Former Citizen Tv news anchor Joey Muthengi has opened up on the struggle to maintain her physical image during her TV days and an eating disorder that took a toll on her.
In a thread of tweets, Muthengi narrated how she used to starve herself to remain thin as a result of a belief that was deeply rooted within her during her high school days.
“I went to Caucasian Schools for a majority of my teen/high school/college life and being thin was the in thing. If you couldn’t show a bit of your hip bones and flat tummy then go to the gym” she wrote
According to Muthengi, this mentality made her always want to maintain the skinny look and this is when her struggle with a life-threatening eating disorder Bulimia began.
She recalls how she used to eat well only to end up throwing up at this point it never seemed like a big deal because other ladies were doing the same too.
What we would call her ‘breaking point’ is when she landed a TV job and went to the extreme ends of starving herself.
Although many admired her outlook and were constantly asking for tips on maintaining such a body, Muthengi says that she was in pain and in fact not happy.
“I got it under control for a few years after then somehow I landed on TV. Then I stopped eating at all. I looked great in those dresses they gave me but underneath I was suffering” she added
Even though she at times felt like she was okay, her mother would notice and mention that she looked sick. Her wake up call was a photo of her before she got the TV job and this made her prioritize her health.
“The job had stressed me to the point of me losing myself. Someone had sent me this pic of what I looked like before and that’s when I decided to put my health first” she stated
Sharing one of her current photos which show a slight weight gain, Joey says that this journey and her battle with the eating disorder has taught her to be proud of herself.
“So this is me now. And I am damn proud of myself for making it here and even more proud of myself for appreciating how God made me.” she concluded
