Tragic Details About Candace Cameron Bure's Childhood
Candace Cameron Bure made her way onto the television screen of millions in the '80s when she starred as DJ Tanner on the beloved family sitcom, "Full House," which ultimately launched her career, and name, into the spotlight. Decades later, Bure remains a household name, often referred to as "the Queen of Christmas" for her numerous roles with Hallmark. She eventually stepped back into the shoes of DJ Tanner when she reprised the role for the Netflix Spinoff "Fuller House," which ran from 2016 to 2020.
While Bure looks back on her career as a young adult, she is met with nothing but bliss. "It truly was a wonderful environment because I loved everyone that I worked with. I had the most incredible experience growing up on television," she remarked in an interview with Parade. While on "Full House," there was always "a hand to hold onto," but the tragic truth about Candace Cameron Bure is that her childhood behind the scenes wasn't always as kindhearted.
Her parents' religious values were conflicting
Candace Cameron Bure has been outspoken and often criticized regarding holding her faith central in her life. Growing up, though, her mom's relationship with religion was opposed to her father's, amounting to an ethical dilemma for a young Bure and her siblings.
"Dad was very concerned with morality, but he wanted nothing to do with church or religion and didn't want his family involved... but we were still taught biblical principles, though my dad wouldn't have called them that," Bure recounted in her book, "Balancing it All." She went on to profess that religion had always been a priority for her mother. Her parents, Barbara and Robert Cameron, did eventually steer toward an agreement on religion when the going got tough. On her website, Bure wrote, "I grew up in a moral home, a home that stressed the importance of living by the golden rule but not a home that talked about Jesus. It wasn't until my parents hit a hard place in their marriage that the four of us kids found ourselves in church." Just as surely as the Camerons found their faith, external pressures forced them to put faith to the side. "My teenage years were busy, and going to church wasn't a priority. ... Instead of a relationship with Jesus, my faith became more like a help line," she wrote on her website.
Bure revealed on a podcast that it wasn't until her 20s that she began identifying as a Christian after the birth of her first daughter, Natasha. "I just prayed, and I was like, 'God, I don't ever want to forget this, this is such a revelation... I want to be passionate about you for the rest of my life. Please don't let that fire burn out."
She was bullied in school
When Candace Cameron Bure originally booked "Full House" at age 10 in 1987, she opted to stay in school as opposed to having a teacher or tutor on set with her. This dynamic became challenging, as it does for many other child stars, once Bure became a household name.
It didn't take long for her fame to catch up with her in a nasty way. By 1989, she was being bullied at her middle school. "I had some problems at school. Some kids would pull my hair and wrote bad stuff on my locker," she told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram at the time.
During a September 2024 episode of the "Full House Rewind" podcast hosted by Dave Coulier, Bure remembered the troughs of pre-pubescence. "I got bullied in middle school, I had some awful experiences. ... middle school was tough." She then revealed the light she saw at the end of the 8th-grade tunnel, "but then when I went to a different high school, then it was great. I loved it."
She reached her emotional limit as a child star
While Candace Cameron Bure emphasizes her uniquely positive experience as a child star, any working youngster is bound to reach their limit at one point or another, and Bure is no different.
In an interview with the leading ladies of "Fuller House," Andrea Barber ("Kimmy Gibbler"), Jodie Swetin ("Stephanie Tanner"), and Bure; she recounted the audition process that would alter the trajectory of her life. "The casting director got on the phone immediately after and said, 'Yeah, she was fine. She was OK. We'll bring her back for a callback.' And she hung up the phone, and I started crying as she walked me back out to my mom," she told Glamour.
Rejection at a young age is certainly an obstacle to overcome; but not without its emotional reparations, even if communication is twisted. Jeff Franklin, the creator and casting director for "Full House," recounted the process of finding the Tanners to Variety, and his version of the audition doesn't quite match Bure's re-telling. "There was nothing forced or artificial about her. She was just completely a real kid, really cute and funny. She was kind of like an everyday kid that I thought young kids watching the show would really relate to." Moral of the story: words should not be taken at face value. As a kid; however, it can be difficult to differentiate neutrality from disapproval.
Similarly to DJ Tanner, she also suffered from an eating disorder
Candace Cameron Bure's size has been a topic of discussion since she reached double digits, and she revealed her difficulty with quieting that external noise. She recalled to Yahoo Entertainment that fans would come up to her and commend that she was skinnier in person than she appeared on film. "When you hear those things over and over again, and they become so repetitive, it can often become your identity to an extent, or it makes you perceive yourself in a way that you didn't even think you were, because other people keep speaking that into you."
Upon hearing this, many will remember the episode of "Full House" in which the DJ puts herself on a crash diet to wear a bikini, titled "Shape Up." The all-too-real storyline became a frightening reality for Bure after the show wrapped.
The actress revealed she developed bulimia after stepping away from the spotlight to SELF, but remembered most vividly when her family found out. "I was so saddened to see the tears streaming down from my dad's face...I didn't want to disappoint him or my mom, [so] I said, 'I have to stop doing this, I will find a way and get help.'"
Bure has struggled with her mental health since she was a teen
Candace Cameron Bure opened up to Women's World in 2024 about her battle with depression. "I'm often known as a very positive, happy person, but I had battled with depression since I was a teenager," the actress admitted candidly. The interview came at the tail of an episode of her podcast in which she detailed her struggle with mental health
"I can try with all of my might to get out of this and I can't pull myself out of the pit. I can't pull myself out by myself. But it's hard to extend the arm and go, 'Help me,'" Bure admitted tearfully, as only a handful of people in her life were aware she was struggling before the episode. In the aforementioned interview, she reminded those who are struggling that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, but that doesn't mean the process is without obstacles. "She kept peeling the layers back and the outpouring of the amount of people that said thank you so much for sharing...that's exactly how I felt. And then to give them tools to say, hey...here are some tools that have helped me over the years."
If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, or with an eating disorder, contact the relevant resources below:
Visit the National Eating Disorders Association website or contact NEDA's Live Helpline at 1-800-931-2237. You can also receive 24/7 Crisis Support via text (send NEDA to 741-741).
Reach the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.