Tess Holliday targeted over anorexia diagnosis admission

Tess Holliday has opened up about her heartbreaking struggle with anorexia – as well as the cruel claim trolls have made about her diagnosis.

Model Tess Holliday has opened up about the cruel reaction she received from trolls after going public with her anorexia diagnosis.

The 36-year-old revealed she was suffering from the eating disorder in May last year, writing in an essay for Today this week that she has been restricting her food intake for a decade.

In a series of tweets, Holliday shared that she was “anorexic and in recovery”.

“I’m not ashamed to say it out loud anymore,” she tweeted.

“I’m the result of a culture that celebrates thinness and equates that to worth, but I get to write my own narrative now.

US model Tess Holliday revealed her anorexia diagnosis in May last year. Picture: Valerie Macon/AFP

“I’m finally able to care for a body that I’ve punished my entire life and I am finally free.”

But going public saw some trolls accuse Holliday of fabricating her diagnosis.

“People said I was lying. There are people who believe I was saying this to get attention,” she wrote for Today.

“I’ve had some people say, ‘You’re doing this to stay relevant.’”

Holliday said she has since “regressed” in her anorexia as “recovery for me is messy”.

She is seeking help by going to therapy and by surrounding herself “with people who can gently say, ‘Have you eaten today?’”

Holliday was accused of trying to stay relevant by faking her diagnosis. Picture: Instagram/Tess Holliday.

Holliday began using food as a coping mechanism at age 10 when her mother was shot and she “started overeating”.

“I started hiding food. As I got older, I struggled with anorexia,” she wrote.

“I didn’t know that’s what it was until last year – but for over 10 years, I have restricted food. That means I don’t eat – or when I do eat, it’s very little.”

Despite years of disordered eating, Holliday says she “laughed” when her dietitian suggested she could be anorexic.

“I thought, ‘Do you see how fat I am? There’s no way that word could ever be attached to someone my size’,” Holliday wrote.

“She referred me to a psychologist, who confirmed the diagnosis.”

Holliday said she had ‘laughed’ when it was first suggested she could have an eating disorder. Picture: Instagram/Tess Holliday.

What is anorexia?

Anorexia nervosa is a psychological illness that involves consistent restriction of food which leads to the sufferer being unable to maintain a healthy weight.

People diagnosed with anorexia tend to have a distorted view of their body and place an enormous amount of attention on what their body looks like.

While many anorexia sufferers will have a below average body weight as a result of their restricting, those diagnosed with atypical anorexia will have an average or above average body weight.

Atypical anorexia sufferers are still at risk of life-threatening complications from the mental health disorder and treatment should be sought, according to the National Eating Disorders Collaboration.