As a psych nurse, the most positive thing happening here is acknowledging that mental health happens to everyone. It isnt that uncommon. Weird, right? The stigma attached to mental health issues are surreal and SO common. Normalizing these issues is a blessing ❤
35 yrs ago I suffered from anorexic/bulimia in silence until the day my body finally gave out. It took years to recover and not sure you ever recover truly from an eating disorder. Unlike drugs or alcohol addiction you don’t need them to actually live but food you do. I still worry about my weight daily but I don’t obsess over it anymore. My hubby of 33 years helped me thru this so much. Keep talking about this Shawn, girls need to hear it’s just not them. Wish it would of been talked about more in the 80’s.
As a recovering addict with almost 5 years sobriety, I loved this video. My husband was and is so supportive, but he really didn’t understand the depth of the trauma and the length of time it would take for me to be happy again. Luckily he has been by my side through it all: running from treatment, mood swings, depression, relapse, lack of confidence, lack of certainty, the not knowing…. Now we are enjoying our life together the way it was meant to be, and with me healthy, I can be the loyal wife that he deserves. Great video.
Thank you, Shawn Johnson East, for your willingness to talk about your personal experiences with an eating disorder, perfectionism and control and for explaining it so well. Thank you, Andrew East, for sharing your experiences in supporting and helping your partner with this mental illness. As athletes, life partners, and Christian parents of a daughter and soon to be son, this is so helpful and insightful and so appreciated. Many, many thanks!
Great show! My mom was anorexic and died at 54. I was tiny as a teen; 5’1” and 90 lbs soaking wet. Mom would constantly tell me I was fat. At 58, I’m grateful I didn’t spend my life battling her voice in my head. I am a happy and healthy grandma!
"The more of Shawn the world sees, the better off we'll all be" so sweet and genuine you two are. Thank you for sharing and modeling a positive approach to these challenges we all face💛
I'm 40 and I battled this for most of my life. . I worked in television and did modeling in my younger years and it really made me obsessed with calories and every little thing I do all day every day. It turned into an alcohol addiction in my 20's ..... When I got pregnant with my daughter it snapped me into a reality that no therapist could ever get me into. . Because how dare I abuse my body when another little body was dependent on me. To this day I still struggle here and there but I'm also very aware of health and the fact that I need to be ALIVE to be a good mom to my kids. God bless you guys. Your relationship is wonderfully blessed.
It would be awesome if maybe do a show with Shawn’s parents (if they are comfortable) about addiction and mental health from a parents’ view and how to encourage parents to deal with their kids dealing with mental health and addiction. I love that you guys are talking about mental health and addiction openly! It isn’t taught enough in schools or relationships or even talked a lot with parents and child.
Yes! This is coming from a mom and my daughter is struggling. I know and I know to be there for her and just listen but also as a mom you want to do more...to just fix it. When I hear Shawn say how Andrew was the first to think of her not as a gymnast I wonder how her parents feel....100% don’t mean that in a bad way...I am just the parent.
I agree with y'all. Everyone has something they are battling. I'm not an athlete, but I am a woman and as a young girl until even now, I've always struggled with worrying about what others think of me. Whether at church, work, or with friends or family... It's always been hard for me to realize that the only person that matters is really the King of Kings... I should be living for God not others. I'm getting better daily. But I do have times when I get stuck. Then I have a brother who suffers from addiction to drugs and he is getting better in rehab. We all have that one thing that we have to work on. Very good show!!! Thank you for being so honest. And truthfully I love seeing the real Shawn not just the gymnast Shawn. I wish I could just hang out with y'all. I truly love your show!!!
Thanks for sharing my daughter struggles with an eating disorder and spent 7 months in the hospital at age 19 ,she was a competitive figure skater and cross country skier. She is doing amazing now five years later but each day is a a new day and not every day is perfect and that’s ok as long as she is making good choices for her and health
I could listen to you two every day… coming from someone who could be your mom! I learn so much from you both. 🧡🧡🧡🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼 Thank you for sharing your life and family. 😢😊 You have no idea how much you help me, even at my age.
I'm not gonna lie when I first saw this post my immediate gut instinct was "how could you possibly know anything about addiction" perfect life, husband, sweetest toddler ever and 1 on the way" perfect 10s in the relationship goals. You hid it so well. I still give you 10s you pulled it together beautifully.
So so beautiful, Shawn and Andrew. Thank you for talking about such important topics! God is so faithful and He's shining through you both. 💛 I can relate to many of the things you shared, Shawn, and I know how much my marriage rooted in Christ has helped heal so many hurts. God's plan for unity inside a marriage is just the best blessing!
😦 It feels SOOOOO GOOD to know I am not alone. Thank you for sharing. 💙 I'm a former competitive gymnast. (Nowhere near your level, Shawn) When I listen to you describe every detail, it resonates to the core with me. Decades later with occasional therapy several years ago, I am still struggling with it all. I need to find a good therapist. As a Christian, I know I am allowing the enemy the foothold. I pray for the chains to be broken. 🙏🏽
Thank you so ssharing. Weight has always been an issue for me. A year ago I was purging and hemorrhage behind my right eye. A month later my retina detached. Have had 2 surgeries. Because of that my vision will not be back. This is a reminder everyday what my eating disorder caused.
W.O.W. You two (especially Shawn's total openness/honesty) are doing what has been needed to be done with Mental Health (or just human behavior) for DECADES!!! Woot woot woot to you both!!!
I just found this channel. I think it is so refreshing to see a couple sitting down and sharing the real aspects of Marriage and relationships, and how to keep those relationships healthy. Nowadays everything is all about hook-up culture, and there's not enough content like this available to show people that Marriage or long term relationship can be amazing if you only put in the work needed to support your significant other, and that sitting down with one another and being honest with each other while communicating is key to keeping things together and healthy for both partners. Kudos to the both of you for setting such a great example for young couples out there. You're doing such a great job!
How brave of both of you to be so open and candid about what you've been through. I hope you know how many people are listening and how helpful these truths are for so many.
Shawn Thank you so much for being so open and vulnerable about this struggle with gymnastics. I grew up with just the best mother and woman figure ever. She was always so confident around me, she taught me so much self love and body positivity, she never talked down about herself around me and for the most part I made it through JO gymnastics relatively unharmed. ( got a little ridiculous with eating junior year, but never got to an inappropriate weight) and then I got into a division 1 top 12 school and they screwed me up bad. I was 96 lbs ( all muscle and at the lower end of acceptable weight, but okay) freshmen year and I was told again and again and again that I was super fat, lazy, stupid, worthless, ugly, would never amount to anything. The reason I had injuries is because my body couldn’t support my weight... and now 10+ years later, I have been up to 153 lbs .. and down to 106... and I’ve not been happy at either. I got pretty healthy in quarantine and lots around 20 pounds and mentally felt my best with my body and with food, but then I lost 10 more ( cause I’m competitive) and got down to the low 100s and the extreme working out and same diet for months kind of broke me. I haven’t been able to mentally workout in a couple months and couldn’t understand how I was doing crazy cardio workouts twice a day with so much vigor and happiness and now I barely felt like I had the energy to walk downstairs and back upstairs again. I always thought growing up ( were pretty close in age, I have a little more than year on you) that your parents did it so right. You still went to school, didn’t train the crazy hours other elites did... seemed to eat healthy and full meals at home.... and I thought the crazy downfalls of elite gymnastics escaped you somehow. ... I wish they had, but it’s comforting to me and it’s inspiring to me to know that you struggle with a lot of the same things ( and had to struggle in front of the whole world!!!) and that you continue to check in on your mental health and know it’s will never be a “Today I’m cured for the rest of my life” Gymnastics gave me so much and I will always be thankful for who it made me and what it gave me... but some of the amazing pros ... can in a second become some of the biggest cons for a strong willed, stubborn, competitive natured person. Thank you for sharing. Thank you for being vulnerable. Thank you for reminding me that I will have super high healthy peaks in my life again, but even during those I need not think I’m cured and I’ll still need to check on myself for the rest of my life. I’m okay with that. As someone who left the sport with less scars than many, I still feel thankful for where I’m at.
Thank you for posting this. I feel alone because I struggle with an eating disorder for many years. I lose a lot of weight and than I will gain weight. Its the demons in my head. I'm going to be 50 years old, and still going through this. Thank you for giving me hope!! I love you and your family. You are such a beautiful person inside and out!!!
I almost lost my life to my eating disorder, I spent years in and out of the hospital being force fed, hydrated with IV fluids because I restricted fluids, and my whole world was about food and my body. Obviously, now I know that it wasn’t even remotely about the food. I didn’t want to feel, so I focused on my ED, it protected me from all the pain I had deep down inside, and while that was going on I was so lost in the darkness while my ED demon was controlling everything. It took me hitting absolute rock bottom before I could start that slow climb out of my darkness into the light. I ended up overdosing, and the ICU docs said that there was no way I should be alive. It was in the ICU that I found my faith again, where I realized I couldn’t keep going like this anymore, and after all the years of saying I was ready to find recovery only to fall back into my ED I was finally ready to truly fight back, I found a strength in me that I didn’t know I had. The hardest part of starting my recovery was accepting that my body had been sick before my ED, and the years of starving and purging made things so much worse. I was devastated by my Gastroparesis diagnosis because I had made the disease so much worse over the years that I would be dependent on a feeding tube in my small intestine forever for my nutrition because my stomach was now paralyzed. They did a surgery, removing all, but like five percent of it trying to help, but it made things worse. As I started letting these docs investigate why I couldn’t eat now that I wanted to I was shocked to find out that my GI system was destroyed. I have gastroparesis, short gut, and EoE leaving me dependent on tube feeds, IV hydration, and IV nutrition when my tube feeds don’t work. After hearing all of that they told me I wouldn’t have a baby, which destroyed me, I had destroyed my chance of being a mom, all I’d ever wanted. It was miraculous in 2010 when we found out that I was pregnant. The docs said if I didn’t end the pregnancy both me and the baby would die, but I was determined to get that baby safely out. The strange thing was after years of hating my body, obsessing about every pound, every bite, I had a sudden change of paradigm (inside joke with my ED doc) and wanted to gain way, I wanted to give my baby as much as I could. I was on IV nutrition for the first trimester and then had to go in for another major abdominal surgery to put another feeding tube in to get tube feed to me and the baby. Because my intestines were so damaged I was in bed rest and I would cry as we ran the tube feeds to get the baby what he needed. I would cradle my stomach in a loving way that I never could in the past. I was nourishing a other human being, and it was amazing. Everyone thought I wouldn’t be able to handle it, but I always wanted to be bigger because I couldn’t gain enough weight, we were always worried my son would be too small. By the grace of God I delivered a super healthy baby boy after a pregnancy full of two surgeries, gestational diabetes, insulin, pain meds, months of bed rest, and emergency c section. I was so sick after he was born because he had sucked me dry of nutrition like a parasite (docs words, not mine). When I looked into his eyes I made him a promise that I wouldn’t let that anorexia demon ever take me away from him, and I’ve been in recovery for 11.5 yrs. Everyday I wake up and make the choice to keep fighting, and I try to share my story so others know that they can get through this, they deserve recovery!
Wow your story really touched me and made me cry but I'm so happy and proud of you for fighting for your life and your son as well..praying for you and your family.. Thank for sharing that heartbreaking yet inspirational story..
It’s wonderful that you are able to be so transparent now about your mental health issues, it may help someone hearing the struggles that you had.. Mental health in our country isn’t taken seriously enough, and it’s often looked at as taboo. It should be looked at in the same way as physical health..Take care and be well...💕💕💕💕
It truly is so completely consuming and it does take over your identity. This fell into my lap today on a very hard and negative day after years of fighting on and off an eating disorder. It is a demon. And the obsession for perfection haunts me every day. Thank you for your honesty.
I agree with the uniforms for gymnastics! I have always wondered why they focus on that. And the fact that those leos have just been getting less and less. 😬 I really wish they would go to a total full body leo. Seriously, it should be about the skills. I loved watching gymnastics growing up simply for the art! It's truly flying talent! I still love it. Change can be slow, but I do hope the young girls in the sport keep fighting for the right to only be judged for the talent.
This is so true. I am Bipolar and it took a huge hit to our relationship! We have learned together how to navigate this and it’s sunnier on the other side!
Both my daughter and I have been diagnosed with anorexia due to stress of caring for my parents with dementia. Thank you for having this conversation. I really didnt realize how much I think about food as a manner of controlling my environment. It's just something I can control. It's good to see that you found such happiness and acceptance. You are truly a beautiful family. Bless you.
Shawn, you are a truly remarkable human being! Your purpose on earth far exceeds gymnastics. You radiate your beautiful soul through and through! Keep shining bright 🌞
I thank the Lord that He has helped you through healing He is the only one who can fully set you free but it’s also so amazing that the Lord brought good people in your life to support and love you such as your parents and Andrew. You both are such a blessing, know of the Lords constant love in the process of each day seeing you far more greater than we see ourselves. He is so so faithful so loving so gentle so kind. Blessings to you both and your family so blessed by you guys in being so real and vulnerable. Many times people may not fully understand what we all go through but I have loved having good support in the midst of difficult things going on. Love and blessings ❤️
I love the mentality of "if this helps 1 person, it was worth it" I truly believe some people go first and experience the things they do, to hopefully be the light and the strength for the people that come after them that just need a little more strength. I have gone through so many horrible things in only 36 years and I always say the same thing..."if my story can help just 1 person, it was worth it" I just want to be able to use what I have been through to help others, thank you for sharing that with us shawn❤
You are a very brave and strong women. Thank you for sharing more about yourself in a very deep way. I can relate to the struggle with mental health. I can also relate to having more good days away from negative thought now than in the past. I pray for you and your family everyday. Thank you again for being such an amazing inspiration.
Thank for being vulnerable and sharing your story. The grace and support shown by Andrew in this video is equally as encouraging to me as the Shawn's story of overcoming the obstacle and addiction. Thank you for using this platform to shed light on some dark places in people's lives.
You’re amazing and such an inspiration to so many people. Don’t ever doubt your worth or your beauty because the real people in this world see it shining off of you.
Love you two. If we had been able to recognize severe depression early in our marriage, it would have saved us a.lot of pain. Back in the day people did not talk about it so I'm glad we have gotten better at that.
I appreciate this so much, my fiancé struggles with severe anxiety, and I want to be supportive but never know how. It’s helpful to hear from you how you feel a spouse can try to relate.
This has been painfully relatable. Shawn, it is awesome that you're talking about all of this so that people whose friends or significant others go through something similar will understand better. Also, Andrew seems more and more amazing with every episode. You're a beautiful couple :)
Gila's message: First of all it is so brave of you put all this out there. Second I agree that anyone who excels pays a price. The question is: is the price worth it? In some cases yes, in others no. Your strength, Mrs. East is your willingness to grow and improve. You have managed to mature your goal from the pursuit of perfectionism to the pursuit of mastery. Mr. East your strength is your faith in Something bigger than you. Mr. And Mrs. East your strength together is your humility. It is ironic how beautiful you are inside and outside Mrs. East. I was watching your Maturnity Haul and could not comment, but your beauty shines through and always did as a gymnast. Mr. East you hit the nail on the head. While Mrs. East correctly pointed out, she first had to admit she had a problem, one of the 12 steps in AA and one of the most powerful steps to recovery is admitting you are powerless over your addiction and there is a Higher Power. The 2 things you, Mr. East, always offerred Mrs. East were/are unconditional love and acceptance of her as Mrs. East and a Higher Power to believe in as something real. Thank you both for sharing this. Please do an episode on Mr. East's mental health too because you are both such pillars of strength that I think it helps me to know how you got there. I had to think about this, but I would agree with Mrs. East differently to how she stated. Either a person has an addiction or a person has faith. However we would all manifest our addictions if faith was not there. So faith in Something Bigger than me is the opposite/antidote to addiction. My prayer is that everyone should heal from their addiction. Thank you for highlighting Mental Health. As a counsellor, it is heartbreaking how painful addictions are and how painful it is to break an addiction. However the facing reality and the pain that comes with that is far less than the pain of the addiction. The problem is stopping believing the addictive voice that says the exact opposite. I am glad you are both so much further on your paths and may your healing continue.
This was such a wonderful conversation. Shawn, thank you for being so open and honest. I hope conversations like this continue to break down the stigma surrounding mental health. Thank you, thank you!
you two are amazing! thank you Shawn for sharing this. I went through a lot of the same struggles when I was younger, and hearing your story brought me to tears as I remembered how strong I am to have walked through those struggles and came out stronger. And thank you Andrew for the reminder that I am worthy and loved and the daughter of the king. I truly love y’all and your mission.
I totally understand what Shawn went through. I believe that I still have issues around food because of what I went through while I was a gymnast. I was constantly on diets & told I had to lose weight. I was a gymnast almost 45 years ago & I still remember the feelings of being so defeated on "weigh in days". I think that I'll always be conscious of my weight. I don't think that it's healthy at all.
Shawn I'm sure there are so many out there that your story will help. Andrew more men are needed to help out like you did with Shawn's journey. Thank you both 🥰🥰🤩🤩
This is an incredible podcast. The honesty you two have and share with everyone is inspiring. Shawn, I relate to you heavily and you inspire me. Andrew, you’re such a good man.
Wow Shawn! Thank you for sharing your story! You just described myself and my struggles with my eating disorder. It’s a real battle with the mind!😔You are awesome! ❤️🌻
I struggle with mental health. I have been diagnosed many many years ago with anxiety. I am finally on medication since last year when pandemic hit. Although things are not perfect and I am not yet at the best place I do feel better with having weekly therapy and being on medication. My anxiety was heightened during my pregnancy and then when pandemic hit it got worse so that's what made me decide that I needed to do medication and therapy. I don't have perfect days but I thank each day for the help I do receive. Don't wait too long to go and get help with mental health.
Best thing above all the things listed to help. Pray pray pray. For both you and the other person for understanding patience healing direction peace of mind and most of all for faith. Always enjoy your vids.
Thank you so much for sharing, it helps so much to hear we are all humans, even those who are glorified. You two are great people and thank you for sharing and putting in work to help others ❤
Thank you for sharing this with all of us. Hearing the struggles of someone I look up to so much and how you’ve healed and are still healing is so reassuring that I to will heal. We love you guys 💖
I think you are awesome Shawn for being so open with your struggles. I think its even more awesome that you found ur soulmate in Andrew. And Andrew i think your awesome for being so real and showing men that you can be a man and its ok to show emotion. I wish you guys all the best. Congrats on the about to be the new addition to the family who is still developing. God Bless your entire family
I get addiction it's horrid. I have had to be on morphine and tramadol for 13years so I am now addicted. I have got my morphine to just 3 a day instead of like 10 or 12 at one point. And I'm completely off tramadol I still have to be on opiods but they are changing me onto one that is better for me and my body. Thank you for being so open Shawn
Thank you for everything in this video I’ve always thought for many years I was not ment to be around anyone for how I look and with being a female to male trans I always think I’m being judged and makes me stay away from everyone and stay hidden, thank you for being so open and showing the love and support you both show a lot.
I think I have dealt with disordered eating in various ways since I was a kid. I came from a large family where sometimes food was scarce. For many, many years I would delay meals when i had other things to do because I was able to ignore hunger (I suppose because sometimes I had to). From my mid teens I fluctuate between about 120-125 lbs give or take a few. I always had people calling me anorexic and it would upset me because I could and would eat a lot when I had access and took the time to sit down and eat. I never wanted to be as thin as I was and I was convincing myself that I ate enough because sometimes I ate a lot. I did that well into my adult life. Then when I got pregnant with my first baby I was also dealing with a lot of trauma. That partly manifested as germaphobia which left me fearful of eating most fresh fruits and vegetables, some dairy and pretty much anything that wasn't cooked to death. I started at 118lb (I'm 5'5") and I only gained about 18 lb during pregnancy. I nursed my baby and before he was weaned I was down to 114 lb. That's when wic put me on whole milk. It took me some years after that to get back to a healthier mindset. When I got pregnant again 3 ½ years later I weighed the same as I did when I got pregnant the first time. I vowed that I would eat more and eat better in the second pregnancy. I gained twice as much weight in my second pregnancy as I did in my first. I went down to about 135 lb after pregnancy. When the pandemic hit though I started eating more. Lately I have been struggling with binge eating lately at night. Now I'm over 150 lb. I went from the low end of "normal" BMI to the high end so both weights are considered "healthy" and no doctor has ever showed concern over my weight but I know I was very unhealthy when I was under 130 lb.
Oh my gosh, this story has touched my heart. Thank you so much. It assures me that there are people out there who understand and want to help someone even in the most unusual circumstances.
I‘m so grateful for your honesty Shawn! Thank you for sharing your testimony! This is a beautiful story of healing! It’s also amazing how God Sent you a husband to love you through this! Last year I went to therapy for the first time and It was so helpful! I would love to hear also about practical tips about how you stay in a mentally healthy state. Do you read something every day, or what do you say to yourself when you have a negative thought, or do you listen to music? Much love!!!
What a sweet man ❤. Girl you found a diamond 💎 😍 However I'm 1000% sure HE feels this way having found you! Your relationship is such a beautiful example of how a relationship SHOULD BE ❤
First comment. I have watched many of your videos. I just watched your video about all those rude comments. You two are so cute! How dare people be so mean. They choose to watch. Tell them to go the hell away! Keep doing you. ❤❤❤
Thanks for the transparency!! You are doing great, so happy you did all the hard work to get to where you are today!! Kudos to you both. Andrew thanks for being so supportive to Shawn. Christ bless you both for sharing from the heart to encourage others❣️❣️
Have you considered a functional neurologist to look into the different parts of your brain to help you bring them into balance? I struggle with obsessively finding problems and fixing them. I get fixated on them and have a hard time not talking about them, researching solutions, etc. I have several health issues that have been scary and mysterious so it’s kind of created a PTSD pattern that has lead to the obsessive problem solver to figure out what is wrong with me. Part of my healing is repairing what that did to my brain, bringing my prefrontal cortex back to a normal healthy level of function instead of hyper vigilance. I HIGHLY recommend it.
Just wanted to bring to y'alls attention that "crazy" and "insane" shouldn't be used to describe things as it perpetuates the stigma around mental health. It's especially hard to hear/read in the mental health awareness month. More people need to be aware of this issue. I'm so proud of you Shawn and I'm so happy the both of you have each other ♥️
My daughter wants to be in gymnastics so bad, but this is one of the reasons I worry about having her in it. I personally would never tell her she needs to lose weight ( she's tiny right now) but I worry about the coaches even herself. I said if she does it I'd prefer not to do competition's. I'd rather use it more as a fun way to be active. We will see, still thinking about it. She's playing tball in June so we will see after that.
As a psych nurse, the most positive thing happening here is acknowledging that mental health happens to everyone. It isnt that uncommon. Weird, right? The stigma attached to mental health issues are surreal and SO common. Normalizing these issues is a blessing ❤
I love the way Andrew is so zoomed in on listening to Shawn. You can see how much they love each other.
I know he is such a great husband
Thanks!!
35 yrs ago I suffered from anorexic/bulimia in silence until the day my body finally gave out. It took years to recover and not sure you ever recover truly from an eating disorder. Unlike drugs or alcohol addiction you don’t need them to actually live but food you do. I still worry about my weight daily but I don’t obsess over it anymore. My hubby of 33 years helped me thru this so much. Keep talking about this Shawn, girls need to hear it’s just not them. Wish it would of been talked about more in the 80’s.
As a recovering addict with almost 5 years sobriety, I loved this video. My husband was and is so supportive, but he really didn’t understand the depth of the trauma and the length of time it would take for me to be happy again. Luckily he has been by my side through it all: running from treatment, mood swings, depression, relapse, lack of confidence, lack of certainty, the not knowing…. Now we are enjoying our life together the way it was meant to be, and with me healthy, I can be the loyal wife that he deserves. Great video.
Thank you, Shawn Johnson East, for your willingness to talk about your personal experiences with an eating disorder, perfectionism and control and for explaining it so well. Thank you, Andrew East, for sharing your experiences in supporting and helping your partner with this mental illness. As athletes, life partners, and Christian parents of a daughter and soon to be son, this is so helpful and insightful and so appreciated. Many, many thanks!
Great show! My mom was anorexic and died at 54. I was tiny as a teen; 5’1” and 90 lbs soaking wet. Mom would constantly tell me I was fat. At 58, I’m grateful I didn’t spend my life battling her voice in my head. I am a happy and healthy grandma!
"The more of Shawn the world sees, the better off we'll all be" so sweet and genuine you two are. Thank you for sharing and modeling a positive approach to these challenges we all face💛
Shawn, I am where you were, please pray for me, and thank you for sharing this with us. Gives lots of hope
I'm 40 and I battled this for most of my life. . I worked in television and did modeling in my younger years and it really made me obsessed with calories and every little thing I do all day every day.
It turned into an alcohol addiction in my 20's .....
When I got pregnant with my daughter it snapped me into a reality that no therapist could ever get me into. .
Because how dare I abuse my body when another little body was dependent on me.
To this day I still struggle here and there but I'm also very aware of health and the fact that I need to be ALIVE to be a good mom to my kids.
God bless you guys.
Your relationship is wonderfully blessed.
It would be awesome if maybe do a show with Shawn’s parents (if they are comfortable) about addiction and mental health from a parents’ view and how to encourage parents to deal with their kids dealing with mental health and addiction.
I love that you guys are talking about mental health and addiction openly! It isn’t taught enough in schools or relationships or even talked a lot with parents and child.
Yes! This is coming from a mom and my daughter is struggling. I know and I know to be there for her and just listen but also as a mom you want to do more...to just fix it. When I hear Shawn say how Andrew was the first to think of her not as a gymnast I wonder how her parents feel....100% don’t mean that in a bad way...I am just the parent.
Yes, we know that behavior tends to run from generation to generation -- I'd also love to see this if they are willing.
I don’t really trust any of them to tell the truth and the whole truth and nothing but the truth. None of them.
Being able to talk about weakness is SUCH A STRENGHTH, especially to a Loved One! "Your Teammate"!
Co-Captain!
With God Leading Us!
I agree with y'all. Everyone has something they are battling. I'm not an athlete, but I am a woman and as a young girl until even now, I've always struggled with worrying about what others think of me. Whether at church, work, or with friends or family... It's always been hard for me to realize that the only person that matters is really the King of Kings... I should be living for God not others. I'm getting better daily. But I do have times when I get stuck. Then I have a brother who suffers from addiction to drugs and he is getting better in rehab. We all have that one thing that we have to work on. Very good show!!! Thank you for being so honest. And truthfully I love seeing the real Shawn not just the gymnast Shawn. I wish I could just hang out with y'all. I truly love your show!!!
I love the reaching out and hand holding at particularly difficult parts of their discussions.
Thanks for sharing my daughter struggles with an eating disorder and spent 7 months in the hospital at age 19 ,she was a competitive figure skater and cross country skier. She is doing amazing now five years later but each day is a a new day and not every day is perfect and that’s ok as long as she is making good choices for her and health
I could listen to you two every day… coming from someone who could be your mom! I learn so much from you both. 🧡🧡🧡🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼 Thank you for sharing your life and family. 😢😊 You have no idea how much you help me, even at my age.
Me too! As a mom and nana of girls, I love hearing them talk about these issues. ❤
I'm not gonna lie when I first saw this post my immediate gut instinct was "how could you possibly know anything about addiction" perfect life, husband, sweetest toddler ever and 1 on the way" perfect 10s in the relationship goals. You hid it so well. I still give you 10s you pulled it together beautifully.
Burst out crying at minute 1:50 ... thank you for saying that Shawn... you don’t know how much it means to me
So so beautiful, Shawn and Andrew. Thank you for talking about such important topics! God is so faithful and He's shining through you both. 💛 I can relate to many of the things you shared, Shawn, and I know how much my marriage rooted in Christ has helped heal so many hurts. God's plan for unity inside a marriage is just the best blessing!
😦
It feels SOOOOO GOOD to know I am not alone.
Thank you for sharing. 💙
I'm a former competitive gymnast.
(Nowhere near your level, Shawn)
When I listen to you describe every detail,
it resonates to the core with me.
Decades later with occasional therapy several years ago,
I am still struggling with it all.
I need to find a good therapist.
As a Christian, I know I am allowing the enemy the foothold.
I pray for the chains to be broken. 🙏🏽
Thank you so ssharing. Weight has always been an issue for me. A year ago I was purging and hemorrhage behind my right eye. A month later my retina detached. Have had 2 surgeries. Because of that my vision will not be back. This is a reminder everyday what my eating disorder caused.
Great pod. As someone who deals with anxiety… the one thing a spouse can do, is just listen. Just listen and be there.
W.O.W. You two (especially Shawn's total openness/honesty) are doing what has been needed to be done with Mental Health (or just human behavior) for DECADES!!! Woot woot woot to you both!!!
I just found this channel. I think it is so refreshing to see a couple sitting down and sharing the real aspects of Marriage and relationships, and how to keep those relationships healthy. Nowadays everything is all about hook-up culture, and there's not enough content like this available to show people that Marriage or long term relationship can be amazing if you only put in the work needed to support your significant other, and that sitting down with one another and being honest with each other while communicating is key to keeping things together and healthy for both partners. Kudos to the both of you for setting such a great example for young couples out there. You're doing such a great job!
Totally agree. Great comment! :)
How brave of both of you to be so open and candid about what you've been through. I hope you know how many people are listening and how helpful these truths are for so many.
Shawn Thank you so much for being so open and vulnerable about this struggle with gymnastics. I grew up with just the best mother and woman figure ever. She was always so confident around me, she taught me so much self love and body positivity, she never talked down about herself around me and for the most part I made it through JO gymnastics relatively unharmed. ( got a little ridiculous with eating junior year, but never got to an inappropriate weight) and then I got into a division 1 top 12 school and they screwed me up bad. I was 96 lbs ( all muscle and at the lower end of acceptable weight, but okay) freshmen year and I was told again and again and again that I was super fat, lazy, stupid, worthless, ugly, would never amount to anything. The reason I had injuries is because my body couldn’t support my weight... and now 10+ years later, I have been up to 153 lbs .. and down to 106... and I’ve not been happy at either. I got pretty healthy in quarantine and lots around 20 pounds and mentally felt my best with my body and with food, but then I lost 10 more ( cause I’m competitive) and got down to the low 100s and the extreme working out and same diet for months kind of broke me. I haven’t been able to mentally workout in a couple months and couldn’t understand how I was doing crazy cardio workouts twice a day with so much vigor and happiness and now I barely felt like I had the energy to walk downstairs and back upstairs again.
I always thought growing up ( were pretty close in age, I have a little more than year on you) that your parents did it so right. You still went to school, didn’t train the crazy hours other elites did... seemed to eat healthy and full meals at home.... and I thought the crazy downfalls of elite gymnastics escaped you somehow.
... I wish they had, but it’s comforting to me and it’s inspiring to me to know that you struggle with a lot of the same things ( and had to struggle in front of the whole world!!!) and that you continue to check in on your mental health and know it’s will never be a “Today I’m cured for the rest of my life”
Gymnastics gave me so much and I will always be thankful for who it made me and what it gave me... but some of the amazing pros ... can in a second become some of the biggest cons for a strong willed, stubborn, competitive natured person.
Thank you for sharing. Thank you for being vulnerable. Thank you for reminding me that I will have super high healthy peaks in my life again, but even during those I need not think I’m cured and I’ll still need to check on myself for the rest of my life. I’m okay with that. As someone who left the sport with less scars than many, I still feel thankful for where I’m at.
Thank you!! Because I carry such shame! I feel inadequate! It's a daily struggle! I thank you❤ you both are so awesome!!!❤
Thank you for posting this. I feel alone because I struggle with an eating disorder for many years. I lose a lot of weight and than I will gain weight. Its the demons in my head. I'm going to be 50 years old, and still going through this. Thank you for giving me hope!! I love you and your family. You are such a beautiful person inside and out!!!
I see you! I have been the same!
38:38 Andrew almost brought me to tears.
I almost lost my life to my eating disorder, I spent years in and out of the hospital being force fed, hydrated with IV fluids because I restricted fluids, and my whole world was about food and my body. Obviously, now I know that it wasn’t even remotely about the food. I didn’t want to feel, so I focused on my ED, it protected me from all the pain I had deep down inside, and while that was going on I was so lost in the darkness while my ED demon was controlling everything. It took me hitting absolute rock bottom before I could start that slow climb out of my darkness into the light. I ended up overdosing, and the ICU docs said that there was no way I should be alive. It was in the ICU that I found my faith again, where I realized I couldn’t keep going like this anymore, and after all the years of saying I was ready to find recovery only to fall back into my ED I was finally ready to truly fight back, I found a strength in me that I didn’t know I had. The hardest part of starting my recovery was accepting that my body had been sick before my ED, and the years of starving and purging made things so much worse. I was devastated by my Gastroparesis diagnosis because I had made the disease so much worse over the years that I would be dependent on a feeding tube in my small intestine forever for my nutrition because my stomach was now paralyzed. They did a surgery, removing all, but like five percent of it trying to help, but it made things worse. As I started letting these docs investigate why I couldn’t eat now that I wanted to I was shocked to find out that my GI system was destroyed. I have gastroparesis, short gut, and EoE leaving me dependent on tube feeds, IV hydration, and IV nutrition when my tube feeds don’t work. After hearing all of that they told me I wouldn’t have a baby, which destroyed me, I had destroyed my chance of being a mom, all I’d ever wanted. It was miraculous in 2010 when we found out that I was pregnant. The docs said if I didn’t end the pregnancy both me and the baby would die, but I was determined to get that baby safely out. The strange thing was after years of hating my body, obsessing about every pound, every bite, I had a sudden change of paradigm (inside joke with my ED doc) and wanted to gain way, I wanted to give my baby as much as I could. I was on IV nutrition for the first trimester and then had to go in for another major abdominal surgery to put another feeding tube in to get tube feed to me and the baby. Because my intestines were so damaged I was in bed rest and I would cry as we ran the tube feeds to get the baby what he needed. I would cradle my stomach in a loving way that I never could in the past. I was nourishing a other human being, and it was amazing. Everyone thought I wouldn’t be able to handle it, but I always wanted to be bigger because I couldn’t gain enough weight, we were always worried my son would be too small. By the grace of God I delivered a super healthy baby boy after a pregnancy full of two surgeries, gestational diabetes, insulin, pain meds, months of bed rest, and emergency c section. I was so sick after he was born because he had sucked me dry of nutrition like a parasite (docs words, not mine). When I looked into his eyes I made him a promise that I wouldn’t let that anorexia demon ever take me away from him, and I’ve been in recovery for 11.5 yrs. Everyday I wake up and make the choice to keep fighting, and I try to share my story so others know that they can get through this, they deserve recovery!
What an inspirational story! Keep fighting everyday for your son!
Wow! 11.5 years, that’s incredible in itself. Thank you for sharing ❤️
Thank you for sharing your story. Very inspirational and I know your Son is so blessed to have you as you are to have had him! ❤️💙
Wow thank you for sharing your story Andi 💖💖
Wow your story really touched me and made me cry but I'm so happy and proud of you for fighting for your life and your son as well..praying for you and your family..
Thank for sharing that heartbreaking yet inspirational story..
It’s wonderful that you are able to be so transparent now about your mental health issues, it may help someone hearing the struggles that you had.. Mental health in our country isn’t taken seriously enough, and it’s often looked at as taboo. It should be looked at in the same way as physical health..Take care and be well...💕💕💕💕
It truly is so completely consuming and it does take over your identity. This fell into my lap today on a very hard and negative day after years of fighting on and off an eating disorder. It is a demon. And the obsession for perfection haunts me every day. Thank you for your honesty.
I agree with the uniforms for gymnastics! I have always wondered why they focus on that. And the fact that those leos have just been getting less and less. 😬 I really wish they would go to a total full body leo. Seriously, it should be about the skills. I loved watching gymnastics growing up simply for the art! It's truly flying talent! I still love it. Change can be slow, but I do hope the young girls in the sport keep fighting for the right to only be judged for the talent.
This is so true. I am Bipolar and it took a huge hit to our relationship! We have learned together how to navigate this and it’s sunnier on the other side!
Both my daughter and I have been diagnosed with anorexia due to stress of caring for my parents with dementia. Thank you for having this conversation. I really didnt realize how much I think about food as a manner of controlling my environment. It's just something I can control. It's good to see that you found such happiness and acceptance. You are truly a beautiful family. Bless you.
I just wanna say as a fellow petite woman. Eating and body image can be extremely tough.
Shawn, you are a truly remarkable human being! Your purpose on earth far exceeds gymnastics. You radiate your beautiful soul through and through! Keep shining bright 🌞
I thank the Lord that He has helped you through healing He is the only one who can fully set you free but it’s also so amazing that the Lord brought good people in your life to support and love you such as your parents and Andrew. You both are such a blessing, know of the Lords constant love in the process of each day seeing you far more greater than we see ourselves. He is so so faithful so loving so gentle so kind. Blessings to you both and your family so blessed by you guys in being so real and vulnerable. Many times people may not fully understand what we all go through but I have loved having good support in the midst of difficult things going on. Love and blessings ❤️
I love the mentality of "if this helps 1 person, it was worth it" I truly believe some people go first and experience the things they do, to hopefully be the light and the strength for the people that come after them that just need a little more strength. I have gone through so many horrible things in only 36 years and I always say the same thing..."if my story can help just 1 person, it was worth it" I just want to be able to use what I have been through to help others, thank you for sharing that with us shawn❤
So great to hear u 2 talk about how important taking care of your mental health is. It’s not talked about enough! ❤️
You are a very brave and strong women. Thank you for sharing more about yourself in a very deep way. I can relate to the struggle with mental health. I can also relate to having more good days away from negative thought now than in the past. I pray for you and your family everyday. Thank you again for being such an amazing inspiration.
Thank for being vulnerable and sharing your story. The grace and support shown by Andrew in this video is equally as encouraging to me as the Shawn's story of overcoming the obstacle and addiction. Thank you for using this platform to shed light on some dark places in people's lives.
You’re amazing and such an inspiration to so many people. Don’t ever doubt your worth or your beauty because the real people in this world see it shining off of you.
Love you two. If we had been able to recognize severe depression early in our marriage, it would have saved us a.lot of pain. Back in the day people did not talk about it so I'm glad we have gotten better at that.
I appreciate this so much, my fiancé struggles with severe anxiety, and I want to be supportive but never know how. It’s helpful to hear from you how you feel a spouse can try to relate.
This has been painfully relatable. Shawn, it is awesome that you're talking about all of this so that people whose friends or significant others go through something similar will understand better. Also, Andrew seems more and more amazing with every episode. You're a beautiful couple :)
Big hugs you guys! Mental health isn't always fun,and being vulnerable is extremely difficult. Thank you for sharing your story!
Gila's message: First of all it is so brave of you put all this out there. Second I agree that anyone who excels pays a price. The question is: is the price worth it? In some cases yes, in others no. Your strength, Mrs. East is your willingness to grow and improve. You have managed to mature your goal from the pursuit of perfectionism to the pursuit of mastery. Mr. East your strength is your faith in Something bigger than you. Mr. And Mrs. East your strength together is your humility. It is ironic how beautiful you are inside and outside Mrs. East. I was watching your Maturnity Haul and could not comment, but your beauty shines through and always did as a gymnast. Mr. East you hit the nail on the head. While Mrs. East correctly pointed out, she first had to admit she had a problem, one of the 12 steps in AA and one of the most powerful steps to recovery is admitting you are powerless over your addiction and there is a Higher Power. The 2 things you, Mr. East, always offerred Mrs. East were/are unconditional love and acceptance of her as Mrs. East and a Higher Power to believe in as something real. Thank you both for sharing this. Please do an episode on Mr. East's mental health too because you are both such pillars of strength that I think it helps me to know how you got there. I had to think about this, but I would agree with Mrs. East differently to how she stated. Either a person has an addiction or a person has faith. However we would all manifest our addictions if faith was not there. So faith in Something Bigger than me is the opposite/antidote to addiction. My prayer is that everyone should heal from their addiction. Thank you for highlighting Mental Health. As a counsellor, it is heartbreaking how painful addictions are and how painful it is to break an addiction. However the facing reality and the pain that comes with that is far less than the pain of the addiction. The problem is stopping believing the addictive voice that says the exact opposite. I am glad you are both so much further on your paths and may your healing continue.
This was such a wonderful conversation. Shawn, thank you for being so open and honest. I hope conversations like this continue to break down the stigma surrounding mental health. Thank you, thank you!
you two are amazing! thank you Shawn for sharing this. I went through a lot of the same struggles when I was younger, and hearing your story brought me to tears as I remembered how strong I am to have walked through those struggles and came out stronger. And thank you Andrew for the reminder that I am worthy and loved and the daughter of the king. I truly love y’all and your mission.
Thank you for being so open and honest about yourselves
I would love for them to watch this again and see how much they have grown and make an updated video
I totally understand what Shawn went through. I believe that I still have issues around food because of what I went through while I was a gymnast. I was constantly on diets & told I had to lose weight. I was a gymnast almost 45 years ago & I still remember the feelings of being so defeated on "weigh in days". I think that I'll always be conscious of my weight. I don't think that it's healthy at all.
For the First Time Ever- I feel like celebrities are real people. Thank you for your honesty, wisdom, and generosity of time, thoughts and advice. 💛
Props to you for sharing, Shawn. You're such a strong woman!
Shawn I'm sure there are so many out there that your story will help. Andrew more men are needed to help out like you did with Shawn's journey. Thank you both 🥰🥰🤩🤩
Pretty powerful stuff. Thanks for sharing, this is the content we all need.
Y’all are the CUTEST couple ever!!!!!!!!!
This is an incredible podcast. The honesty you two have and share with everyone is inspiring. Shawn, I relate to you heavily and you inspire me. Andrew, you’re such a good man.
I hate to say this but I really needed to hear this especially in this time of my life 😭 , love you guys.
Wow Shawn! Thank you for sharing your story! You just described myself and my struggles with my eating disorder. It’s a real battle with the mind!😔You are awesome! ❤️🌻
I struggle with mental health. I have been diagnosed many many years ago with anxiety. I am finally on medication since last year when pandemic hit. Although things are not perfect and I am not yet at the best place I do feel better with having weekly therapy and being on medication. My anxiety was heightened during my pregnancy and then when pandemic hit it got worse so that's what made me decide that I needed to do medication and therapy. I don't have perfect days but I thank each day for the help I do receive. Don't wait too long to go and get help with mental health.
Proud of you for being so honest!!!!!
You both are amazing!! I still am struggling!! You helped me today more then you know!!
Best thing above all the things listed to help. Pray pray pray. For both you and the other person for understanding patience healing direction peace of mind and most of all for faith. Always enjoy your vids.
Thank you for your honesty and trust in telling your truth... your strength is admirable. I’m proud of you.
Thank you sharing your personal struggles. I am going through this process. It make me feel that I am not the only one.
Thank you so much for sharing, it helps so much to hear we are all humans, even those who are glorified. You two are great people and thank you for sharing and putting in work to help others ❤
You guys make me smile..... I’m so happy you found each other :)
Shawn East...you are amazing and beautiful and I thank you for sharing!!
Thank you for sharing this with all of us. Hearing the struggles of someone I look up to so much and how you’ve healed and are still healing is so reassuring that I to will heal. We love you guys 💖
I think you are awesome Shawn for being so open with your struggles. I think its even more awesome that you found ur soulmate in Andrew. And Andrew i think your awesome for being so real and showing men that you can be a man and its ok to show emotion. I wish you guys all the best. Congrats on the about to be the new addition to the family who is still developing. God Bless your entire family
I love the love and support you have for each other. Blessings!
I get addiction it's horrid. I have had to be on morphine and tramadol for 13years so I am now addicted. I have got my morphine to just 3 a day instead of like 10 or 12 at one point. And I'm completely off tramadol I still have to be on opiods but they are changing me onto one that is better for me and my body. Thank you for being so open Shawn
I know this is an older video I’m commenting on, but you GUYS I love you do this podcast cus every topic is SO relatable. LOVE YOU GUYS!
Thank you for everything in this video I’ve always thought for many years I was not ment to be around anyone for how I look and with being a female to male trans I always think I’m being judged and makes me stay away from everyone and stay hidden, thank you for being so open and showing the love and support you both show a lot.
I think I have dealt with disordered eating in various ways since I was a kid. I came from a large family where sometimes food was scarce. For many, many years I would delay meals when i had other things to do because I was able to ignore hunger (I suppose because sometimes I had to). From my mid teens I fluctuate between about 120-125 lbs give or take a few. I always had people calling me anorexic and it would upset me because I could and would eat a lot when I had access and took the time to sit down and eat. I never wanted to be as thin as I was and I was convincing myself that I ate enough because sometimes I ate a lot. I did that well into my adult life. Then when I got pregnant with my first baby I was also dealing with a lot of trauma. That partly manifested as germaphobia which left me fearful of eating most fresh fruits and vegetables, some dairy and pretty much anything that wasn't cooked to death. I started at 118lb (I'm 5'5") and I only gained about 18 lb during pregnancy. I nursed my baby and before he was weaned I was down to 114 lb. That's when wic put me on whole milk. It took me some years after that to get back to a healthier mindset. When I got pregnant again 3 ½ years later I weighed the same as I did when I got pregnant the first time. I vowed that I would eat more and eat better in the second pregnancy. I gained twice as much weight in my second pregnancy as I did in my first. I went down to about 135 lb after pregnancy. When the pandemic hit though I started eating more. Lately I have been struggling with binge eating lately at night. Now I'm over 150 lb. I went from the low end of "normal" BMI to the high end so both weights are considered "healthy" and no doctor has ever showed concern over my weight but I know I was very unhealthy when I was under 130 lb.
Wow so good. You guys are so good together, too!
Care of is great! Glad to hear your story of mental health. I feel I have some issues myself (@57 1/2 yrs old) I needed this podcast. Thank you 💕😊
Oh my gosh, this story has touched my heart. Thank you so much. It assures me that there are people out there who understand and want to help someone even in the most unusual circumstances.
You were an amazing competitor.
You are becoming an amazing Lady!!
I‘m so grateful for your honesty Shawn! Thank you for sharing your testimony! This is a beautiful story of healing! It’s also amazing how God Sent you a husband to love you through this! Last year I went to therapy for the first time and It was so helpful! I would love to hear also about practical tips about how you stay in a mentally healthy state. Do you read something every day, or what do you say to yourself when you have a negative thought, or do you listen to music?
Much love!!!
What a sweet man ❤. Girl you found a diamond 💎 😍 However I'm 1000% sure HE feels this way having found you! Your relationship is such a beautiful example of how a relationship SHOULD BE ❤
First comment. I have watched many of your videos. I just watched your video about all those rude comments. You two are so cute! How dare people be so mean. They choose to watch. Tell them to go the hell away! Keep doing you. ❤❤❤
I have never related more to you guys. Thank you so much for sharing! 🙏
That was great guys thank you
thank you for sharing shawn! it means a lot to hear your story so i can relate to someone and be inspired everyday❤️
Thank you for sharing your story ❤️ So inspiring
Thanks for the transparency!! You are doing great, so happy you did all the hard work to get to where you are today!! Kudos to you both. Andrew thanks for being so supportive to Shawn. Christ bless you both for sharing from the heart to encourage others❣️❣️
I thank you so much for sharing your story ❤you are a beautiful soul sweetie ❤
Great episode! Thanks to both of you!
I learned so much about! Thank you!
Thank you for sharing
Have you considered a functional neurologist to look into the different parts of your brain to help you bring them into balance? I struggle with obsessively finding problems and fixing them. I get fixated on them and have a hard time not talking about them, researching solutions, etc. I have several health issues that have been scary and mysterious so it’s kind of created a PTSD pattern that has lead to the obsessive problem solver to figure out what is wrong with me. Part of my healing is repairing what that did to my brain, bringing my prefrontal cortex back to a normal healthy level of function instead of hyper vigilance. I HIGHLY recommend it.
Just wanted to bring to y'alls attention that "crazy" and "insane" shouldn't be used to describe things as it perpetuates the stigma around mental health. It's especially hard to hear/read in the mental health awareness month. More people need to be aware of this issue.
I'm so proud of you Shawn and I'm so happy the both of you have each other ♥️
I would encourage you to interview Mike and Lauren Sorrentino about this topic. They have a really amazing story getting through his recovery.
You speak to my soul. I absolutely adore your insights ❤
God bless you.
My daughter wants to be in gymnastics so bad, but this is one of the reasons I worry about having her in it. I personally would never tell her she needs to lose weight ( she's tiny right now) but I worry about the coaches even herself. I said if she does it I'd prefer not to do competition's. I'd rather use it more as a fun way to be active. We will see, still thinking about it. She's playing tball in June so we will see after that.
So cool guys. Stick together and be strong ❤️
Keep up the amazing work ❤️
You two are the sweetest and best