Jameela Jamil shared a 10-year-old picture from when she says her eating disorder made her think she ·
Emily Cortez
- "The Good Place" actress Jameela Jamil posted a throwback Getty image of herself from London Fashion Week in 2009 and captioned it "a sad day."
- The body neutrality activist wrote that she had an eating disorder and body dysmorphia at the time the photo was taken, which made her not want to go to the event.
- "I was convinced that I was 'too fat' and that I would be publicly fat shamed the next day," she wrote, and said she was so weak that she only managed to stay for 10 minutes at the event.
- Jamil pivoted to activism after the success of "The Good Place" and started the "I Weigh" organization that encourages people to weigh themself with positive attributes instead of numbers.
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Jameela Jamil shared a photo of herself from 2009 alongside a heartbreaking caption on Twitter.
The Getty Image, taken at London Fashion Week, shows a then-23-year-old Jamil in a form-fitting black dress and heels. The "Good Place" actress wrote that she was struggling with an eating disorder and body dysmorphia at the time, and didn't even want to attend because she thought she looked "'too fat.'"
"This was a sad day 10 years ago," Jamil wrote on Twitter. "I didn't want to go to the event because I was convinced that I was 'too fat' and that I would be publicly fat-shamed the next day."
"I was so weak, I only managed to stay for 10 mins," she continued on to say in her tweet. "Eating disorders/dysmorphia are so wild. I missed my teens/20s 💔"
Body dysmorphia is a mental health disorder in which the person experiencing it can't stop thinking about perceived defects or flaws in their appearance that are not observed by others. Jamil encourages body neutrality, which differs from body positivity in that it encourages people to respect their body, but not dedicate positive or negative thoughts and energy toward it.
Before becoming a household name with her activism and NBC role as Tahani Al-Jamil, Jamil was a British model and presenter. She hosted a pop culture show on British television and was the first solo female presenter of the BBC Radio 1 chart show.
Nowadays, the actress is well-known for her organization "I Weigh," which encourages people to weigh themself by their positive attributes, as opposed to numbers on a scale. Jamil and the initiative were featured in the September 2019 issue of British Vogue that Meghan Markle guest-edited.
If you or someone you know has an eating disorder, call the National Eating Disorders Association Helpline (1-800-931-2237) on weekdays for support, resources, and information about treatment options. In crisis situations, NEDA offers 24/7 support — just text "NEDA" to 741741.
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