Susie Orbach introduced public discourse to the unconscious factors driving female eating habits through her 1978 publication, Fat is a Feminist Issue. Her professional trajectory reflects an integration of psychoanalytic practice with sociological critique, bridging the divide between clinical therapy and broader systemic analyses of gender, body image, and the psychological impact of contemporary media pressure on self-perception.
Academic Formation
Born in London in 1946 to an American teacher and British Labour MP Maurice Orbach, she attended the North London Collegiate School. Her higher education spanned several institutions, including Wayne State University. She obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Women's Studies from the City University of New York in 1972, a Master of Social Welfare from the State University of New York at Stony Brook in 1974, and eventually earned a PhD in Psychoanalysis from University College London in 2001.
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In 1976, she co-founded the Women's Therapy Centre in London with Luise Eichenbaum, followed by the establishment of the Women's Therapy Centre Institute in New York in 1981. Beyond private practice in London, she held a visiting professorship at the London School of Economics for a decade and served as a consultant for organisations including the NHS, The World Bank, and Unilever. Her influence on public campaigns includes co-originating the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty.
Theoretical Framework
Her research extends Donald Winnicott’s theories regarding environmental failure and the split between mind and body, specifically developing the concept of the 'False Body.' She argues that internalizing external expectations leads to a fragmented sense of self. This framework informs her books such as Bodies and The Impossibility of Sex, which utilise therapy-based narratives to examine the daily psychological tensions inherent in the clinical experience and the construction of identity.
Social Advocacy
Orbach is a member of the steering group for the Campaign for Body Confidence and a convener of Anybody, a group dedicated to body diversity. She helped establish Antidote, an organisation focused on emotional literacy, and Psychotherapists and Counsellors for Social Responsibility. Her journalism, including a decade-long column for The Guardian, has been archived in volumes such as What's Really Going on Here and Towards Emotional Literacy.
Fast facts
- Born: 1946, London
- Citizenship: United Kingdom
- Doctorate: Psychoanalysis, University College London, 2001
- Recognition: BBC 100 Women, 2013 and 2014
- Fellowship: Royal Society of Literature, 2019
- Primary Field: Psychology
Questions readers ask
What is the core argument of Fat is a Feminist Issue?
It examines the unconscious meanings behind dieting and over-eating, proposing that compulsive eating stems from deeper psychological issues rather than mere lack of willpower.
What professional organisations did she co-found?
She co-founded the Women's Therapy Centre, the Women's Therapy Centre Institute, Antidote, and Psychotherapists and Counsellors for Social Responsibility.
Achievements
- Affiliated with London School of Economics and Political Science
- Educated at North London Collegiate School and Wayne State University
- Worked as journalist, writer and psychologist
