"The bulimia I so hated, as I struggled from day to day,
   The bondage that I was in, I thought was the only way
    I wanted it to vanish, yet I held with all my might
   On the quest for perfection, it was what I thought

   was right.    
    Managing my disorder, became a way of life
    It was part of my identity, as I was a mother and a wife.
    Who would I be without it, how would I ever be able to 

  cope,
    With pain, rejection, loneliness, I truly didn’t see any

     hope.

    So I held on tightly to this monster, disguised as my best friend,
    Daily destroying my body and mind, how else was I to 

 mend.
    When desperate I became, I just wanted it to be gone,
    I cried out to God and accepted, Jesus his beloved Son.

    He is the key to the freedom; he restored my past life of

pain,
    To God I give the glory, in my life he will always reign!

 

 From "Weightless-Flying Free"

"What started simply as a pursuit for the perfect body, grew into a full grown monster. Food became the enemy because food was what caused weight gain…and to me weight gain meant that I wasn’t acceptable. It all started in college.I thought I found the answer of having my cake and eating it too. I still remember that day so clearly…as soon as I purged

 I thought how cool…I could eat what I want and just purge it out. This way I won’t gain any weight. Back then….way back then, eating disorders weren’t even talked about. I knew nothing about bulimia. I didn’t think there was anything wrong with it… …no one thought about it because no one talked about it.
You see....way before this episode, was when the problem really began. The bulimia, was just a symptom of a bigger problem with many underlying issues. Years of dieting and food binges preceded…"

 Joni has a passion for bringing hope and the message of freedom to those suffering with food and eating issues. She leads support groups for Eating Issues and  Women's Bible Studies, Mentors college women and Speaks on her story of healing, food issues and poor body image.

Joni holds a Master's degree from Purdue University. She lives with her loving and supportive husband of 24 years, Hoyt, and has three children, Mallory, Taylor, and Haley.