The Fat Lady Book ReportIn the third Loves Executioner story: "The Fat Lady", Doctor Yalom decides to treat a twenty-seven-year-old overweight woman named Betty. Although Dr. Yalom was initially reluctant to treat Betty due to her obesity, Dr. Yalom decides to put his countertransference issues aside and sees treating Betty as a way to improve his skills as a therapist. During Betty's treatment, not only does Dr. Yalom learn that there was more substance to her than he had initially anticipated, but he connects with Betty as she overcomes her countertransference issues, helping Betty uncover the pathology of her depression and discover his identity. and above all it is the first meeting and Dr. Yalom's reactions towards Betty. During the initial first meeting, Dr. Yalom is surprised by Betty's physical appearance while Dr. Yalom goes into explicit detail about his disgust for fat women stating, “I have always been disgusted by fat women. I find them disgusting: their absurd swaying to the side, the absence of contours of the body, the breasts, the womb, the buttocks, the shoulders, the jaw, the cheekbones, everything I like to see in a woman obscured by an avalanche of meat." (Yalom, 2000 p. 94) Dr. Yalom proceeds to ask the typical questions about what is bothering her while Betty tells Dr. Yalom that she is depressed and that her eating has been out of control. Dr. Yalom, realizing that his countertransference issues may make it difficult for him to relate to or even treat Betty, instead sees Betty as a challenge to overcome his aversion to fat women as a way to better help future patients. In subsequent sessions, Dr. Yalom finds Betty's endless chatter about her life extremely still. Dr. Yalom describes their talk as "cocktail chatter" with no real background...... middle of paper ...... Yalom, 2000) Betty then asks about these changes as Dr. Yalom embarrassingly admits that it didn't make him feel comfortable around obese people. Betty scolds Dr. Yalom by telling him that he never touched her during the entire therapy session, much less looked at her directly for the first six months. Betty also tells Dr. Yalom: Ironically, Betty tells him that she can't stand fat people either and that's why she has a disgust for groups. Dr. Yalom then hugs her, surprised that he is able to hug the once one hundred and fifty pound obese woman. Not only did Dr. Yalom eventually learn to overcome his countertransference issues he had with fat women, but he grew with his patient as they both took something away from therapy, Dr. Yalom being empathetic and overcoming Dr. Yalom's initial obesity Betty. appearance and Betty appreciating life in the present and becoming a true identity.