Anorexic 5st teen whose parents were told she’d die reveals incredible photos of her recovery
AN anorexic teen who survived on 20 calories a day and would get up in the middle of the night to exercise has shared photographs of her inspiring recovery to help other sufferers.
Jodie-Leigh Neil’s eating disorder began in 2013 after her best friend died after suffering a cardiac arrest. In January 2015 she was admitted to hospital and put on a feeding tube after her weight plummeted to just 5st 5lbs.
After being told by doctors that she must “recover or die”, the 18-year-old from Yateley, Hampshire, conquered her fear of food, got her life back and has now reached a healthy weight of 9st 9lbs.
"I can now go out for meals with my family, I can go clubbing. I can dance and do all the things I couldn't do being underweight,” she said.
"I am now completing my A Levels which I wasn't able to do before as my anorexia meant I drifted in and out of consciousness a lot and had no recollection of some things I had been taught."
Jodie-Leigh's eating disorder stemmed from depression after her best friend suffered a fatal cardiac arrest in 2013.
She said: "The morning I found out I was extremely sick, devastated, and had a panic attack. I lost my appetite completely and couldn't focus on anything other than him.
"I had isolated myself from all my friends, spending the majority of my days in my bedroom and not regularly attending college.
"I had an extremely bad body image and rock bottom self-esteem so I wanted to change that."
She went from eating 700 calories a day to 200 and eventually at her lowest, she ate only a 10 calorie pot of jelly for breakfast, a seven calorie bottle of juice for lunch, and 'zero' calorie noodles and vegetables for dinner.
She said: "I remember one day my dad walked in on my weighing 20g of banana, and he cried.”
In September 2014, Jodie-Leigh’s GP transferred her to an eating disorder service for four months and put on an eating plan.
However, she continued to wake up at 2am to exercise until 5:30am every day.
In January 2015, weighing just 6st 3lbs she was admitted to hospital. A month later she moved to an inpatient clinic in London, where she spent six months.
She said: "I had dropped a further three kilos and came very close to dying.
"I was aggressively self-harming, and I hadn't eaten in a month, only restrained and tube fed."
Under 24-hour supervision and in group therapy, her meal plans rose to 3000 calories and she gained 1.2kilos a week.
When she reached 8st 9lbs, her goal weight for her height, in June 2015 she was discharged.
However, three months later she relapsed and was using weights to fake her weight.
Jodie-Leigh dropped to her lowest weight of 5st 5lbs and had to be rushed to hospital on three separate occasions due to low sodium causing heart problems.
She said: "I was again self-harming, and struggling more than ever with anorexia.
"I hid my body away for a long time, seeing only an overweight and ugly girl, my head was telling me I was worthless and I had no point in life, things got once again progressively worse. I was lying to everyone I loved.
"Honestly, until this point I had no interest of being better, my only interest was to die."
With all hope lost, her parents prepared to say goodbye, but Jodie's fight wasn't over.
She said: "The light bulb moment occurred when I was so fed up of anorexia's voice.
"I was in unbearable pain from my bones, and my organs were beginning to fail.
"The doctor told me it was either recovery or death. So I chose recovery.”
She added: “I realised that having to sit on three towels in the bath because my spine hit the bath was not normal.
Related Stories
"Squatting on the toilet because my bones fell through the seat, fainting, having my legs give way, having heart palpitations, shaking and aching constantly wasn't what I wanted anymore.
"I also was violent to my parents leaving them with bruises and cuts as I lashed out at them to combat the voices inside my head.
"I got asked I had cancer."
Jodie-Leigh was helped through her recovery my friends and family.
"Mum brought me beautiful cutlery and bowls, and we would all play board games at the table and spent lots of time as a family,” she said.
WHAT IS ANOREXIA NERVOSA?
*Anorexia nervosa is a serious mental health condition
*It's an eating disorder where a person keeps their body weight as low as possible
*People with anorexia usually do this by restricting the amount of food they eat, making themselves vomit, and exercising excessively
*The condition often develops out of an anxiety about body shape and weight that originates from a fear of being fat or a desire to be thin
*Many people with anorexia have a distorted image of themselves, thinking they're fat when they're not
*Anorexia most commonly affects girls and women, although it has become more common in boys and men in recent years
*On average, the condition first develops at around the age of 16 to 17
Source: NHS Direct
"I got my relationship back with my mum, who was always my best friend, me and my dad were no longer fighting.”
It took Jodie-Leigh six months to restore her weight and now the beautiful blonde is at a healthy 63kg.
Although she admits her battle is ongoing, the teen has started dating and is finally able to complete her A Levels in sociology, psychology and theatre studies.
Now Jodie-Leigh supports other anorexia nervosa sufferers on her Instagram accounts: and .
She added: "It's a long road to recovery and I am still fighting now.
"It is learning that what you see in the mirror is not an accurate reflection.
"I am stronger now, and I know I am beating my illness.
"For anyone struggling, it does get easier I promise.
"I will always thank my parents, grandparents, friends and eating disorder community on Instagram for showing me that I am worth more than anorexia."
Meanwhile, Little Mix's Jade Thirlwall has spoken of her battle with the eating disorder, while YouTube star Eugenia Cooney has slammed claims she is promoting the illness online.
For help and advice for anyone suffering with an eating disorder, visit charity B-Eat's