‘Bulimia took over my life’: Jane Fonda, 85, reveals she battled such a severe eating disorder at the height of her fame that she thought she was ‘going to DIE’ before 30
- The actress, now 85, said she was ‘miserable’ during the height of her fame
- She admitted to suffering from bulimia and anorexia for nearly two decades
- The film icon revealed she thought she would ‘die,’ but was ‘cured’ in her 40s
Acclaimed actress Jane Fonda has revealed that she suffered from an eating disorder during the height of her fame – which became so severe she thought she ‘wouldn’t live past age 30.’
The film icon, now 85, started acting when she was just a teen, and by the time she was in her 20s, she was one of the most successful stars in Hollywood.
However, the award winning movie star has now admitted that as her career flourished, she secretly struggled to come to terms with the immense pressure behind-the-scenes, which resulted in her battling bulimia and anorexia for nearly two decades.
‘I was miserable, I didn’t enjoy it. I kept wanting to quit,’ she told Alex Cooper on her Call Her Daddy podcast recently of her early years in the spotlight. ‘I was suffering from an eating disorder. I was bulimic [and] anorexic.
‘I suffered from bulimia very, very bad. I led a secret life, I was very, very, unhappy. I assumed I wouldn’t live past 30.
Acclaimed actress Jane Fonda has revealed that she suffered from an eating disorder during the height of her fame – which became so severe she thought she ‘wouldn’t live past age 30’
The film icon, now 85, started acting when she was just a teen, and by the time she was in her 20s, she was one of the most successful stars in Hollywood. She is seen in 1984
However, the award winning movie star has now admitted that as her career flourished, she secretly struggled to come to terms with the immense pressure behind-the-scenes
‘I didn’t go out, I hardly dated because I was unhappy and I had this eating disorder and I was making movies I didn’t very much like.’
The Coming Home alum added that being in the limelight meant there was ‘so much emphasis on how she looked’ and that people would often tell her she was ‘fat,’ which was a ‘constant trigger’ for her.
She said the eating disorder ‘seemed innocent in the beginning,’ but that it soon became a ‘terrible addiction’ that ‘took over her life.’
‘It seemed so innocent in the beginning, so innocuous, like, “Why can’t I have this ice cream and cake?” And then I’d just throw it up,’ she recalled.
‘What you don’t realize is, it becomes a terrible addiction that takes over your life.’
Fonda explained that the eating disorder made it ‘impossible’ for her to have ‘authentic relationships’ because she was desperate to keep it a ‘secret’ from everyone in her life.
It got so intense that she even started ‘organizing’ her day around what she would be eating and when, to ensure she was ‘by herself’ when it was time to have meals so ‘no one’ would discover ‘what she was doing.’
‘It’s a very lonely thing. You’re addicted, if you put any food in you, you want to get rid of it,’ she continued. ‘It takes over your life.
‘I was miserable, I didn’t enjoy it. I kept wanting to quit,’ she told Alex Cooper on her Call Her Daddy podcast recently. ‘I was suffering from an eating disorder. I was bulimic anorexic’
Fonda explained that the eating disorder made it ‘impossible’ for her to have ‘authentic relationships’ because she was desperate to keep it a ‘secret’ from everyone in her life
The Coming Home alum added that being in the limelight meant there was ‘so much emphasis on how she looked,’ which was a ‘constant trigger’ for her. She is seen in the ’60s
‘I’ve worked most of my life to overcome the [judgment], the objectification, the unconsciously making me feel that I’m not lovable if I’m not really thin, things like that.’
At the time, the actress aid she considered ‘reaching out for help’ as a ‘big weakness.’ It wasn’t until she was in her 40s when she realized it was time to make a change.
‘As you get older, the toll that it takes on you, it becomes worse and worse,’ she said. ‘It takes days, at least a week to get over one single binge.
‘It’s not just the fatigue, you become angry, hostile … It got to a point in my 40s where I thought, if I keep on like this, I’m gonna die.
‘I was living a very full life, I had children and a husband, I was doing political work, I was doing all these things. My life was important but I was becoming less and less able to continue it.’
At the time, the actress aid she considered ‘reaching out for help’ as a ‘big weakness.’ It wasn’t until she was in her 40s when she realized it was time to make a change. She is seen in 1987
Fonda told Cooper that she went ‘cold turkey’ and has since been ‘cured’ of the eating disorder. She also started taking medication for anxiety, which she said helped her immensely
She added that she hoped that speaking out about it publicly will inspire others who are suffering to get help
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Fonda told Cooper that she went ‘cold turkey’ and has since been ‘cured’ of the eating disorder. She also started taking medication for anxiety, which she said helped her immensely.
She added that she hoped that speaking out about it publicly will inspire others who are suffering to get help.
‘It is so hard to be young, don’t let anyone fool you. It gets easier when you get older, believe it or not,’ she concluded.
‘What am I supposed to do? Who am I supposed to know? What am I supposed to become? What am I supposed to be interested in? All these huge questions that will determine the whole rest of your life.
‘We can’t do it by ourselves as individuals and when you recognize the shared challenge you’re all facing, it helps to say, “F**k this, I’m not gonna do this anymore.”‘
If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, call the National Eating Disorders Association hotline at 1-800-931-2237.
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