‘This Is Us’ Star Chrissy Metz Revisits Her Weight Loss Journey

Chrissy Metz at the premiere of 20th Century Fox's "Breakthrough" at Westwood Regency Theater on April 11, 2019, in Los Angeles. Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images

“This is Us” star Chrissy Metz—whose character, Kate Pearson, struggles with obesity—recalls being shamed by her stepfather for being overweight as a teen.

“He would weigh me in the kitchen or threaten to lock the cupboards,” Metz said recently on “The Jamie Kern Lima Show.”

Metz, 44, first disclosed her childhood struggles with weight in her 2018 memoir, “This Is Me: Loving the Person You Are Today.”

“I think there’s so much more awareness now around food, food issues, food behavior … we educate people, the fear goes away. And maybe [my stepfather] was just fearful. I don’t really know,” Metz told People on Oct. 21.

Eating disorder experts say it would have been better for the stepfather to turn to professionals for advice.

Overeating is a mental disorder that can be exacerbated by parental influence and how a person feels about themselves, according to Alexandra Miles, founder of Project Blackbird, a nonprofit that aims to destigmatize eating disorders and mental health issues.

“Rather than to shame, it may be more beneficial to replace processed snacks and snacks with additives with healthy snacks to manage food cravings,” Miles told The Epoch Times on Oct. 27. “Education about caloric density is also more beneficial than deprivation and will serve for a healthy lifestyle psychologically.”

Locking a refrigerator or restricting access to food is counterproductive, according to psychologist and eating disorder recovery coach Lara Zibarras.

“It doesn’t address the underlying compulsion to eat,” Zibarras told The Epoch Times on Oct. 27.

Data from the National Survey of Children’s Health found that 17 percent—or one in six—youngsters ages 10 to 17 are obese.

The National Library of Medicine considers a child or teen to be obese when their Body Mass Index (BMI) is at or above the 95th percentile for their age and gender.

“Parents should focus on open communication with their child to understand what may be going on emotionally and physically,” eating disorder therapist Rachel Goldberg told The Epoch Times on Oct. 27. “If there are no underlying medical issues, parents can work with professionals to support the teen in managing their feelings about their body and their relationship with food.”

Goldberg founded Rachel Goldberg Therapy in North Hollywood, California.

Metz has been twice nominated for a Golden Globe award as well as a primetime Emmy award. She and 14 colleagues won the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in 2019.

The actress has been treated in therapy.

“I think I’m trying to heal those wounds slowly but surely,” Metz told Fox News on Oct. 22. “And it’s not easy. ... The root of it is, ‘I’m unworthy.’”

In response to child and teen obesity, the FDA has approved orlistat, liraglutide, phentermine/topiramate, and semaglutide to treat youths age 12 and older.

However, Zibarras argues that Ozempic, or semaglutide, and similar medications should be approached with caution.

“Ozempic doesn’t get to the heart of disordered eating or the emotional side of binge eating and associated weight gain,” she said. “For a teen struggling with binge eating, I’d recommend counseling or coaching that blends food freedom principles with evidence-based approaches like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) or Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT).”

In season one of “This Is Us,” an NBC streaming series that ended after six seasons, Metz’s character considers gastric bypass surgery to lose weight. But in real life, Metz told Today in 2017 that surgery is not an option.

When she lost weight, Metz told People in 2020 that it was due to avoiding sugar and carbs, such as pizza, and not medication.

“I’ve battled weight issues, but I realize that I don’t have to beat myself up if I have XYZ food,“ she said. ”Instead, I change my perspective and think, ‘What is it that I’m angry about?’ since we tend to want crunchy foods when we’re angry or ice cream when we soothe ourselves. All these things I’m just trying to be cognizant of.”

Metz did not respond to requests for comment.