Aoki Lee Simmons Shares Powerful Health Update

Mian Hamid December 09, 2025

Aoki Lee Simmons shares a raw 2025 health update on stress, disordered eating, and recovery. Inside her journey, modeling pressures, and the message she hopes young women hear.

Aoki Lee Simmons Shares Powerful Health Update

When 23-year-old model Aoki Lee Simmons opened up in her emotional Instagram post on December 4, 2025, the fashion world immediately paid attention — and so did anyone who cares about mental health. Paired with her now-viral reminder,

“girls you gotta eat or the brain don’t brain! The decisions don’t decision! The choices don’t choice!”

the post marked a real turning point for her: an honest acknowledgment of what she’s been carrying and a powerful commitment to taking care of herself.

In her video and the interviews that followed, Aoki spoke candidly about how deeply the modeling industry affected her. She described a “dark period” where she felt squeezed into an impossible standard. She pushed back on rumors about anorexia, explaining that she does eat, she trains, she practices martial arts and rock climbing — but the intense stress she was under chipped away at her weight, her confidence, and her opportunities.

“It’s not funny. That’s why I was crying… The more stressed I got, the more weight I lost,” she said, calling the industry a “starving place.”

By sharing all of this, Aoki isn’t just telling her story — she’s urging others to protect their mental health, too. Her message is simple but needed: health isn’t defined by size, and your well-being is worth more than any job or expectation.

After stepping back from modeling in 2024, Aoki seems to have used the time to re-center herself and rethink her relationship with the industry. And in many ways, her journey reflects what a lot of young adults in the U.S. go through, especially in fields where appearance is part of the job.

The National Institute of Mental Health notes that disordered-eating behaviors often show up in early adulthood — the same time people are juggling career pressure, social expectations, and identity. And while clinical diagnoses aren’t extremely common, the behaviors behind them are. One major study of women ages 25–45 found that:

  • 31% reported purging to control weight, even without a diagnosis

  • 74.5% said concerns about shape or weight affected their happiness

Within modeling, the problem is even more concentrated. Some reports estimate that up to 40% of models engage in disordered-eating behaviors due to pressure to be “bookable.”

For someone as young as Aoki, trying to chase dreams while carrying that weight — emotionally and literally — the pressure can feel crushing. Her openness shows just how lonely and overwhelming it can be behind the scenes.

What also stands out now is how much support she’s receiving. Her willingness to be vulnerable publicly is powerful, but having a strong support system matters too. Her mom, Kimora Lee Simmons, jumped into the comments to tell her, “You are always ENOUGH!” — a small but meaningful reminder of the impact that love and validation can have.

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