Living Full: Winning My Battle With Eating Disorders

by Danielle Sherman-Lazar

A survivor takes those struggling with anorexia and/or bulimia on "a passionate, heartbreaking to humorous road from rock bottom to recovery" (Robert Tuchman, author of Young Guns).

Imagine waking in a hospital bed to find your frail, pale arm punctured by an IV transferring fluids and nutrients into your weak, stiff body. What happened? You're an adult, age twenty-six, and you just had a seizure precipitated by your chronic, secretive, decades-long struggle with unacknowledged eating disorders. You have no friends and no normal young-adult experiences. Living Full is written by Danielle Sherman-Lazar, a woman who passed through the eating disorder crucible to recovery, sharing the most intimate and shameful details of her mental illness. Living Full is Danielle's story.

Eating disorders in young adults are hardly talked about, but are pervasive. Eating disorders are kept hidden out of shame. A groundbreaking 2012 study published in the International Journal of Eating Disorders found that about thirteen percent of women over age fifty exhibit eating disorder symptoms.

Living Full chronicles the author's step-by-step descent into the full-blown eating disorder nightmare and her path to recovery. Recovery comes from the Maudsley Approach, a regimen of supervised controlled eating or refeeding by out-patient helpers that eventually can result in recovery.

Benefits of reading Living Full:

See how to confront your eating disorder demon

Learn from someone who won her eating disorder battle

Discover a new and beautiful life

Genres: Nonfiction, Psychology, Mental Health, Memoir, Audiobook

404 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 14, 2019

About the author

Danielle Sherman-Lazar is a popular social media entrepreneur, influencer, mental health advocate, author, wife, and mother of four. She’s published two children's books: "It's Okay to Embrace Your Body" and "It's Okay Not to Be Okay."

Her upcoming book, "Mothers are Made: How One Mom Overcame Perfectionism, Self-Doubt, Loneliness, and Anxiety and Became a Better and Happier Parent," is set to be released on April 8th, 2025.

Danielle Sherman-Lazar, the creator of the Facebook page @Living FULL and Instagram account @livingfullaftered, continues to see daily growth in her following. At the age of 26, she transitioned into a mental health advocate role after battling an eating disorder, depression, and anxiety for two decades.

Danielle is dedicated to supporting parents in their imperfect motherhood journey’s, all while celebrating the joys of each stage.
Follow her @Living FULL @livingfullaftered

Reviews

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having personally seen what eating disorders can do to a person, this autobiography gives my experience with friends suffering/who suffered from eating disorders a completely new perspective. In Danielle’s case, her eating disorder started very early, first sparked by homesickness while away on summer-camp, while later other reasons also came into play as she became more self-aware and hit puberty.

This book really showed me how harsh people can be on themselves, and it reminded me that eating disorders in a way are also a form of self-harm. I loved the writing style of this book, since it was funny and witty, but not in a self-deprecating way, and it didn’t detract from the serious issues that were discussed either. In the book, there are also some exerts from her Facebook page, on which she has been sharing her recovery journey for quite a while. Although these exerts sometimes really added something extra to the book, in most cases they slightly annoyed me since they interrupted the flow of the story, and it felt a bit like unnecessary self-promotion throughout the book. I also took a peek at her blog and I absolutely love her writing style, so hopefully we will see some more books from her!

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story from someone who went through an eating disorder journey.

[Rachel G · Rating 4 out of 5]

Danielle shares so openly about her battle with an eating disorder and her journey to recovery. Her memoir is a detailed account of her history with anorexia and bulimia, and what it took for her to overcome both.
It is chilling to read about the abuse caused by anorexia that Danielle's mind and body endured. She writes, "I thought I would be a burden, especially if I got the help I needed... My behaviors were so entrenched that, in my mind, I was the problem." I grieved for her when she hit rock bottom, close to death, and cheered her on when she reached out for help.
I think this is a story about family, too. Her parents were instrumental in her healing process and Danielle writes about the ups and downs of going through her treatment together. Now she has a family of her own and continues to help others by sharing her experiences.

[Belgin · Rating 4 out of 5]

(my 2025 self) looking back, this book might have actually saved my life 🤪

[Cindy Claudia · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

This was my first ED-themed book. I was never brave enough to pick up any book related to ED before, scared that it would be triggering but we’re doing it in baby steps.

The direction of this book wasn’t what I anticipated, it was more of the author’s journey of battling with ED told in progressive narrative. It was easy to follow and I liked her writing style, perfectly capturing both growth and the raw emotions of her long-winded journey from teenager to motherhood.

The author didn’t spend too much time dwelling on certain events, she just kept on going and it made me reflect on how to people battling with ED the journey might feel like a lifetime while life just kept going for others. The title ‘Living Full’ encapsulated what it meant for her to strive for a ‘full’ live despite everything she had to go through in recovery.

My favourite part of this book was the author’s Food Journal at the end of the book. It felt so raw and relatable and I just wanted to say that as a reader it made me feel proud to see recovery progress through her words. Definitely not a linear line, and probably will never be.

[Naaima Murtaza · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a powerful reminder that something as natural as eating can become twisted in our minds, and become a source of such great pain. In essence, though meant to nourish the body and mind, offering healing; food can sometimes feel like a source of the greatest struggle for some. It also highlights how a powerful support system, timely diagnosis and appropriate intervention can be truly life saving.
'I have never believed in New Year's resolutions, because I think you should better yourself everyday'- every day is a good day to begin anew, as we have seen from the incredible resolve shown by Sherman-Lazar.

[Itsbarbiesbooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s Incredible the horrors of an extreme eating disorder. The author “Dani” in this story goes through such extreme ways in all the different eating disorders she had. I cannot imagine the pain she had while going through the episodes she describes. I’m glad she learned throughout her journey and hope that today she is well. Great story and awareness to anyone struggling with an eating disorder.

[Carlene Alexander · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the body of the text biographical story but found the Facebook entries disturbed the flow and the food diary pages at the end seemed superfluous. However the main narrative was well written and skipping the rest didn’t mean I missed out as they were all quite standalone sections.

[Gerry-Ann Bates · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was interesting to hear her story. It was told in a different way than most stories that I’ve read.

There was a lot of inner dialogue. I liked that her thoughts grew as she grew. She was very honest about her struggles. It was a good book.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This blew me away. Such strength!

[Jacob Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me feel like I was not alone in my struggles with ED. I’m am so thankful for her courage in sharing her story

[Hilary Cockshaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook

[Traceylee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why

I don't know why but I just had trouble folling this book because it didn't interest me at all Usually I am interested in these.

[Lindsay Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an emotional memoir by Dani who is fighting eating disorders. It discussed her health, treatment plan, connection with her parents and building relationships with others. Her dog Teddy is a huge support and comfort to her. The book includes a lot of Dani's reflections and thoughts about her eating disorder, her treatment plan and her relationship with her parents.

This is a very challenging book to read as it could be triggering to many people. It discussed eating disorders, exercise addition, self-harm and paranoid thoughts amongst other topics.

I found this to be a very enlightening book and I'd recommend to for anyone who wants to learn more about these topics.

[Apiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

This memoir was very triggering for me, as someone who has been recovering from ED for years but who continues to suffer from food-restrictions and lifestyle triggers. Danielle’s memoir was eye-opening to all the ways I was and am similar to her story and her recovery. I’d recommend this for anyone in recovery or who wants to know more about ED.

[MaryBeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book. I wish that the author was more particular about avoiding triggering words and details for those who may struggle with ED such as weights.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

The relapses in this book is so real. This book is so real.