Doctor Who And Thor Star Reveals His Struggle With Anorexia And Mental Health

Emmy Award-winning English actor Christopher Eccleston is releasing a biography titled Love the Bones of You and in the book the Doctor Who and Thor: The Dark World star opens up about his lifelong battle with mental health issues like body dysmorphia and with the eating disorder, anorexia.

According to a report by the Guardian, Eccleston is out to release Love the Bones of You this year, a book that reveals the actor's struggle with being "a lifelong body hater." The critically-acclaimed actor has lived a life struggling with eating disorders and has even considered suicide at one point in his life.

"Many times I've wanted to reveal that I'm a lifelong anorexic and dysmorphic," Eccleston wrote in his book, "I never have. I always thought of it as a filthy secret, because I'm northern, because I'm male, and because I'm working class."

Doctor Who fans might not have known it, but the 55-year-old alum of the BBC science fiction series had actually been struggling with the eating disorder even while filming for the show.

"The illness is still there raging within me as the Doctor," the actor reveals, "People love the way I look in that series, but I was very ill. The reward for that illness was the part. And therein lies the perpetuation of the whole sorry situation."

Anorexia and body dysmorphia weren't the only issues that Eccleston had to deal with. Back in 2015, the actor was diagnosed with clinical depression after separating from his wife. The Marvel star considered killing himself back then. Thankfully, he sought help instead.

Right now Eccleston is in recovery, taking antidepressants to help with his mental state. Though the actor would like to someday reduce his dosage, he says that they've been pretty helpful in the process of recovery.

It's pretty brave for Eccleston to come forward like this. It isn't easy talking about mental health, and we're hoping that his story helps others out there suffering from similar illnesses.

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