Katie Couric revealed on her talk show Monday that she previously struggled with an eating disorder.
"I wrestled with bulimia all through college and for two years after that," Couric said. "And I know this rigidity, this feeling that if you eat one thing that's wrong, you're full of self-loathing and then you punish yourself, whether it's one cookie or a stick of gum that isn't sugarless, that I would sometimes beat myself up for that."
The relevation came during Couric's interview with singer and new "X Factor" judge Demi Lovato.
"I kind of hesitated to even bring it up," Couric told The Associated Press after the taping. "But I felt that if I expect people on my show to be honest, then, when relevant, I owe it to people watching to be honest myself.
"I wanted to focus on my guests," she said, "while acknowledging one of the reasons this issue is so important to me: I went through it."
Couric struggled with the disorder as a young woman during her time in college at the University of Virginia, E! Online reported, and in the early years of her reporting career. Eventually, she overcame the eating disorder with the help of a therapist.
Lovato shared her own struggles, saying her body-image struggles began at age 3. "I always had self-confidence issues in my body and self-image problems."
Watch an excerpt from the interview below.
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