© 2026 ABC News

The “That ‘70s Show” star remembered being “a healthy athletic kid” as a teenager when she was told at an open casting at a modeling agency to drop 25 pounds. Losing weight then became a “shared project” between her and her mom.

“My mom started weighing me every morning and taking my measurements,” Prepon explained, recalling how “proud” her mom was when she hit 105 pounds.

Bulimia became “a shared secret” between them. Prepon’s mother had been bulimic in college and met her husband when she lost weight, creating a false equivalence that “being thin equaled success.”

“I think she was trying to help me in her own way,” Prepon reasoned.

View this post on Instagram

Welcoming home our new bundle of love. Overwhelmed with gratitude. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

A post shared by Laura Prepon (@lauraprepon) on Feb 26, 2020 at 7:31am PST

Now that her mother is in the advanced stages of Alzheimer’s, she has been forced to confront their troubled past so that they can enjoy what time they have left together.

As she has healed her body and found self-acceptance and a healthier way of life, Prepon has also become a mom in her own right. In fact, she shares two children -- daughter Ella, 3, and a son who was born last month -- with husband Ben Foster.

For more information on eating disorders, including warning signs and how to find support and help, visit the National Eating Disorders Association.

","canonicalUrl":"https://abcnews.com/GMA/Culture/orange-black-star-reveals-learned-bulimia-mom/story?id=69790315","legacySlug":"/culture/story/orange-black-star-reveals-learned-bulimia-mom-69790315","noIndexNoFollow":false},"publishTime":"20:28","publishDate":"03-25-2020","updatedTime":"01:06","updatedDate":"03-26-2020","socialImage":{"alt":"Laura Prepon attends Netflix's \"Russian Doll\" at Metrograph, Jan. 23, 2019, in New York City.","credit":"Mike Coppola/WireImage/Getty Images, FILE","ratio":"16x9","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/laura-prepon-file-gty-jef-200325_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg","width":992,"height":558},"datePublished":"3/25/2020 20:28:00 GMT","video":{"live":false,"id":69790315,"headline":"Actress reveals she learned bulimia from her mom","mediaAssetTitle":"LAURA PREPON BULIMIA","description":"\"I think she was trying to help me in her own way.\"","duration":"5:40","posterImg":{"url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","width":608,"height":342},"video":{"feed":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2020/02/200227_gma_digital_neda_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8"},"playlist":["69054179","68501581","61404356"]},"relatedItems":[{"contentType":"story","date":"February 18, 2020","headline":"Demi Lovato says unresolved eating disorder led to 2018 relapse","section":"culture","slug":"/culture/story/demi-lovato-unresolved-eating-disorder-led-2018-relapse-69054179","id":69054179,"image":{"alt":"Demi Lovato says unresolved eating disorder led to 2018 relapse","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/demi-lovato-gty-ml-191010_hpMain_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images, FILE","ratio":"1x1"}},{"contentType":"story","date":"January 24, 2020","headline":"Taylor Swift opens up about past struggle with eating disorder","section":"culture","slug":"/culture/story/taylor-swift-opens-past-struggle-eating-disorder-68501581","id":68501581,"image":{"alt":"Taylor Swift opens up about past struggle with eating disorder","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/taylor-swift-sundance_hpMain_20200124-072216_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"Neilson Barnard/Getty Images","ratio":"1x1"}},{"contentType":"story","date":"March 1, 2019","headline":"Her mission to show eating disorders don't just affect white women","section":"wellness","slug":"/wellness/story/african-american-eating-disorder-survivor-shares-message-eating-61404356","id":61404356,"image":{"alt":"Her mission to show eating disorders don't just affect white women","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/190301_gma_zee5_hpMain_1x1_240.jpg","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1"}}],"relatedContentSection":"news","schemaContent":{"name":"Actress reveals she learned bulimia from her mom","description":"\"I think she was trying to help me in her own way.\"","duration":"5:40","uploadDate":"03-25-2020","publication":"03-25-2020","images":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","url":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2020/02/200227_gma_digital_neda_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","contentUrl":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2020/02/200227_gma_digital_neda_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","link":"https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/story/orange-black-star-reveals-learned-bulimia-mom-69790315"}},"playlist":[{"id":"132675442","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132665875","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132628890","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132569874","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132567885","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132510121","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132473181","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132497933","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132281378","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132283010","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132273278","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132231169","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132206748","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132200241","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132054443","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132054798","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132033010","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131912713","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131830583","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131834976","contentType":"story","section":"news"}],"kvps":{"pgtyp":"article","lang":"en","sp":"goodmorningamerica","programmatic":"true","bundleId":"com.abcnews"}},"analytics":{"accountID":"wdgnewwdgnewgmaweb","ns":"gma","pageName":"gma:culture:video","pageType":"video","globalSpecVersion":"v1.08","siteDifferentiator":"gma:site","tagID":"g_page01","userABCookie":"0","section":"culture","title":"Actress reveals she learned bulimia from her mom","pubTime":"16:28","pubDate":"03-25-2020","modTime":"21:06","modDate":"03-25-2020","taxonomyTags":"none","id":69790315,"editorialOtherSubjects":"","wordCount":"none","columns":"none","authors":"","authorsUnit":"none","authorsBureau":"none","subBrand":"Good Morning America","provider":"Good Morning America","videoName":"Actress reveals she learned bulimia from her mom","mediaAssetTitle":"LAURA PREPON BULIMIA","videoId":69790315,"mediaOnPage":"video","legacySlug":"/culture/story/orange-black-star-reveals-learned-bulimia-mom-69790315"},"taboola":{}},"request":{"headers":{},"httpVersion":"1.1","method":"GET","url":"/video/69790315","vary":{"host":"www.goodmorningamerica.com","cached":true,"path":"/video/69790315","forwarded-proto":"https","device":"desktop","userab":"0"}},"viewport":{"width":1260,"height":0},"user":{}};