Sophie Turner is opening up about how motherhood has been transformative in her outlook on her appearance.
"To be honest, having kids was the best thing for my relationship to my body," the "Game of Thrones" alum and a mother to daughters Willa, 3, and Delphine, 1, whom she shares with ex Joe Jonas, said in an interview with British Vogue for the outlet's June cover story.
She continued, "I remember after I had my baby, my therapist asked me how I felt in my body. And of course I was like, 'Well, there's milk leaking from my breasts and I've been bleeding for a month.' Then she reminded me how amazing it is that our bodies can do this and how important it is to put all the nutrients in your body so that it can do that. I mean, it sounds so simple, but I never thought of my body in that way before."
In the interview, the actress also spoke about becoming a target for online trolls who would criticize her appearance before and after her eating disorder recovery during her teenage years working as a young actress.
She reflected on how the public would make comments about her body when it would fluctuate.
"When you're bulimic, your face tends to bloat. So when I finally did get better in my early 20s, my face went back to normal," she explained. "Then, suddenly, all the comments were about whether I'd had buccal fat removal or not. So yeah, you can never win."
Turner shared that the comments took a toll on her in the beginning.
Sophie Turner talks divorce from Joe Jonas, mom guilt and more"Being a young girl, especially one growing up in the spotlight, you really judge yourself," she said.
To help manage her eating disorder, Turner opted for frequent breaks from social media.
However, she said there are still times when the thoughts would return, especially when dealing with extreme stress.
"I know when I'm in a bad headspace that the eating thing will always flare up," she shared. "But now I regulate it by sitting in the discomfort and just getting used to that feeling of being full. It's all exposure therapy. I think life is exposure therapy."
Eating disorders are serious and "often fatal illnesses that are associated with severe disturbances in people's eating behaviors and related thoughts and emotions," according to the National Institute of Mental Health.
In the United States, the National Eating Disorders Association reported that 28.8 million Americans will suffer from an eating disorder at some point in their lives.
Turner had used medication or therapy in the past, although she is no longer on medication as of recently.
She shared her decision to move back to the UK and being close to her family has also contributed to her recovery.
"There's something about a community and a support system that I've never realised is so important up until now," she said. "And I think the reason I was on medication for so long is because I didn't have those people with me. Now that I'm back home, I'm actually the happiest I've been in a really long time. I'm starting over again, rediscovering what I like to do, who I like to be with."
If you or someone you know is battling an eating disorder, contact the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) at 1-800-931-2237 or NationalEatingDisorders.org.
