‘Duck Dynasty’ Star Sadie Robertson Reveals Eating Disorder Started When She Was Body Shamed Following ‘Dancing With the Stars’

Sadie Robertson is opening up about suffering from an eating disorder following her time on Dancing With the Stars in 2014. The Duck Dynasty daughter has spoken about her mental health struggles in the past, but spoke candidly about the insidious start to her disordered eating in a Wednesday interview with Entertainment Tonight.

“During Dancing With the Stars … I had this body that I never thought I’d have. I had a six-pack for two weeks, but then Thanksgiving hit and it went away. People started to comment,” she told the outlet of her incredibly fit figure that stemmed from weeks of doing nothing but dancing. Once the dance competition show came to an end, she began getting damaging comments from friends and family that stuck with her.

“There were people in my life who were just really negative influences, that would say things that were not uplifting about the way that I looked and how I needed to maintain the body that I had,” she explained. “It was so wrong. I was insecure at the time, so I believed them and thought, ‘Oh, I need to push it.’” Just 17 at the time, Robertson said she began to develop a “really unhealthy view” of her body, especially as she began to pursue modeling.

“People would say things like, ‘Oh, if you lost 10 more pounds, you would look like a real model.’ I was literally 115 pounds and already unhealthy. That just messed my mind up,” she recalled. Counting every calorie and staring at her body constantly, Robertson said she was “completely gripped” by her eating disorder and body dysmorphia. “I would look at myself in the mirror and I would think, ‘I’m fat,’ and I was not at all,” she said.

Looking at her body in a different way and relying on her faith helped her to transform her eating habits. “Instead I would tell myself, ‘I am so thankful that I have this. I’m so thankful that my legs actually serve the purpose that they should and that they’re able to run, that my arms are able to carry things. That my stomach one day, hopefully, will be able to carry a baby.’ Just what we’re actually designed and created for,” she said. “It definitely made me stop thinking about myself as much. It allowed me to be able to think of others, and how I can serve them with the body I’ve been given.”

If you or someone you know needs help, contact the National Eating Disorders Association Helpline by calling or texting 800-931-2237.