News release
One of the deadliest misconceptions about eating disorders is that they are benign, when in fact, they have the highest mortality rate of all mental illnesses. Former Santa Clarita resident Azure Moyna learned this the hard way when a secretive eating binge led to a near-death experience and ultimately pushed her to seek professional help and begin the long and difficult process of recovery, which required she revisit childhood trauma.
In her memoir, “Fullness,” a portion of which is set in Santa Clarita, Moyna details her harrowing struggle with a stigmatized eating disorder in a fat-shaming society.
According to the National Eating Disorder Association, an estimated 30 million Americans suffer from eating disorders (and many more from disordered eating behavior that doesn’t meet the criteria for full-fledged disorders).
Most often, when people think about eating disorders, their minds go straight to thoughts of bulimia and anorexia, rather than binge eating. However, binge eating has three times as many sufferers as anorexia and nearly twice as many as bulimia. Many people who struggle with disordered eating develop these patterns at a young age, just as Moyna did.
In “Fullness,” Moyna draws parallels between her upbringing under an abusive father and her current struggles with keeping herself healthy.
Aimed at raising awareness and opening a discussion about the taboos of disordered eating and abuse, through “Fullness,” Moyna recounts the terror and tragedy of her past as it relates to her present battle for recovery. Now a certified coach in eating psychology, she educates people about issues including but not limited to food, body, abuse and mental illness.
For more information, visit, www.azuremoyna.com.