"Designated Fat Girl" by Jennifer Joyner

249 pages

Jennifer Joyner struggled with food addiction for most of her life. Though she kept it in check as an adolescent, she began to binge uncontrollably as an adult. Even as she passed 300 pounds and was warned by her doctors that her health was in jeopardy, she couldn't go more than a couple of days without devouring huge amounts, usually of fast food. Her self-esteem, which was shattered as a child by the cruelty of other kids and later an abusive boyfriend, left her constantly yearning for comfort. Food was all that could comfort her, even after she got married to a great guy and had two beautiful children. After trying every diet and pill she could think of, Jennifer finally tried gastric bypass surgery. Unfortunately, it didn't go as smoothly as it was supposed to, and she ended up with a whole new set of health problems.

This shockingly open, honest memoir really struck a cord with me. As someone who has struggled with an eating disorder, I related to a lot of Jennifer's story. I think a lot of people don't realize that food addiction is an eating disorder and often has similar roots as anorexia and bulimia. Just as with those more commonly known disorders, people with binge eating disorder go through elaborate lengths to hide their problem (though are often not as successful due to weight gain), have a lot of self-loathing, and ofter suffer from anxiety and/or depression. I love that Jennifer is so upfront about her struggle--she shows readers who have similar problems that they are not alone and that they can get better. It seems that the percentage of Americans with some kind of disordered eating pattern is probably very high due to all the conflicting influences about food: thinness is idealized, yet cheap, unhealthy food is everywhere. That's why it's important for people like Jennifer to start the conversation so more people are aware of these problems.