I’m A Celeb’s Kadeena Cox reveals ITV have ‘plans in place’ to help her manage eating disorder on show
I'M A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!'s Kadeena Cox has revealed that ITV have "plans in place" to help her manage her eating disorder on the show.
The 30-year-old star has been open about her body image battle, which came to a head in 2019 when she wouldn't eat for days on end while over-training.
But the Paralympian was determined not to let fear of her eating disorder being triggered stop her from taking part in this year's series of the reality show.
Kadeena explained that she spoke to her psychiatrist before going into camp, and she hopes to inspire viewers with her recovery amid the gruelling conditions.
She shared: "It's something I have spoken about with my psychiatrist and we've put things in place.
"I've worked really hard over the past two, three years to get in control of it. I'm hoping that rather than struggling in there I can showcase the recovery and show people that there's light at the end of the tunnel."
Kadeena also added to that she is determined not to let her disabilities hold her back, with the sports star suffering from a stroke in 2014 that left her unable to butter her own toast.
That same year, the star was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, which she admitted had a knock-on effect.
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"Disordered eating became a big part of my life," the cyclist and sprinter reflected.
"I went from being an elite athlete prior to becoming ill, to be doing nothing, being on steroids, and my mother feeding me. I think I put on three stone in less than two months. I very quickly became a person that I didn’t recognise.
"So I really struggled with my body image because of this. I felt like MS had taken (my body image) away from me. I got to a point in 2019 when I realised I was being very detrimental to myself and not eating for like three days while over-training."
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Recalling how she finally confronted her eating disorder, Cox said: "In 2019, after I’d won the world championships and I was just mentally in a horrendous place.
"I was broken. I blurted all my struggles to someone who was interviewing me."
Her summer success at the Tokyo Paralympics saw her successfully defend her gold medal in track cycling.
Kadeena admitted she "struggled" with her eating disorder while out there but that "I’m nowhere near as bad as I was".
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