Kim Bui has made her former bulimia disease public. A step that she was afraid of for years – and that should now also help other affected people.
Kim Bui was 15, when she started vomiting after every meal. She was ambitious, talented and dreamed of becoming a successful gymnast. “It started when my trainer said to me at some point in training: Hey, look, you might lose a little weight, then one or the other would be a little easier for you,” Kim Bui recalls.
“You look better now too”
That hit her. She felt too fat, too heavy. She really wanted to lose weight, so she ate less. But she realized that didn’t help. “And then at some point there was a moment when I said to myself: I think I can only do it by vomiting. I love to eat, I don’t want to do without it.”
From then on, the young gymnast ate a lot, but then vomited again and again. She knew it wasn’t good for her, but it helped her lose weight. The advantage: the gymnastics exercises were easier for her. “In the beginning I was also positively confirmed: ‘Oh, yes, the weight loss works and you look better now’.”
Seven years to get well
Bui was trapped in her situation, she weighed too little and didn’t eat enough nutrients – until another trainer, who had noticed the behavior, sought the conversation and asked her to get help. “It was hard, but it was also a relief.” Finally someone noticed how she was doing. Bui looked for a therapist and was treated. That was about two years after she became ill.
It took Kim Bui seven years before she stopped vomiting after eating. She has fulfilled her dream of becoming a great gymnast. She won national and international titles, was at the Olympic Games. But she hasn’t talked about her eating disorder yet. She was ashamed, disgusted and afraid to open up. “We’re in competitive sport. It’s about not showing any weaknesses. That’s why you don’t talk about this topic.”
Kim Bui – Those affected are not alone
About a year ago she met a friend who is now one of her closest confidants. Both talked about the topic and revealed to each other their past eating disorders. “She was much more open about the topic than I was. I found someone there with whom I could talk for the first time about what it was like, what the time was.”
This encouraged Kim Bui to go public with her story. She wishes that other sufferers would not feel alone and would be encouraged to get help.
Her book, which also addresses her years of bulimia, will be published on March 4th, one day later (5 p.m.) ARD broadcasts a documentary entitled “Hungern for Gold”. You can find the article in the ARD Mediathek from February 27th.
You can get help here, among other places: https://www.bzga-essstoerungen.de/.
