Alexa Bliss' Teenage Battle With Anorexia, Explained
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On a recent episode of Raw, Alexa Bliss won gold in WWE once again, becoming Women’s Tag Team Champions with Asuka. It marks the ninth time that she’s held a title in her near decade long run with the company. Bliss has always been a dependable presence who can work great as either a face or a heel due to her natural charisma and athletic physique. That desire to have an athletic physique, however, has led to Alexa battling anorexia many times in her life. Twice, it even threatened to take her life.
What Is Anorexia?
Chances are you’ve heard of anorexia, even if you may not quite understand what it is. The disease is one that starts in the mind that leads to drastic physical changes. While not limited to, it’s mostly seen in young women who have developed a negative image of their body. They can see themselves as overweight no matter what their weight is or how much they might lose. Their mind will still tell them that they’re fat and need to lose more.
To change the unattractive body they think they see, those with anorexia will go to drastic measures to achieve quick results. They’ll starve themselves or eat very little to sustain their daily needs, and/or they’ll exercise excessively to the point of putting their bodies in danger. All of this can lead to drastic effects on the body, from dehydration, to low blood pressure, to bone loss, and in some tragic cases, even death.
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Alexa Bliss’ Struggled To Survive Anorexia
Twice in her life Alexa Bliss has gone through serious bouts of anorexia. The first time came at the very young age of 15. The condition grew so severe that Alexa’s weight dropped to just 80 pounds and her heart rate fell to an extremely low 28 beats per minute. The average heart rate for a healthy person should be 60-100 beats per minute. Alexa was then taken to the hospital in very serious condition. “When I went to the hospital, I almost went into cardiac arrest,” Bliss told Sports Illustrated in 2020. “And I wasn’t allowed to go to sleep—they thought I’d die if I did.”
Bliss went through another severe case of anorexia while in college. During her freshman year, it got so bad, and her weight dropped so low, that her life was in danger again. Bliss once revealed to the New York Post how extensive her treatment was. “I went through treatment so many times. At one point I was in rounds of five different doctors a day. That was my deal to be able to get out of the hospital, which was I had to see five different doctors every day. I literally spent every day at the doctor’s.“
It turns out that it may be partially hereditary, as both Bliss’ mother and grandmother have struggled with eating disorders. It took a toll on Bliss, even causing severe depression.
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Alexa Bliss Overcame Her Disease
So many young women have lost their lives to anorexia, either through the disease itself or due to suicide resulting from the emotional destruction it can cause. Alexa Bliss is one of the lucky ones who made it through to the other side, though it took several years to do. In her SI interview, Bliss also said, “I take it day-by-day. Dealing with eating disorders, anxiety, and depression, I’m no stranger to mental illness. Every few years, I deal with a really bad spell of depression. You have to know it doesn’t have to overtake your life… Mental illness can dictate someone’s entire life. I put myself in a position to be in the public eye, but I’m doing what I love. I’ve gone to therapy, I’ve done everything I can do to get my brain in a healthy place.”
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“An eating disorder is something that never leaves you, so having that support system is so important,” Bliss said. She tries to be a support system for others, using her celebrity status to not only educate but to also mentor other young women who are going through what she experienced and will always carry with her.
Alexa Bliss survived and has went on to have a great life and career, but so many young women don’t make it. Much of the disease can find its roots in our culture, where it’s decided that a woman must look a certain way. Anything else is seen as less than feminine and not beautiful. Anyone can go through anorexia. It can affect a woman who might be overweight. It can affect a woman who is already underweight. It can affect a man who thinks his abs have to be chiseled. And it can even affect a woman who so many see as the epitome of what beauty is supposed to look like. That’s something we all need to remember, especially in today’s world of social media and bullying. No matter how someone may or may not look on the outside, we’re all battling something on the inside.
