Author Description

Growing up, author Laurin Penn had a seemingly perfect life--pretty and popular, she wanted for nothing. But her fantasy life soon turned upside down as she began to struggle with body issues and her own self-worth. In an effort to lose weight and cope with the stresses of her life, she developed the "secret eating disorder" known as Chewing and Spitting (CNS or CHSP). Penn takes you inside this numbing ritual and its ugliness, against the sensational backdrops of her cheerleading days in Mississippi, the grunge and punk scene of her college years, her fast-paced fashion career, and finally, her days of early motherhood. Swallowed Whole brings light to a disorder affecting an untold number of women and teens.