**Content Warning**: This article includes details of eating disorders and suicidal ideation.
Kerry Washington isn't afraid to confront her past. The *Scandal* star recently shared more insight into her history with an eating disorder, including what finally prompted her to seek help amidst her struggles.
"I recognized it because I knew that I was in a real mental health crisis," Kerry told Alex Cooper in a *Call Her Daddy* interview released on March 18. "The thing that actually got me to seek help with my eating disorder wasn't the food itself, or the behavior with food—it was the suicidal ideation."
She continued, "I realized that I was using food and exercise as a tool to avoid being here. I was trying to escape life, and I needed to figure out how to live life. I was terrified that I was being so mean to myself, right? That I was in so much pain that inflicting more pain was the only way out of my pain."
The 49-year-old also detailed how because an eating disorder is so deeply ingrained into every part of a person's existence, her healing journey had to be different from anything she'd experienced before.
"It was the first time I ever prayed, to get out of this insanity," Kerry explained. "The only thing my entire life revolved around was what I was eating or not eating, how many calories I was burning. In college, it was the worst, the worst, the worst. That's when I first went into treatment. And it was the first time I got on my knees to say, 'I need help.'"
That help ultimately included individual therapy, group therapy, talking about her disorder with a professional for the first time, and working with a nutritionist. Kerry—who recalled how some people in her life downplayed her eating habits when she shared them—also shared some words of wisdom for anyone worried about their health and relationship with food.
"If you're the one struggling, trust your gut," she said. "If you know you need help, don't let anybody tell you that it's not a big deal. If you're a parent, trust your gut and get help for your young ones."
Overall, Kerry cautioned, "If you're struggling, don't minimize it. It might be an eating disorder. It might be disordered eating. It might be a whole spectrum of things, but if you need help, ask for it. You don't need to suffer alone. You don't need to live in pain. You don't need to engage in activities that take you out of life."
And these days, the *Imperfect Women* star works closely with a company called Equip, which she invested in, that provides people in recovery from eating disorders with every possible resource to aid in their journey. For her, it's been extremely rewarding: "I'm very proud of that work."
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