Presley Nuutinen, MA

Approach to care

• What does it look like for you to provide care to patients in larger bodies? How is, or isn’t, your approach different from how you care for patients in smaller bodies? If you work with children, how is or isn’t your approach different when working with children?

  My work as a therapist is informed by my values of fat liberation and health & body neutrality. Using a client-led approach, I am here to support you in creating a relationship with yourself and your body that feels right to you, whether that is body acceptance, neutrality, or celebration!

• What is your perspective on how weight is or is not related to health?

  Weight is not an indicator of health, and health is not an indicator of value or morality.
  Also, there is significant evidence that discrimination by healthcare providers and systems has a strong negative impact on the health of people living in larger bodies.

• Finish this sentence: “Fat people are…” 

  Cool and hot!

• How do you, your clinic, and the healthcare system you work in use BMI (i.e BMI cutoffs for accessing certain services, BMI on charts and printouts, etc)? Is this flexible?

  N/A

• If a patient declines to be weighed, how do you and/or your staff proceed?

  N/A

• If a patient declines to discuss weight loss, nutrition, and/or exercise, how do you proceed?

  N/A

• Do you offer weight loss as a service, and if so, how much of your practice is this? What do you do if a patient requests your assistance with losing weight?

  I do not offer this as a service. If a client has a goal of losing weight, I would work with them to check in on how this goal aligns with their values and hopes for themself, support them with check-ins on their wellbeing and relationship to food and their body, and keep an eye out for signs of disordered eating. If a client’s primary goal is weight loss, I would refer them to other providers who may be a better fit.

• What does the physical accessibility of your office space look like? What kinds of accommodations are present for people in larger bodies? Are there things you wish were in place that are currently not? 

  Lineage Counseling is on the second floor of an office building. The main entrance (Eastern door) has no steps or stairs to enter the building, and there is elevator access to all floors. The waiting room has a variety of seating options, including bench seating and seating without arms. The hallways and waiting room spaces are spacious and wide, and you can comfortably walk past folks in the hallway or waiting room without squeezing close by.
  The bathroom on the 2nd floor, where my office is located, does not have a full-sized accessible bathroom stall -- there is one slightly wider/larger stall, but it is not large enough for most folks in need of an accessible bathroom. There is also no gender-neutral or family bathroom on site.

• What do you do to allow fat people to feel comfortable and welcome in your office? 

  As a person living in a fat body, it is important to me that my office feels comfortable, cozy, and safe. I don’t want folks to worry about a piece of furniture breaking while they use it, not relaxing out of fear, or not being able to get comfortable. All of the furniture in my office space is fat-safe and friendly. My office has a sofa and armless chairs, pillows, blankets, and lots of fidgets! I encourage folks to get comfortable and cozy, however they would like to.

• If you’d like to use this space to talk about any identities (gender, race, size, sexuality, etc.) you hold and how this relates to your care, please do so. 

  I am a fat, queer, trans, white therapist. My lived experience impacts how I show up in the room as a therapist and as a person.