Ireland Baldwin Speaks Out About Past “Eating Disorders and Body Issues”
For quite some time now, Ireland Baldwin has made an admirable habit of sharing empowering body-positive messages with her nearly half a million Instagram followers This week, the model continued that crusade for authenticity when, in a series of posts on her Instagram Story, she opened up about her past experiences with disordered eating and poor self-image, concluding that all the “pain and destruction” she’d put her mind and body through “wasn’t worth it.”
“I battled with many eating disorders and body issues as a younger girl and it took me a long time to find self love and acceptance! Trust me, all of that pain and destruction I inflicted on myself wasn’t worth it. Turning down so. Many. Sides. Of. Fries. Wasn’t worth it!!” Ireland wrote, according to People. “I would eat a meal or more like a bite and have to run to the nearest bathroom or find digestive pills or run until I couldn’t feel my legs right before bed,” she continued. “I used to read people’s comments when I first started modeling and anytime anyone told me I was too tall or too fat to have done a job, I would run on a treadmill for the entire duration of at least three episodes of Friday Night Lights that I had on box set.”
She ended on a powerful note of advice to her followers, writing, “Love yourself!! You are beautiful!! Enjoy your food. Eat ice cream with your friends! Workout and eat healthy to take care of your mind and body but find your healthy balance! Life is too short.” The 22-year-old also shared a few photos taken, apparently, while she was struggling with disordered eating. “Annorexia [sic] throwback,” she wrote alongside one smiley shot of herself, captioning another photo showing her standing on a beach in a bikini with “NOPE.”
Baldwin has previously turned to social media to share the valuable lessons she’s learned about body image and self-love over time. Last summer, she posted an unretouched photo of herself in her underwear on Insta, writing, “I am not going to be body shamed for being pale or not stick thin. I’m not going to spend hours photoshopping my authenticity away. I’m not going to beat myself up for not looking like someone else.” She added, “Most days I’m self conscious, but today I love every curve and edge. Your body should be treated with the dignity and respect it deserves. I want to be as real as possible with everyone that follows me because to be quite honest, what the is even the point of social media if you can’t be who you truly are? I’m not here to mindf*ck all of you into believing I am something that I’m not. I’m forever on a journey of finding my better self and I will continue to work as hard as I can to make MYSELF proud. Today I hope everyone is proud of who they are and can recognize what they can accomplish!”
Related: Meet Ireland Baldwin
