Christina Applegate got emotional when discussing her ongoing body image issues and opened up about her past anorexia struggles.
“I’ve never discussed it in public ever, my battle with an eating disorder, never. So, it’s a big deal,” Applegate, 52, shared during the Tuesday, May 14, episode of her “MeSsy” podcast. “I think that’s why I wanted to do this today, because that demon in my head, it’s coming back really loud and it’s scaring me.”
Applegate explained that she’s gained 45 pounds since being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2021 and has since covered the mirrors in her house.
“I don’t look in mirrors,” she continued. “It’s obviously something that people don’t know. I have writing all over my mirrors in my bathroom so that I don’t look in them because I will, like, fall on the ground and cry.”
The actress went on to detail her body image issues starting from a young age, noting that she was on Weight Watchers as a teenager. While she starred as Kelly Bundy on Married … With Children, Applegate wanted her “bones to be sticking out” and recalled not eating on the set — and people noticed.
Later in the episode, Applegate revealed she had “liposuction in my 20s” after gaining two pounds.
“The teeny, teeny, tiny, tiny, teeny, teeny, teeny bit of fat on my leg in the back, and a doctor actually performed this surgery on me,” she continued. “He said, ‘You’re the perfect candidate because you work out all the time and you just can’t get this last bit out.’ I was probably, like, 26, something like that.”
Eventually, Applegate was able to shift her mindset. After trying on a pair of size-zero jeans and freaking out because “a little sliver of my skin was hanging over the side,” one of her friends stepped in.
“Finally, I was sitting on the toilet, and I saw only bones and it scared the s–t out of me,” she recalled, noting that her eating disorder lasted until her 30s.
Now, Applegate fears that she’s returning to her old ways and said she felt forced to joke about her weight while on stage at the 2023 Emmys after feeling the audience was thinking about how different she looked. (Applegate said, “Body not by Ozempic,” during the awards show before presenting The Bear star Ayo Edebiri with her trophy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.)
“The demon is saying these things to me, and it’s scaring me because I don’t want my daughter to see me not eat, and I don’t want her to see me talk about these things,” she said. “I’ve been really clear about never talking about this stuff with her and trying not to put myself down.”
If you or someone you know struggles with an eating disorder, visit the National Alliance for Eating Disorders website or call their hotline at +1 (866) 662-1235. Text “ALLIANCE” to 741741 for free, 24/7 support.
