Battling His Body: Richard Simmons Struggled With Pills, Bulimia Years Before Sex Change
June 10 2016, Published 6:39 p.m. ET
As an overweight, effeminate child, Richard Simmons was hounded by bullies, both big and small. Years before The National ENQUIRER revealed that the workout guru, 67, was transitioning into a woman, he struggled with multiple eating disorders to break free from the burden of his own body.
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Desperate to stop the beatdowns and shame, a school-aged Simmons accepted his friend Anna's offer to steal her mother's diet pills for a quick fix. "If Anna's mom could lose weight with a pill, so could I," he thought. "My troubles were over."
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At first, the teen was "bursting with energy" and even lost his ever-present appetite. "Food suddenly didn't mean that much to me," he wrote. "This is what it must be like to be normal."
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Soon enough, after downing pills every morning, "the pounds began to drop off," he recalled, adding that he told his parents he was simply dieting. "The lie got bigger while I got smaller."
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In a scary turn, Simmons began feeling like his heart "was going to explode," and suffering from anxiety. "It was one of the most unpleasant feelings I had ever felt," he said. Terrified, he stopped taking the pills.
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Soon, he gained back all the weight. But after college, Simmons found a new solution to his weight problem: throwing up.
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A co-worker Josie taught him how to induce vomiting after a big meal. "Everything I'd just eaten was gone, in a minute," he marveled after sneaking off to the bathroom for the first time. "My God, it was like I could take back my guilt!"
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After months of bulimia, Simmons became sick. "My eyes were extremely bloodshot," he said. "I looked very fatigued and worn out."
Richard Simmons films outside Slimmons Studios
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After a doctor warned him about the consequences, he stopped the destructive behavior — and gained the weight back. "I'd lost and gained and had still learned nothing about what would make my body healthy and happy," he wrote.
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With diet and exercise, Simmons finally slimmed down. But he was still miserable. According to The ENQUIRER, the fitness pro made the brave decision to transition into a woman named Fiona in order to be truly happy.
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According to sources, he is now undergoing hormone treatments and even got a boob jobhttps://radaronline.com/celebrity-news/richard-simmons-boob-job-hormones-treatments-transition/! However, he continues to remain in hiding.
