The 'Precious' actress opens up about her crippling struggles with eating disorder and depression in a new interview with 'Empire' co-star Taraji P. Henson.
- Jan 23, 2021
AceShowbiz - "Precious: Based on the Novel PUSH by Sapphire" star Gabourey Sidibe has opened up about her battle with an eating disorder and depression in an emotional new interview with her "Empire" co-star Taraji P. Henson.
The actress has taped an appearance on Henson's Facebook Watch series, "Peace of Mind with Taraji", which will air in full on Monday (25Jan21), and goes into detail about her crippling fight with bulimia.
"It wasn't about losing weight, it wasn't about controlling my appetite," Gabourey explained. "It truly was about how it stopped me from crying... It was about me surviving the day. I was so embarrassed and I hated crying so much. I hated it."
Sidibe insists she has come to terms with the mental health issues behind her bulimia and tells Taraji she now realises bulimia was a "self defence mechanism."
"Being depressed is one thing (but) if you add an eating disorder to that, that's a whole other monster that you have to fight," she added.
Back in 2016, Gabourey Sidibe was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, which forced her to go under the knife to lose weight.
"I genuinely [would] worry all the time about losing my toes," she explained. "I did not get this surgery to be beautiful. I did it so I can walk around comfortably in heels. I want to do a cartwheel. I want not to be in pain every time I walk up a flight of stairs."
In her 2017 memoir, she later talked about her struggles with body image, "There's nothing ugly about me. Anyone trying to convince me that I am - and it's usually me - is wasting her time. I was in a war with my body for a long time. If I'd started treating it better sooner, I wouldn't have spent so many years hating myself. But I love my body now."
