'My eating disorder started from football...I wanted to control every element of my life'

Support system: Aoife Lennon of Armagh with Meath players Monica McGuirk, right, and Mary Kate Lynch after their drawn TG4 All-Ireland SFC Group B Round 2 match between Armagh and Meath at Glennon Brothers Pearse Park in Longford. Pic: Ben McShane/Sportsfile

It was all about control. Touring with her national team was the hardest time, she would carry her own food to escape the dreaded carbohydrates she was so desperate to avoid.

Aoife Lennon used sport as a coping mechanism after she lost her father to suicide at just 13. It offered her an opportunity to do what she loved and not have to face up to the pain that never dissipated.