Gymnast McKayla Maroney helped the U.S. win medals in the Olympics, but she faced some tragic and horrifying circumstances after that.

In June 2012, Maroney fell on her head during a floor exercise, which resulted in a concussion and a broken nose. During the Olympics, Maroney competed with a fractured toe. “It was broken,” she told the Los Angeles Times. “I just broke it more.”

The Olympics can mess up athletes. Maroney needed surgery before the 2012 games. She delayed it until after a gymnastics tour. On the second night of that tour, Maroney broke her tibia. It’s one of the most painful injuries. She broke it while doing an uneven bars routine. The injury required screws to be put in.

2013 Maroney competed in the Secret U.S. Classic and the World Championships, winning the vault event in both. Doctors also found a broken bone in her knee. That would mean a long time off from gymnastics for surgery and recovery, so Maroney left the sport at 20.

McKayla Maroney was abused by Larry Nassar, a gymnastics doctor. When she was 13, she started training with USA Gymnastics at the Karolyi Ranch. She also saw Nassar for an exam. Maroney said Nassar abused her hundreds of times over five years at Karolyi Ranch and competitions.

In 2018, Nassar was sentenced to 40 to 175 years in prison. However, the FBI mishandled the investigation, which led to his downfall. 

Nude photos of McKayla Maroney were released without her consent. Some people took pictures from Maroney’s digital accounts and devices and put them on an adult website. The pictures were on a porn website and then on social media. Maroney filed papers to get them removed.

After gymnastics, McKayla Maroney had an eating disorder. Maroney stopped competing in 2012. 

Maroney started an eating disorder in 2017. She became withdrawn from her family and the public. In 2019, she started using social media again and joined an online eating disorder recovery program.

McKayla Maroney’s father died from opioids.

In January 2019, Maroney announced on Instagram that her father, Mike Maroney, had died. 

The cause of death wasn’t reported. Maroney later said her father died from a long-term addiction to opioids. 

In January 2019, Maroney told his daughter about his drug problems. He made a plan to get off the drugs without help from a doctor. He died from the shock of getting off opioids at age 59. Maroney also grieved deeply and developed an eating disorder. She didn’t eat for ten days to look thin at her father’s funeral.

Medical issues led to severe insomnia for McKayla Maroney. She spent most of the summer of 2023 dealing with health issues and food sensitivities. Maroney slept for only ten nights over three months. This is very little sleep for a healthy life. Maroney sought medical attention because of her insomnia. Many doctors and tests couldn’t find the cause until they found the source: Maroney has a histamine intolerance.

At the same time, Maroney was also diagnosed with a moderate iron deficiency, extreme fatigue caused by foods with a lot of oxalates (including potatoes and spinach), and nerve problems, which contributed to her insomnia.