Venus & Serena Williams’ Half-Sister Says She Developed An Eating Disorder Due To Their Father Abandoning Her: Mental Health Is Something I Really Struggled With

Venus, Serena, and Richard Williams

Venus & Serena Williams’ Half-Sister Says She Developed An Eating Disorder Due To Their Father Abandoning Her: Mental Health Is Something I Really Struggled With

Venus & Serena Williams‘ half-sister is continuing to share her truth about their father, Richard Williams.

Last month, King Richard–a biopic about Richard Williams–premiered. The film specifically centers around how Richard Williams, 79, raised two high-profile tennis athletes–Venus & Serena Williams–in Compton, California.

After King Richard was released, however, one of Richard Williams‘ other children came forward and began speaking on his character and past misdeeds. Specifically, Sabrina Williams revealed that Richard had left his family (consisting of a wife and five children) to start a new life with Venus & Serena Williams‘ mother–allegedly leaving his children in poverty in the process.

Now, Sabrina Williams is continuing to speak out against her father. Recently, she opened up about how his abandonment left her with years of mental health issues–including an eating disorder. She initially said:

“I want to share my story. I can get the message out there about mental health… I want people to know whether they have bipolar, depression, schizophrenia, anorexia, bulimia, gambling, whatever, that you’re not alone, you’re gonna be okay, just reach out for help.”

Sabrina then revealed:

“Mental health is something I really struggled with, as I was growing up, from ten years old. I just felt like I couldn’t relate to any of the other kids because they had a mom and a dad, and at that time, you didn’t see many parents who were divorced. I was also struggling growing up in areas that were mostly not from my racial background.”

She continued:

“When I got towards 14, I really started to struggle with my mental health. I found myself hoarding food. We had gone from having food to not having food, it was really scarce. I remember many times where my mom always made sure there was food on the table, but I could tell the times maybe it wasn’t going to be so much.”

Sabrina proceeded to them share specific details of her eating disorder:

“I would hoard food, like if my mom would buy Ding Dong chocolate cakes, I was sneaking into the cabinet at night after everybody was asleep, and taking three or four out of the packet. Or if there was some leftover chicken or beans and rice, I would take a small bowl and put it under my bed. I was scared of being hungry, and food became my thing to stuff my emotions with. I was really not wanting to recognize my feelings.”

She somberly wrapped up her thoughts by remarking:

“In my mind, he was a good dad, my mom was just holding us back from seeing him… I thought my dad wanted to see me, that he had been looking for me, and he was still going out for that proverbial bike. That’s how silly it was and how deluded I was.”

What do you think about Sabrina Williams’ claims? Share your thoughts down below to let us know.

[VIA]