Alexa Bliss explains why she’s opened up about her eating disorder

About a month ago, Alexa Bliss opened up about her battle with an eating disorder, talking about how she continues to treat her anorexia. During her guest spot on ESPN’s Sportscenter, she went even further into it with a scary story of how close she came to losing her life because of it and why she is now opening up about it.

From the interview:

"I think what got me past that challenge was knowing that... so, when I was diagnosed with my eating disorder the doctors told me that I was 24 hours away from dying, and they told my parents that with the way my body takes to an eating disorder that my organs weren't coming back. I was hospitalized for bradycardia and they didn't let me sleep because they thought I would go into cardiac arrest when I would fall asleep. So it was one of those things just knowing my life would be a statistic, that one in every three people die of eating disorders and the doctors told me that I was closest to that one and I had gone through it twice. Knowing that my body can't handle another one and knowing that it doesn't matter what's going on in your life you don't want to become just a statistic, you want your life to mean something. That's kind of why I've really been open about it because I remember looking through magazines and watching TV and thinking 'why I can't look like those girls? Like, 'What's wrong with me that I can't look like them?' I want to be that person that shows it's okay. I'm 5 foot, I've got a thick body, I love it. I'm curvy. I'm strong. I would trade that for being the 80 pounds that I was and being afraid if I was going to wake up the next morning. Just knowing like what Sara (D'Amato) says, it's not a sprint, it's a marathon, it's a day-by-day-by-day process. It's one of those things that you have to know that your life means more than a number on a scale."

It is incredibly inspiring that she is showing the courage to be so open about her struggles, considering her decision to do so could very well have a great impact on the life of anyone else struggling with a similar condition. She’s also saying this at a time when she has the most visibility as the SmackDown women’s champion.

All the more reason to be a fan of not just the character but the real person portraying her.