My Secret Struggle, People Magazine, 2003 " Bulemia"

Katherine McPhee has been struggling with Bulimia since she was 17 years old. She began to binge and purge when she was a junior in High school; it was how she dealt with stressful situations and uncomfortable emotions. In the article McPhee claims that she would over eat to hide any pain that she didn’t want to feel and then Binge out of guilt over her actions and in order to remain thin. McPhee claims that she used food as a drug and that she was addicted to it. She hid her eating disorder for about 6 months when she finally couldn’t take it any longer and confided in her mother. After her confession she immediately began seeing therapist, dieticians and attending support groups. Treatment worked for a while but she would always have a relapse and have to begin over again. When McPhee auditioned for and earned a spot on American Idol she was on her way to destroying her vocal cords all together. McPhee decided to seek help before returning to Los Angeles in December. McPhee entered a program where she would spend three months undergoing intense individual therapy. McPhee kept her condition a secret from the “Idol” judges and contestants but confided in her producers. During the competition, she saw therapist 3 times a week and hasn’t binged since becoming an idol. Katherine McPhee won runner up for American Idol and has released an album.

Bulimia is a psychological disorder that affects over 4 million people each year. (Covered in Chapter 8 beginning on page 305) Although males can be affected as well, this disorder normally affects females. Eating disorders covered in chapter 8, describes Bulimia Nervosa as a disorder that “involves eating huge amounts of food and then getting rid of the food through self-induced vomiting or strong laxatives. These “binge-purge episodes may occur as often as twice a day.” “ People who suffer with bulimia may eat several boxes of cookies, a half gallon of ice cream and a bucket of chicken”(page 307) Like Anorexia, bulimia involves an intense fear of being fat but the person may be thin or over weight as actual body image is distorted by the disease. But more often than not the condition will involve more intense psychological problems such as low self esteem, stress, preoccupation with being thin and depression to name a few. Treatment for Bulimia can include individual or group psychotherapy as well as antidepressant drugs. The object of treatment is to help the Bulimic person to eat more normally as well as cope with any underlying problems at the root of the Bulimia.