This video shares a personal story of a young individual who developed an eating disorder as a coping mechanism after losing a parent. It highlights the negative impacts of the disorder on their physical health, relationships, and daily life, leading to the need for medical intervention.

When I was 11 years old, I lost my stepdad to colon cancer. I was so young that I didn't know how to grieve or process the loss of a parent. I struggled with feeling emotionally disconnected from others and grasped for control in the ways I knew how. In an attempt to make sense of the world around me, I looked to food and exercise. I began working out more and reducing my food intake. Slowly, I noticed changes in my body. I loved those changes and felt like I had to keep going. As time went on, I began eating less and less, and exercising more and more. I became obsessed with losing weight. My obsession seeped into all areas of my life, including my friendships and my relationships with my family. In the beginning, I was hostile towards those who were trying to save my life. I was under the impression that they were taking away the thing that I had worked so hard for, and the only thing that made me feel good about myself. I was irritable, exhausted, and put my obsession above every other aspect of my life. It got to the point where I needed immediate medical attention and had to put everything else on pause. The next thing I knew, I couldn't dance on my dance team because my heart couldn't sustain it. I couldn't eat lunch with my friends because my meals had to be supervised.