There are health struggles, and then there is a total, multi-front war on the body. For Mary Ann, life from the age of 13 was defined by anorexia—a self-made “prison” of rigid rules about food and exercise. It was a condition that eventually plunged her weight into the 70s and nearly cost her life.
Her experience in residential treatment was, tragically, another kind of prison. The specialists insisted her condition was “all a mental disorder,” dismissive of the food she ate. They timed her six meals a day, removed all knives and napkins, and forced her to eat a high-carb, standard American diet that included Chinese takeout, donuts, and cakes. “We earned a phone call with our family for 10 minutes at night if we ate all our food,” she says, recalling the trauma of being shielded from the sun and “fed like cattle.”
The Trap and the Turning Point
The conventional approach failed her, leading only to a revolving door of relapses. The breakthrough came not from a clinic, but from an act of faith. After converting to Christianity and accepting Jesus as her savior, Mary Ann finally began to feel the internal switch flip. She realized she was a valuable creation and needed to nourish her body properly.
Her next hurdle was physical. In 2022, she went into septic shock from a bacterial infection she believes she caught in a hot tub. Her body, already depleted by anorexia, had no reserve. She suffered a heart attack, her kidneys failed, and she was on dialysis 24/7. To save her life, doctors were forced to perform an emergency below-the-knee amputation on her right leg, also removing part of her left foot and two fingers.
It was during this unimaginable trauma that her path crossed with a radical idea: the Carnivore Diet.
The “Waking Up” of the Brain
The shift from restriction to pure nourishment was profound. “My dad is a cardiologist and we weren’t allowed to eat red meat,” Mary Ann shares. Having her first steak in her mid-20s was a revelation. “My brain basically… woke up. I found myself just craving that meat.”
Since committing to a full carnivore way of life in 2018—with no restrictions and a focus on eating when hungry—the anorexia is in full remission. She is no longer trying to control her food; she is nourishing her strength.
The victories in her new life include:
The Victory of Movement: Despite her amputations, Maryanne is in the gym, lifting heavy and getting stronger every day. “I’m probably going to have some chicken wings right now because I worked out this morning,” she says, a phrase that would have been impossible for her to say just a few years ago.
The Return to a Purposeful Career: Maryanne has reclaimed her place in the workforce. She works for Walmart, where she is on the docks, lifting heavy packages and managing online orders, a testament to her restored physical capability.
Sharing the Freedom: Mary Ann is no longer hiding her battle. She started a blog, Pegleg Carnivore, to document her story and show other women and men that “freedom from anorexia is possible.”
A Message for Other Women
Maryanne knows the conventional wisdom—that there is no “cure” for anorexia. But she is the walking proof that profound remission and true happiness are possible. She is no longer broken; she is, as she describes herself, “Pegleg Carnivore,” and her message to other women is simple:
“Freedom can be possible. Eat more. Ladies… eat more, get stronger.”
