Almost three decades later, the world was forced to bid a tragic farewell to the late Princess Dianayour old dance teacher Anne Allan lifted the lid in the battle royale with bulimia in her new book Dancing With Diana.
According to an excerpt from Wednesday, September 4, in PeopleDiana confided in Allen about her struggle with bulimia.
“Her head dropped and, unable to look me in the eye, she said, ‘I’m so ashamed, Anne, but I have to tell you that I suffer from bulimia,’” Allan wrote. “Her shame was evidently painful to her.”
According to her recollections, Diana apologized profusely for hiding her difficulties “until now” and opened up about how the disease was slowly taking over her life.
“Diana explained that her bulimia began when she started attending important functions, particularly dinners where she had to sit down to eat,” Allan recalled. “Meeting so many people was terrifying for her and the feeling that she was being judged for every move she made or how she looked or what she said made her feel totally inadequate.”
“Understanding the illness was the way forward, I told her, adding that I would find ways not to judge myself in time,” Allan wrote.
Diana first spoke openly about her battle in 1992 while recording tapes for Andrew Morton’s bombshell biography of her life.
“The bulimia started the week after we got engaged and it would take me almost a decade to overcome,” Diana had said in a recording. “My husband put his hand on my waist and said, ‘Oh, a bit chubby there, aren’t you?’ and that triggered something in me — and the Camilla thing.”
Three years later, Diana publicly confirmed her eating disorder during a 1995 interview with BBCPanorama of ‘s.
“I had bulimia for several years. And it’s like a secret illness,” she recalled. “You inflict it on yourself because your self-esteem is low, and you don’t think you’re worthy or valuable. You stuff your stomach four or five times a day — some people do it more — and it gives you a sense of comfort. It’s like having a pair of arms around you, but it’s temporary, temporary. Then you get disgusted with the bloating in your stomach, and then you bring it all up again.”
During her years of battling the brutal disease, Diana made the decision not to tell other members of the royal family about the situation, as she felt ashamed of her actions.
“You have to know that when you have bulimia you are very ashamed of yourself and you hate yourself — and people think you are wasting food — so you don’t discuss it with people,” Diana said at the time. “The thing about bulimia is that your weight always stays the same, whereas with anorexia you visibly shrink. So you can fake it all the time. There is no proof.”
Princess Diana got married King Charles in 1981, when he was still the Prince of Wales. During their turbulent marriage, they welcomed two children Prince William and Prince Harrybut were later dogged by a heartbreaking scandal when it emerged that the now king had embarked on an affair with his former lover (and now wife) Queen Camilla.
Clearly hurt by the betrayal, Diana eventually tried to separate from Charles, and the couple officially divorced in 1996 — just a year before the princess was tragically killed in a car accident in Paris.
For more help and information about eating disorders, visit To knock charity website.