casale, and I’m the founder of Resilient Mind Counseling, a neurodivergent-affirming group practice based in Asheville serving clients throughout North Carolina via telehealth and in-person sessions.

Our practice is passionate about supporting Autistic adults, ADHDers, and other neurodivergent individuals, along with the LGBTQIA+ community and folks experiencing anxiety, burnout, and life transitions. Many of our clinicians identify as neurodivergent themselves, and we pride ourselves on offering therapy that is affirming, authentic, and grounded in lived experience.


 

Transcript

[COMING SOON]

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All Things Private Practice Podcast for Therapists

Episode 227: Affirming All Bodies: Dismantling Anti-Fatness in Therapy and Everyday Life [featuring Sabrina Longley]

Show Notes

In this episode, Patrick Casale talks with Sabrina Longley about what it means to truly build a fat-affirming therapy practice. This topic is especially important as we head into the new year, and toxic resolution/fitness culture starts ramping up.

Here are 3 key takeaways:

  1. Assume Less, Listen More: Approaching clients from a place of curiosity rather than assumption is crucial. Don’t make judgments about health, habits, or desires based on body size.
  2. Representation Matters: The resources, images, and stories we use in our practices should reflect the identities and lived experiences of all bodies—including larger bodies. Take the time to diversify your media, office environment, and marketing materials.
  3. Challenge Industry Narratives: The weight loss industry cashes in on insecurity and shame—often with little focus on actual health. As providers, let's not become agents of these narratives. Instead, support every client’s autonomy, dignity, and humanity.

More about Sabrina:

Sabrina is passionate about offering lived and clinical experience support to both clients and other mental health providers related to topics including racial justice, neurodivergence, fat liberation, teen mental health, and DBT. She works to honor her own lived experience and the lived experiences of other marginalized folks to promote ethical and just mental health care.

 


🎙️Listen to more episodes of the All Things Private Practice Podcast here
🎙️Spotify

🎙️Apple

🎙️YouTube Music
▶️ YouTube
✈️ Check out available Retreats
🗨️ Join the free Empowered Escape FB Community
🗨️ Join the free All Things Private Practice FB Community


A Thanks to Our Sponsors: The Receptionist for iPad, AlmaPortland, Maine, Summit 2026& Resilient Mind Counseling!

The Receptionist for iPad

I want to thank The Receptionist for iPad for sponsoring this episode.

This podcast is sponsored by The Receptionist for iPad, a digital check-in system that eliminates the need to walk back and forth from your office to the waiting room to see if your next appointment has arrived. Clients can securely check-in for their appointments and you'll be immediately notified by text, email, or your preferred channel. Break free from interruptions and make the most of your time. I've been using them for almost three years now and it saves me hours in my week.

Start a 14-day free trial of The Receptionist for iPad by going to thereceptionist.com/privatepractice. Make sure to start your trial with that link. And you'll also get your first month free if you decide to sign up.

Alma

I want to thank Alma for sponsoring this episode.

Building and managing the practice you want can be challenging. That’s why Alma offers tools and resources to help you build not just any practice, but your private practice. They’ll help you navigate insurance, access referrals who are the right fit for you, and efficiently manage administrative tasks — so you can spend less time on the details and more time delivering great care. You support your clients. Alma supports you.

Visit helloalma.com/ATPP to learn more.

Portland, Maine, Summit 2026

 The 2026 Doubt Yourself Do It Anyway Summit is happening for the first time in the United States in beautiful Portland, Maine, on September 1st–3rd, 2026. Portland, Maine, is a beautiful coastal city in the Atlantic Ocean. There's a lot of history there, and it's a very funky, creative, safe, walkable, diverse, and progressive city. You will get 9 NBCC CEs. We have ASWB pending—we'll make an announcement when that's finalized—and have 13 prolific industry leaders. This summit has always been about showing that our skills are applicable in so many different ways, and to motivate you to think bigger, grow in this profession, take more risks, work through self-doubt, and really embrace the doubt-yourself-do-it-anyway mentality. Spots are limited. Reserve your spot here: empoweredescapes.com/portland-maine-summit
Doubt yourself. Do it anyway. See you in Maine.

Resilient Mind Counseling

My name is Patrick Casale, and I’m the founder of Resilient Mind Counseling, a neurodivergent-affirming group practice based in Asheville serving clients throughout North Carolina via telehealth and in-person sessions.

Our practice is passionate about supporting Autistic adults, ADHDers, and other neurodivergent individuals, along with the LGBTQIA+ community and folks experiencing anxiety, burnout, and life transitions. Many of our clinicians identify as neurodivergent themselves, and we pride ourselves on offering therapy that is affirming, authentic, and grounded in lived experience.


 

Transcript

[COMING SOON]

FREE PRIVATE PRACTICE GUIDE

Join the weekly newsletter for private practice tips, podcast updates, special offers, & your free private practice startup guide!

We will not spam you or share your information. You can unsubscribe at any time.

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