Collaboration without compromise starts here.

If you've ever left a treatment team meeting wondering, "Did anyone even hear me?"—you’re not alone.

Working as a weight-inclusive dietitian on a multidisciplinary team can feel like walking a tightrope between advocating for your client and preserving your sanity. Whether you're inpatient, outpatient or in private practice, one thing’s for sure: you're often the only provider in the room challenging weight-centric care.

This blog is your guide to navigating those complex dynamics with more clarity, confidence, and connection.

Why Weight-Inclusive RDs Feel Like the Outlier

Multidisciplinary care is the gold standard in so many settings—eating disorder treatment, hospitals, community clinics, and more. But when your framework is rooted in weight inclusivity, trauma-informed care and body autonomy, you may find yourself at odds with team norms.

Here’s why this happens:

Most providers are still trained in weight-centric, BMI-based models of care.
Many institutions equate weight loss with health outcomes.
Trauma-informed care and weight neutrality are often not included in traditional medical or allied health education.

You’re not imagining the tension—and it doesn’t mean you’re doing anything wrong.

The Realities of Being “The Only One”

Just because you might be the only weight-inclusive provider doesn’t mean it has to stay that way.

Weight-inclusive registered dietitian having a collaborative discussion with a physician

On any given team, you may find:

You’re expected to translate your care into a weight-centric framework
Other providers dismiss or ignore trauma-informed practices
You're seen as “too sensitive” or “too focused on feelings”
Medical hierarchy places your voice below that of physicians or therapists

And yet—your role is essential.

As the dietitian, you bring critical insight on food access, eating behaviors, lived experience, and how trauma intersects with nourishment. You’re in a unique position to:

Offer harm-reduction frameworks
Advocate for client autonomy
Gently disrupt outdated models of care
Plant seeds of systemic change

Collaboration Without Compromise: 5 Proven Strategies

Here’s how to show up with clinical authority and values-aligned communication—without draining your nervous system.

1. Lead with Curiosity, Not Correction

If you’re hoping to shift minds, start with questions, not confrontation.

Instead of: “That’s not trauma-informed.”
Try: “I’m curious how you think that recommendation aligns with what the client has shared about their past medical trauma.”

Weight-inclusive dietitian collaborating with a multidisciplinary healthcare team in a hospital setting

Other examples:

“I wonder how this client might respond if we removed weight from the equation.”
“What have you seen in your work when behaviors are the focus, rather than BMI?”

When you invite dialogue, you open space for connection—and you model compassionate care, even with colleagues.

2. Know When to Educate (and When Not To)

You don’t have to be a walking, talking HAES® handout. Not every provider is ready—or willing—to shift their lens, and your energy is a limited resource.

Save your education efforts for team members who are curious, open, and aligned enough to listen.

For those who aren’t ready, focus on:

Modeling inclusive language
Prioritizing the client’s safety and autonomy
Documenting in ways that preserve ethical care

Plant the seed. You don’t have to harvest it.

3. Use Values-Aligned Language in Documentation

Whether you're in a hospital chart or a shared team note, how you write matters.

Use language that:

Avoids moralizing food choices (no more “good” vs “bad” eating days)
Centers behaviors over body size
Describes function, not fatness (e.g., “higher weight” instead of “obese”)
Affirms body diversity and systemic factors

Remember, documentation is another form of advocacy—and often the only way your care gets seen beyond the session.

4. Regulate Yourself First

When you’re in a room with resistance, outdated thinking or overt fatphobia, it’s normal to feel flooded. Your body knows when you're not safe—even emotionally.

To stay grounded:

Prep notes or scripts before hard conversations
Breathe intentionally before speaking
Name your intention before entering the space (e.g., “I’m here to center the client, not convince anyone.”)
Seek co-regulation or supervision afterward to process

This isn’t just about being calm—it’s about staying connected to your purpose so you don’t get swept away in performative professionalism.

5. Remember Your Scope—and Stand in It

It’s easy to feel small next to MDs or therapists, especially early in your career. But make no mistake: you are the nutrition expert in the room. You are trained. You are credentialed. You belong.

Speak with clarity when:

Medical nutrition therapy is being misapplied
Nutrition-related harm is being ignored
The team needs someone to translate “cut carbs” into actual client-centered care

And when appropriate, gently remind others of your scope:

“As the dietitian on this team, I want to offer an evidence-based alternative that supports long-term behavior change without centering weight loss.”

What to Do When It’s Just Too Much

Sometimes, no matter how regulated or curious you are, the setting isn’t safe. If you’re crying after every team meeting or constantly fawning to survive the dynamic—it may be time to recalibrate.

Support options to consider:

Clinical supervision
Peer consultation groups
Mentorship from weight-inclusive leaders
Therapy (yes, we’re big fans)

You don’t have to be a one-person revolution. You’re allowed to protect your energy and do good work.

Final Thoughts: You’re Not the Problem—You’re the Shift

If you're walking into team meetings and feeling alone in your values, that doesn’t mean you're failing. It means you're ahead. You're part of the shift.

And while it can be exhausting, it’s also powerful.

Your presence matters.
Your language matters.
Your clients benefit from having you on the team.

Free downloadable guide for dietitians on multidisciplinary care and weight-inclusive collaboration

Grab your free copy of The Weight-Inclusive Dietitian’s Guide to Multidisciplinary Teams — a practical, confidence-boosting resource to help you advocate, collaborate, and stay grounded without burning out.

Want more real-world strategies like these?
Listen to The MENTORD Podcast—a show by dietitians, for dietitians, where we say all the things you didn’t learn in school but need to know in practice.

Find us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or most places you get your podcasts.