TikTok star Nessa Barrett revealed she’s been suffering from a year-long struggle with anorexia in a soul-baring Instagram post where she thanked her fans for their support.
Nessa Barrett is a major figure on TikTok, where she boasts over 19 million followers. However, she’s been branching out from social media to pursue a career in music, releasing her debut album ‘Young Forever’ last year.
Barrett has been touring and performing live over the past few weeks, her Instagram feed filled with images showing the influencer singing to crowds full of fans — but some of her posts have sparked concern from listeners.
On February 24, Barrett posted some selfies showing off her bare arms and stomach. Her appearance raised alarm bells for fans, many of whom urged the singer to get help for what they speculated could be a possible eating disorder.
Nessa Barrett reveals year-long struggle with anorexia
On March 20, Barrett opened up about her year-long struggle with anorexia in a tell-all Instagram post where she revealed she’d relapsed in her eating disorder and would even faint from weakness.
“This tour made me the happiest I’ve ever been in my life, but I do want to be open with you guys because there’s so much you don’t see,” she wrote. “I relapsed in my eating disorder and have heavily struggled with anorexia for almost a year now.”
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“I couldn’t seem to get myself to recover or even want help until this tour. I would pass out and collapse from my body being too weak, I needed to realize food is important for you so I could be physically able to perform every night.”
She went on to post another short message to her Instagram stories, where she thanked her fans for their support after opening up about the difficult situation she faces with her ED.
“You guys saved me, and it’s so important for me to continue to be vulnerable because this is what my music is all about,” she wrote. “I love you all endlessly.”
This isn’t the first time she’s been vulnerable about her eating disorder; Barrett also spoke about the issue early last year in a live stream with fans, asking them not to make comments about her body.
Nessa Barrett has also stood up for other online figures facing bullying and harassment, notably sticking up for the TikTok-famous ‘scar girl’ when critics accused her of faking her dark facial scar.