Carly Pearce Reveals Lifetime Struggle With Body Image Issues

Long before Carly Pearce was famous, she struggled with body image issues, which she is now opening up about. The 29-year-old reveals it is an ongoing battle for her, with some days, and nights, harder for her than others.

“I’ve struggled with body image issues my whole life,” Pearce told her record label. “I’ve been bullied as a child. I was always the tall girl; I never felt comfortable in my skin. I was told to lose weight in previous shows in Pigeon Forge, and moved to Nashville and still was just scared. And I think that just because somebody sees you as someone who – ‘Oh, they’re in shape, they run, they eat right, they can fit in little clothes,’ that doesn’t mean that we don’t all struggle with things.

“And I’ve purposely tried to post a few things that show that I haven’t always had it together or that people are mean,” she continued. “I just want to raise awareness for people and that we all have that insecurity of not feeling – especially as women – feeling, ‘Oh my gosh, am I skinny enough, do I look good in these pants, do I need to change?’ I change so many times some nights and just don’t feel like going on stage but I have to keep doing it.”

Pearce previously called out body shamers on social media, after a couple of people made negative comments about Pearce’s appearance during one of her concerts, with one asking if she was pregnant, and another questioning if she really ran long distances, along with a close-up shot of Pearce’s stomach.

“Honestly I’m still in disbelief but I wanted to share this with you because I feel like this is important (especially for women) to see that WORDS ARE POWERFUL [and] no matter what, think before you speak and BE KIND,” Pearce said at the time. “Body Shaming [and] Bullying ARE NEVER OKAY.”

Now that Pearce is married to Michael Ray, she does admit that he helps her feel good about herself, regardless of how she looks or what she is wearing.

“I think that with this industry, authenticity wins always, and vulnerability, and that’s how we’ve always approached our relationship,” Pearce told PopCulture.com. “He really has helped me to become the best version of myself and maybe love my body more than I ever thought that I could.”

Thanks to her relationship with Ray, Pearce is learning to, finally, love herself for who she is.

“As a woman you have struggles, and I struggled a lot in my early twenties of trying to figure out a balance of working out and eating right, and all of the thing as a child I was bullied for,” Pearce admitted. “I was really tall and really awkward, just like so many of us are. I just saw that and I just wanted to be a voice to anybody who struggles, and I saw how many people struggle with that balance of loving yourself. Loving yourself doesn’t mean you have starve yourself or be super-skinny and you can find somebody to build you up in that way.”

Photo Credit: Getty / Allen Berezovsky