Christopher Eccelston, the former Doctor Who star, has opened up about his struggle with mental health, revealing that he is a victim of lifelong anorexia and dysmorphia.
According to CNN, the 55-year-old British actor writes in his upcoming autobiography called ‘I Love the Bones of You,’ “Many times I’ve wanted to reveal that I’m a lifelong anorexic and dysmorphic.”
However, he says he has held back now due to his circumstances, stating, “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.”
Eccelston says he had to suffer from anorexia even during his tenure as the Doctor. He writes, “The illness is still there raging within me as the Doctor. People love the way I look in that series, but I was very ill.”
According to The Guardian, the actor received the diagnosis of clinical depression in 2015, which was believed to come after he got separated from his wife, Mischka.
“I was in a state of extreme anxiety, convinced I was either going to die or I was going to kill myself,” continues Eccleston. “In my despair I reached for my phone and looked up a psychiatric hospital, I rang ahead, grabbed my bag and ran.”
The Doctor Who star reveals that he has been doing well on antidepressants and hopes that eventually the dosages will be reduced.
He writes, “I am on antidepressants to this day. I could be on them for the rest of my days. I do have an issue with that. I would like to attempt slowly to reduce the dose to experience reality again, to see how I do. And yet, interestingly I have received some of the best reviews of my life since I started taking them.” ‘I Love the Bones of You’ comes out on Thursday, which is published by Simon & Schuster in the UK.
