Jessie James Decker opens up about struggling with 'body image issues': 'It's a cycle that just gets worse'

Jessie James Decker is getting brutally honest with fans about her struggles with body image and mental health.

In a lengthy post on Instagram on Thursday, the country singer opened up about the ups and downs she's been facing, pointing to her ongoing struggle with loving her body.

"I want to be open and honest. I have struggled the last couple of years," Decker began. "It's been a little worse lately where I just break down and cry. I've been battling some body image issues, and when I really think about it, I probably always have."

She went on to say that she's gone from "one extreme to being obsessed with working out and being muscular and thin to just giving up and gaining because the food makes me feel better." Ultimately, she wrote, "it's a cycle that just gets worse again."

Decker, who shares three kids with former football player Eric Decker, went on to explain that recent criticism she's received from online trolls has added to the pressures.

"I don’t handle social media or trolls like I used to," she explained, later referencing a "hate page" on Reddit that criticized her parenting and career choices. "I'm ripped apart constantly on a daily basis which kills me a little every day and makes me wonder what my purpose in this business is and truthfully makes me consider quitting everything sometimes and disappear. With how progressive we are getting in this digital world of preventing bullying, I still don't know how a page like that is allowed and fear my sweet daughter seeing it someday."

Decker also shared that she's been struggling with career challenges and self-doubt.

"I've been wanting to be a country singer since I was nine years old and sometimes, I feel like I'm constantly in a battle with the rest of the industry to prove to them that I’m not just a TV personality or an influencer because that has outshined my music," she wrote. "As a woman in 2022, I don't understand why I can’t have a family, publish books, own a fashion brand, be an influencer, and do TV without being questioned if I take my music career seriously just because I’ve chosen to dream big."

She concluded by acknowledging her loyal fans who've stuck by her side through it all.

"You have been with me and my whole career and it almost didn't feel authentic to not share what I've been going through," she said. "I have such a beautiful life and so many blessings, but I still have struggles and need to sit back and work on my mental health. I feel like I try to not only post the good sometimes, but I think being open and honest will also help me through this. I know I’m not alone. And I wanted you to know you're not alone too. I'm working through it and navigating daily on how to heal."

Decker has spoken publicly in the past about how body shaming has impacted her.

In July 2021, she asked people to be kind to each other, pointing to the page, which she said "rips [her] apart on a daily basis."

"They're talking about how apparently fat I've gotten and how boxy and how terrible my body looks, and they're accusing me of editing my body and all these things," she said at the time. "It's pretty awful and I just cannot believe this is still happening in the world, that people are doing this."

She also explained that the comments were particularly hurtful because they came after she decided not to obsess over her body. "I eat what I want and I'm happy with that," she said. "When you are writing blogs and stories and bullying me about how much weight I've gained and how fat my thighs are, I do take that offensively. Because what is the messaging that you are sharing?"

She concluded: "I just want you to keep in mind that I'm a person. I'm a human being and your words hurt me. I know that I'm not perfect, but you pointing out my flaws, the things that I'm already insecure about, it already hurts me. And it doesn't feel good to be picked on or bullied or ripped apart.”

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