I’m one of those women who has spent most of my life in and out of cycles of compulsive dieting and exercise.
No matter how thin I got, it was never thin enough. My story is nothing new, and not even all that special—I know way too many women, and even some men, who can relate.
It’s almost a twisted rite of passage for girls and women to relate on the subject of how much we hate our bodies, or how we’ve overcome our self-loathing.
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My disordered behavior and body image issues have come in three waves. First, in eighth grade, I learned that I could control my weight by simply not eating. Although I’m fortunate that this stage was short, and not nearly as dangerous as it could’ve been, it had a powerful effect, and I never forgot how to control my food intake in that way.
From that point on, my relationship with food and my body was pretty unhealthy. (Post continues after gallery.)