Jane Fonda Reveals She Didn’t Think She’d Live Past 30

Jane Fonda didn’t think she would “live past 30” while battling an eating disorder that had her leading “a secret life.” The 80 for Brady actress, 85, opened up about how her “terrible addiction” to disordered eating nearly cost her everything in an interview with Call Her Daddy‘s Alex Cooper in a new episode. 

“In my 20s I was starting to be a movie actor. I suffered from bulimia very, very bad. I led a secret life,” Fonda shared. “I was very, very unhappy. I assumed I wouldn’t live past 30… I didn’t go out. I didn’t hardly date ’cause I was unhappy and I had this eating disorder. And then I was also making movies that I didn’t very much like.”

The Barbarella star noted that while her eating disorder seemed “so innocent” at first, it soon took over her life. “It harms the way you look. You end up looking tired. It becomes impossible to have an authentic relationship when you’re doing this secretly,” she shared. “Your day becomes organized around getting food and then eating it, which requires that you’re by yourself and that no one knows what you’re doing.”

Fonda continued, “It’s a very lonely thing. And you’re addicted. If you put any food in you, you want to get rid of it.” Entering her 40s, Fonda said she began to feel “worse and worse,” which led her to think, “If I keep on like this, I’m going to die.” Thinking of her family and her career, Fonda decided to quit “cold turkey.”

“I didn’t realize there were groups you could join. I didn’t know anything about that. Nobody talked about it! I didn’t even know there was a word for it,” the Grace and Frankie star explained. “It was really hard. But the fact is, the more distance you can put between you and the last binge, then the better it is. It becomes easier and easier.” Through her recovery process, Fonda learned a lot of her disordered eating patterns were “anxiety-driven,” which she’s found some relief from thanks to Prozac. “And then, gradually, I just stopped doing it,” she said.

If you or someone you know struggles with an eating disorder, visit the National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA) website for help or call the hotline at (800)-931-2237.