Diabetes in a Fat Body: Navigating Stigma, Care, & Self-Trust With Amanda Martinez Beck @thefatdispatch

In this soul-nourishing and deeply insightful episode, Dr. Marianne Miller sits down with fat liberationist author and activist Amanda Martinez Beck to unpack what it really means to live with diabetes in a fat body—especially in a medical system steeped in anti-fat bias.

Amanda shares her personal journey of being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes while navigating eating disorder recovery, medical gaslighting, and societal pressure around weight loss drugs like Ozempic. She reflects on how reclaiming the word “fat,” grounding her activism in faith and philosophy, and building fat community have supported her in choosing self-trust over shame. You’ll hear about her healing journey, her shift from size dignity to fat liberation, and her vision of a world designed with fat people in mind.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why diabetes stigma in fat bodies is so dangerous—and so common

• The liberating power of community with other fat people

• How Amanda's beliefs as a Christian and a philosopher shape her body politics

• Her experience with Ozempic, including what led her to stop taking it

• The emotional toll of medical fatphobia—and how she found a weight-inclusive doctor

• The birth of her substack series Nozempic Mondays, a haven for people resisting GLP-1 pressure

If you’ve ever felt dismissed by providers, pressured to shrink your body for “health,” or like your needs in a fat body are invisible—this episode is for you. You are not alone. You deserve care that honors your whole self.

CONTENT CAUTIONS:
Discussion of weight loss, eating disorders, diabetes, Ozempic, and medical trauma.

GUEST BIO:
Amanda Martinez Beck is a fat author, disability advocate, and fat liberationist whose work centers on embodiment, faith, and justice. She writes The Fat Dispatch on Substack and is the author of Lovely: How I Learned to Embrace the Body God Gave Me and More of You: The Fat Girl’s Field Guide to the Modern World. She also hosts Nozempic Mondays, a resource for people navigating GLP-1 medications in weight-stigmatizing environments.

CONNECT WITH AMANDA:

• Substack: thefatdispatch.com

• Instagram: @thefatdispatch

• Threads: @thefatdispatch

WORK WITH DR. MARIANNE:
Dr. Marianne Miller is a licensed eating disorder therapist offering therapy in California, Texas, and Washington, D.C., and ARFID consulting worldwide. She specializes in helping neurodivergent and humans of all shapes and sizes heal their relationship with food, bodies, and eating.

Learn more at www.drmariannemiller.com

OTHER EPISODES ON BODY LIBERATION THAT YOU MIGHT LIKE:

• Body Liberation, Intersectionality, & Soul Work with @liberatiwellness Leslie Jordan Garcia, MPH, PT on Apple & Spotify.
• Body Acceptance, Size Diversity, & Body Liberation on Apple & Spotify.
• Breaking Free: Body Liberation After Binge Eating Disorder with Sophia Apostol @fatjoy.life on Apple & Spotify.

INTERESTED IN HANGING OUT MORE IN DR. MARIANNE-LAND?

• Follow me on Instagram @drmariannemiller
• Check out my virtual, self-paced ARFID and Selective Eating course
• Look into my self-paced, virtual, anti-diet, subscription-based curriculum. It is called Dr. Marianne-Land's Binge Eating Recovery Membership.
• Live in California, Texas, or Washington D.C. and interested in eating disorder therapy with me? Sign up for a free, 15-minute phone consultation HERE or via my website, and I'll get you to where you need to be!
• Check out my blog.
• Want more information? Email me at hello@mariannemiller.com