Although Princess Diana was seen as an influential figure and a woman to look up to, she did indeed have her own personal struggles she was working through that were initially kept private. Apart from her marital problems, Princess Diana’s primary struggle was Bulimia, an emotional eating disorder. Diana believed that the cause for her eating disorder was the emptiness she felt in her marriage to Prince Charles, not her own insecurities as the royal family assumed. As Diana was suffering from Bulimia, she was seen by the royal family as unstable and temperamental, and felt more an outcast then ever (Lewis, 2015). Princess Diana spoke her innermost feelings to a reporter in 1995: ‘“I think that the biggest disease is the disease of feeling unloved. I know that I can love for a minute, for half an hour, for a day, for a month, but I can give. I am very happy to do that. I want to do that.”’ (VeryBestQuotes, 2012). Diana’s words reflect on her own disease, Bulimia, as she believed that her disease was based on her empty marriage, not her own mental and emotional ability.
In Andrew Morton’s book: ‘Diana: Her True Story’ the years that Diana had suffered from Bulimia were no longer a secret. In fact, the whole world now knew about her secret struggle. After the book was released, there was a sharp increase of Bulimia cases reported, and while some speculated that the Princess’s confession caused more cases of Bulimia to occur, it was soon revealed that Diana’s honesty helped others like to her to admit that they had an eating disorder, and therefore seek help (Morris, 2014, p.g 2). Most of her appeal was her sympathy and natural compassion towards those who were hurt and suffering. She could empathise with others, having felt the same hurt through Bulimia. Speaking through Morton’s book, Diana wanted people to know that those with Bulimia were often misunderstood, and because of this, many people came forward to themselves and others about the dangers of suffering from Bulimia in private. Many eating disorder therapists credit Princess Diana’s bravery with saving the lives of many people suffering with Bulimia (Morris, 2014). Princess Diana is known for saying “Helping people in need is a good and essential part of my life, a kind of destiny” (VeryBestQuotes, 2012). This is an example of how even though Diana was going through challenges; she always found a way to help others while she was struggling herself (Buckland, 2015). Being such a relatable princess, she caused society to view the royal family and where she stood differently.