Not holding back. Alexa PenaVega and Carlos PenaVega‘s journey to happily ever after came with plenty of obstacles — which the couple explored in their new book, What If Love Is the Point? Living for Jesus in a Self‑Consumed World.

Alexa, 33, and Carlos, 32, who got married in 2014, opened up about their individual journeys before they met one another.

“For three years I’d been on top of the world,” the Big Time Rush band member recalled, noting that his mental health took a turn after his respective splits from Chelsea Ricketts and Samantha Droke. “I drove really cool cars. I had money to buy whatever I wanted. I had adoring fans. I literally lived in a freaking mansion. But I was empty and I didn’t know what it was that I was missing. I tried to fill that void with girlfriends, toys, houses, whatever was new on Amazon and eventually weed. But when Sam and I broke up, and I spiraled downward, I had a reality check. None of those things had satisfied. None filled me in the way I thought they might.”

The Spy Kids actress, for her part, opened up about her past struggles with an eating disorder. “My secret wasn’t as secret as I thought it was — because the producers on the show saw a tiny young girl who was just skin and bones,” Alexa wrote about her time on Broadway.

The Florida native, who shares Ocean, 5, Kingston, 2, and Rio, 12 months, with her husband, recently explained how her faith helped her overcome the issue. “I was living with this secret that I was really ashamed of. I was praised whenever I looked skinnier and if I didn’t look as skinny one day, nobody would compliment me,” she told Sadie Robertson during an episode of the “Whoa That’s Good” podcast in June. “I started thriving on what other people thought of me instead of focusing in on God.”

For Alexa, talking about her difficult relationship with food allowed her to break off “all those chains” in her life. “It became this thing that no longer consumed me. Obviously, God did a whole number in my life to get me through the eating disorder,” she added.

The pair’s marriage is also at the center of the memoir — with Alexa and Carlos offering a glimpse at their long-lasting bond.

“Because we value our marriage, and want to keep it as healthy as possible, we also try our best to make it a priority,” they detailed. “Before we ever had children, we made a commitment to prioritize each other, our marriage, for the sake of our family. And we’re also keeping it fun. Too often we’ve seen couples who truly enjoyed each other when they were dating lose the playfulness in their relationship and even become indifferent to each other. So we keep laughing. We keep wrestling, with the kids and with each other! We keep carving out special time to be together.”

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What If Love Is the Point? Living for Jesus in a Self‑Consumed World is available now.

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