Six-stone anorexic teen hoped she’d die

A YOU NG woma n who b at t l e d a nor e x i a a s a teenager has revealed she made an attempt to take her own life as the disease took hold.

At 17, Rebecca Gardner tipped the scales at just six stone – the same weight as a child five years younger.

Now in her early 20s, the Ardler woman is on the road to recovery – but her journey has been paved with difficulties.

Her condition developed when she was about 12 or 13 and preceded a “dramatic decline” when she went from reducing her portion sizes to a diet of fruit and then, eventually, just water. At one point she lost six pounds in just seven days.

In her bleakest moments, Rebecca grappled with suicidal thoughts and at times made efforts to end her life.

“There would be times when I would wake up in the morning and wonder how I was still alive,” she said.

“My mum and dad thought I was going to die.”

The teenager soon found her dayto-day life had become unmanageable and her overall health started to decline the thinner she became.

Rebecca said: “I was still going to college but I eventually had to drop out.

“When I was there, I wasn’t able to go to the toilet as I was struggling to walk and I needed help to do so.

“Afterwards, I had bed sores because I was so thin and my hair was falling out because I wasn’t eating properly.”

She initially sought help locally at the Dudhope Young People’s Inpatient Unit before she was forced to go to Edinburgh for treatment.

Although Rebecca is now i n recovery from her eating disorder, she admits there is always a possibility she could have a relapse.

“I feel like I would be on my own if I were to relapse,” she said.

“I get a lot of support online but it is a struggle.”

Dudhope Young People’s Inpatient Unit.