Photos capture more than just an image in front of the lens. They offer us a window into the past: a way to remember our thoughts, feelings, and experiences. Looking into them juxtaposes our present with the past and gives us a way to reflect on it.

Recently, Rebel Wilson shared an earlier photo of herself and opened up about it. In a post shared on Instagram, she looks back on who she was before her weight loss and considers if it was more than just a physical transformation for her.

Of course, she is incredibly proud of her wellness journey and wants to inspire others who are on their own one too. You can see from her confidence that her weight loss has affected more than just her appearance.

Rebel Wilson discovered a photo of herself from an earlier time, and it brought up a lot of emotions for her

Image credits: rebelwilson

Rebel also addressed her feelings in the time period that the photo was taken and how she was overeating as a coping mechanism to her father’s death. To get more insights on why this happened, I spoke to Dr. Carolyn Ross, the top of her field in treating eating disorders and addictions. She’s the CEO of the ‘The Anchor Program‘ an online coaching program for food and body image issues, and also the author of many books on the topic. She’s offering her latest book The Food Addiction Recovery Workbook for free to our Pandas, and you only have to pay for shipping.

Dr. Ross told Bored Panda, “Emotional eating is not about food, it’s about how food is used to cope with emotions. For example, Rebel Wilson noted that her father’s death was a trigger for her to use food to numb herself from the pain of her loss. While emotional eating is common when it is done infrequently, many people use emotional eating regularly and this becomes a problem. Not just for their weight, but because of the loss of control and inability to stop behaviors that are unwanted, such as binging, compulsive overeating, and food obsessions.”

She opened up about her history of emotional eating and being overweight, and how it made her feel

She explained more about how we can break out of these vicious cycles and it starts with recognizing the issue. Dr. Ross explained, “The first step to making any change is becoming aware that you are using food as a crutch. After that, it is useful to get help to deal with the underlying emotional issues or trauma, and to learn new ways to deal with your emotions. As you’re doing that, you will find that you’re less reliant on food as a coping mechanism.”

Dr. Ross also asks us to re-examine our relationship with food in accordance with our mental health. She said, “Many people think that weight gain has to do with food and that if they could only lose weight, their lives would be fixed. In fact, food serves as a solution to a problem that is NOT being addressed, such as grief, trauma, or stress. Dieting won’t fix these underlying or root causes. That is why people often lose weight then regain it because the root cause is still there.”

“Therefore, it’s best to realize that it’s not about finding the ‘perfect’ diet or being the ‘perfect’ size. It’s really about healing the issues that may have happened in your past so that you can make peace with food and your body. This will enable you to ‘take care’ of yourself as Rebel talked about.”

“I remember this was when I was at my most unhealthiest,” Rebel said

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

So, Rebel Wilson declared 2020 as her ‘Year of Health’ and planned to drop her weight down to her target of 165 pounds and also address her eating issues. It was a step towards improving her health and chances of getting pregnant as a 40 year-old woman. Due to fertility rates dropping as women age, she consulted with medical professionals who said that a change to her fitness and diet would also benefit her in this regard too.

“Until this past year—my year of health—I never properly considered wellness from all angles,” she told Shape. “But I was turning 40 and thinking about freezing my eggs, and the experts told me that the healthier I am, the better the process can go. I get a little emotional when I ask myself why I didn’t care about my health before this. It just wasn’t a priority, and I didn’t know how to do it right.”

Despite smiling, she said, “My father had passed away of a heart attack and it was such a sad time”

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

She started the year off by visiting a detox and retreat center in Austria, whose philosophy is also based on the historical research of a local doctor. The ‘Mayr Method’ (developed by the physician Dr. Franz Xaver Mayr) is a 14-day program that focuses on improving the digestive system in the belief that this will, in turn, help aid weight loss.

Like most diets, the emphasis is on cutting out certain types of food and replacing them with healthier alternatives. Fruit, vegetables, proteins, grains, and nuts are all highly recommended, especially whole food with higher alkaline levels as this will help to neutralize stomach acids. Dairy, gluten, sugars, and caffeine are restricted and limited on the diet accordingly.

The Mayr Method also practices a certain mindfulness and asks followers to pay attention to how they eat. Some notable examples are: chewing a mouthful of food at least 40 times, avoiding distractions and focussing on only the food, and recognizing when you are full.

She was “indulging way too much with junk food” and using food to numb her emotions

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

With the diet underway, Rebel also took to pushing herself hard with exercise. With her personal fitness trainer Jono Castano, she would work out up to six times per week, proving her determination. She used a variety of different exercises, from starting with walking to the aptly-titled ‘high-intensity interval training’ workout. Anyone that’s done this kind of workout will know what we mean…!

After reaching her desired goal, she continues to keep herself active and healthy. She’s not only slimmer than before but also much happier and even more confident in her mind. Rebel told Hit Radio in Australia all about it. She said, “I like to think I looked good at all sizes and stuff and I’ve always been quite confident. So, it wasn’t like I wasn’t confident and then now I’m, like, super confident.”

“I look back now at that girl and am so proud of what she’s become and achieved,” she said

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

“Just wanted to send out some encouragement to everyone out there struggling with weight or body issues or emotional eating”

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

“I feel you. I know what it’s like”

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

“But it’s never too late to start improving yourself and trying to be the best version of YOU possible”

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

“So if you’re out there and reading this today, I just wanted to say: keep smiling and keep trying to be active!”

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

Rebel declared that 2020 was going to be her ‘Year of Health’ and planned to reach her goal weight of 165 pounds

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

Rebel exercised six times a week with her personal trainer, Jono Castano, and focused on intense training regimes

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

She also went on a diet called the ‘Mayr Method‘ to become healthy in body and mind

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

After reaching her target weight, she is now continuing to keep herself in shape

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

She’s much happier with her body and she wants to inspire others to do the same!

Image credits: rebelwilson

Image credits: rebelwilson

People have praised Rebel for sharing her story and positivity

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