I haven't been one of the people on the "I hate Kara DioGuardi" bandwagon, since the new season of American Idol began with the fourth judge. I actually think she has some decent critiques for the contestants, unlike some of the other female judges on the show, and knows what she's talking about. But we haven't really gotten the chance to know Kara, like we do others -- until now.
Kara has opened up to Extra about her struggle with an eating disorder.
"I had kind of a binge eating disorder where instead of dealing with my emotions, I would stuff them down with food," she revealed. "I actually went into a treatment center for it."
She was never anorexic or bulimic; she just used food as a way to comfort herself when things weren't going that well.
"It was definitely that excess eating to kind of just stuff all the emotions down ... I really was a creative kid who didn't know she was creative and didn't have those outlets because I was always afraid to join the theater group and not perform."
But, Kara says, when she found her calling, she found her release.
"The moment I started doing music, the moment I did what I loved to do in my life and committed to it, I don't have those problems anymore ... I have my outlet," the newly-engaged gal shared. "I have that form of expression. I can go to the studio and talk about my feelings."
It helped her so much that the Idol judge wanted to share her relief, and has built a recording studio inside Phoenix House, a Los Angeles treatment center helping recovering addicts heal through music. "It's real therapeutic," she says.
Isn't that so nice?!
Kara says she still meets her demons every now and then or "this craziness in my head," and the feeling that she has to be "perfect all the time."
"But I made this commitment in my life to face my fears," she said, "and if I am afraid of something I make sure I do it."
New found respect! I like this girl!
