Mary Lambert was left in tears after visiting a local radiology office that she claims was “unprepared for a fat patient.”
The singer, 32, visited Rayus Radiology in Massachusetts for an emergency MRI after injuring her knee in a skiing accident.
Taking to Twitter to detail the “triggering” experience, Lambert wrote, “I changed into their biggest scrubs (a 2X), and had half of my butt exposed, only to have the MRI coil not fit around my knee.”
Lambert, known for her hit song “Same Love” with Macklemore, noted that she was asked to reveal her weight “three separate times.”
“I was crying so hard in the dressing area that I had a panic attack,” she recalled. “And it’s an experience that fat people are often used to feel shame about.”
Lambert said she was left in tears and had a panic attack after visiting her local radiology office.Getty Images“People wonder why fat folks wait to/don’t seek medical treatment for themselves,” she continued. “It’s experiences like this that reinforce the idea that there is something wrong or abnormal with our bodies.”
In an interview with “Today,” Lambert recalled the technicians attempting to “squeeze” her injured knee “in a couple of different ways, but it was really painful.”
She took to social media to highlight the issues she faced.marylambertsing/Instagram“They kept telling me, ‘We have a bigger coil. It just doesn’t work now,’” Lambert said. “And I was like, ‘Please stop saying that, it’s not helpful.’”
Lambert told “Today” that she eventually left the facility without getting the MRI done.
“It’s an experience that fat people are often used to feel shame about,” the singer tweeted.FilmMagic,After tweeting about the radiology office’s shortcomings, Rayus contacted Lambert and apologized. They are now working with Lambert to ensure that her negative experience is “not repeated in the future,” according to a statement obtained by “Today.”
“We acknowledge that this patient’s medical journey has sparked an important conversation about stigmas that exist in the plus-sized community and the challenges experienced when seeking health care,” the statement said.
“Rayus routinely serves patients of all body types and is the second largest purchaser of open MRI machines in the United States for this reason. We also seek to ensure that our facilities are accessible to all patients and that medical pants and gowns are made available in sizes up to 5XL. Moments like this allow the voices of our communities to challenge all providers to always provide the quality of service they deserve.”
Lambert asked whether people will “continue to gatekeep life-saving medical procedures from [fat] bodies.”marylambert/InstagramLambert revealed that she later returned to the facility for a successful MRI.
“Regardless of whether or not fat people should lose weight or should be in the pursuit of a smaller body, fat people exist. We will always be here,” she said. “What people need to answer really is will they continue to gatekeep life-saving medical procedures from bodies that will always exist?”
