"I cut out pictures of skeletal-looking models from magazines and pinned them on my mirror for thinspiration."
Diagnosed
with anorexia and bulimia at the age of 14, Mellissa Laycy, now 24, under-took
hypnotherapy to cure her eating disorder. Now she has learnt to love her body
and has even become a plus size model and an inspiration to other girls.
Naturally
tall Mellissa was told often that she should be a model; at the age of 13 she
visited a London talent agent excited to start her modelling career. Mellissa
was measured 5ft 9, UK size 8 and got turned away as she needed to lose her
"puppy fat".
Determined to pursue her dreams, Mellissa knew that the only way to be accepted into the business was to lose weight. Cutting down her daily calorie intake to a maximum of 600, she would track her weight in a personal notebook. Learning "tricks" on her way Mellissa would leave empty crumbs on a plate by the toaster, feeding the dog under the table "Ill eat dinner in my room, I told Mum, before flushing it down the loo."
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| Before (left) 7st UK size 4 ______ After (right) 12st UK size 16 |
Mellissa
then went onto obsessing over exercise in order to lose the weight quicker.
This included a morning run before going to school - combined with laps around
the football pitch during her lunchtime. "You’re losing weight, my friends
remarked giving me a rush of satisfaction."
As time
passed Mellissa was noticing not only physical changes to her body. Her bones
started to ache when she lay down and prevented her from sleeping. The compliments
stopped from her friends as her school uniform hung off her skinny frame; she
became that weak that she would pass out on the way to class. "With no
insulation I was permanently cold and downy hair grew on my face. My periods
stopped. You are damaging yourself, Mum wept. But I didn't care. As long as I
was losing weight... "
Eventually,
at the age of 16 Mellissa's GP diagnosed her with anorexia nervosa; she was UK
size 4 and weight 7st. Instead of focusing on getting better, Mellissa began comparing
her body to the other patients. "They are all so thin, I thought, jealous.
They must think I’m so fat."
Moving
away from home to continue her drama course Mellissa found herself becoming
homesick and began comfort eating. However due to her skinny frame and her
eating disorder she would then vomit all of the food she ate back up, later to
be diagnosed with bulimia. One day Mellissa knew it was time to stop when she
was vomiting blood. She booked herself in with a hypnotherapist to help cure
the eating disorder she had developed. After a few months of sessions Mellissa
noticed a massive change in how she saw and reacted towards food: "I felt
a physical shift inside me and I knew my eating disorders were a thing of the
past. Food was no longer the enemy. I began enjoying cooking healthy meals and
trying different tastes without being sick afterwards."
Mellissa
is now a plus-sized model for Hughes; she has worked for Evans, been a cover
girl on magazines and even appeared on Channel 4's show "How to Look Good
Naked"
"My rejection from modelling agencies as a young teen nearly destroyed me. Now, a size 16 and weighing just under 12 stone I’m a successful model and couldn’t be happier."
If you have any issues with weight or feel like you need help. Why not contact me via my email or visit my website.
Sheila x
