Voices Within
By Julia Armstrong
As a seventeen-year-old girl, I developed an eatingdisorder which turned into an obsession that held me tight in its grip for many years. I was an international athlete and I lost the joy of running simply for the love of doing it, one step after the other. Instead, I found myself running away from the pain; seeking love somewhere in the race results, the arduous training regimes, and the restrictions on my food intake.
I am 50 years old now and free of that obsession, free to be me. I am free and I am making it my work to talk about my experiences, to share my story and the wisdom it has given me in the hope it can help others caught up in the pain of an eating disorder, or any addiction, start on the pathway towards their own healing.
I have been asked to speak on television and radio about my experiences and was invited to an event in London on behalf of b-eat, the UK’s leading charity supporting people affected with eating disorders. During a conversation with another endurance athlete, we explored the dilemma within the sport where ‘being thin’ is part of being an athlete. There is a fine line between ‘training behaviours’ that manage weight and allow for proper nutrition to provide the leanness that contributes to top level performance, and behaviours that communicate nothing but self abuse and self hatred.
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