There comes a moment as a parent when you realize you will no longer be the center of your child's universe.

I am not naturally that thin, so I had to go through everything from using drugs to diet pills to laxatives to fasting. Those were my main ways of controlling my weight.

I had been on this insane diet for almost 17 years to maintain the weight that was demanded of me when I was modeling. My diet was really starvation. I am not naturally that thin.

From the time I started school, it was clear to everyone that I wasn't learning at the same pace as other kids.

I've found that balance is key. I'm no longer an extremist in any one direction.

I had dropped out of school and was a runaway, so I didn't have family to fall back on if I didn't work. I didn't have a lot of other options of making money other than modeling.

I was essentially paid to perpetuate the myth that we are all, or should at least try to be, 17 and a size 2 forever.