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What This Illness Truly Is
Chasing Numbers details your battle with Anorexia Nervosa and your path toward recovery. Why was this an important book for you to write?
It was important for me to write the book because there are not a lot of stories out there of those who have battled this illness, less so from a male perspective. There are also a lot of misconceptions about eating disorders. Many studies have shown that 40% of the population still do not believe eating disorders are a serious mental illness when in fact they have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. The book has also been so helpful for parents navigating the illness with their child. It is so hard to understand the illness unless you have gone through it. I wanted others to have the most raw and honest picture of what this illness truly is. I have also been donating 100% of the proceeds from Chasing Numbers to those seeking treatment with an eating disorder in Canada. This made it even more important that I really put everything I had into the book.
I appreciated how candid you were in your book. What was the hardest thing for you to write about?
The hardest part of writing the book was telling the story in a way where blame wouldn’t be placed on my parents. My parents did so much for me throughout my recovery and I knew it was hard on them. It was actually the reason I talked less about them in the book than I otherwise would have. It is so hard to see the illness in someone. It was even harder since I was so good at hiding it while I was around them. Parents often feel responsible for bad things that happen to their child so I was doing everything I could do to avoid them thinking that any of this was because of their actions or something they didn’t do.
What were some ideas that were important for you to share in this book?
One of the biggest ideas that I wanted this book to give to the reader that eating disorders are widespread and can impact anyone. When people think of eating disorders, they often think of a white college girl who is starving themselves. I wanted people to know that this is not the case and there are many diverse people that also suffer. Secondly, while presenting a story that showed how horrible Anorexia Nervosa can be, I also wanted to present a hopeful ending that shows others the illness can be beaten.
What is a common misconception you feel people have about anorexia?
A common misconception is that only females get Anorexia Nervosa. While it is much more common in females, a person of any gender can be diagnosed.
Author Links: Twitter | Facebook
All proceeds from Chasing Numbers will be donated to Eating Disorders Nova Scotia in order to help fund programs that support individuals who are suffering from eating disorders.
Chasing Numbers: Starve, Sleep, Repeat
Scott Ellis was a normal child, living his life, not thinking about counting calories or how his body should look. Scott joined his school’s cross country team and with practice became quite good at it. He began experimenting with diets and lived by a set of rules when it came to eating. No matter what weight he reached, he was never satisfied and felt like he needed to lose more despite all of the pain his body was going through. In 11th grade he got his license and began to socialize with friends at fast food places which caused him to gain weight. Scott put himself back on a diet by his senior year in order to lose the weight. To cope with his depression he started to drink, which made his depression severe and he became suicidal. After suffering from severe chest pains, he made the choice to go to the hospital to seek help. Scott’s journey towards recovery is winding and emotional, but ultimately uplifting and illuminating.
Scott Ellis gives readers an up close and personal look at how anorexia affects someone mentally, physically, and emotionally. I was unaware of these issues and I really appreciated the detail that was provided as I felt it made things less abstract and made them more vivid and real. I appreciated the authors candid nature throughout the book. The beginning of the story helps readers connect with him as a person first, so that you end up rooting for him throughout the entire ordeal.
Because of the brutal honesty there were times when the story was hard to read, especially when reading about how much the author was suffering with being overwhelmed with thoughts of hunger, his body constantly hurting and always being depressed. I continued reading on in hopes that the author would find peace and begin to recover. This is an emotionally heavy memoir, so be ready to take some breaks to absorb what you just read.
This book is educational for both people who suffer from anorexia and people who just want to know more about it. I learned that there is a support group out there for people who are suffering from anorexia, and there is also forums of people sharing tips and tricks to lose weight and also encouraging one another to continue on a self-destructive path. It’s shocking, but it helps open your eyes to a different world.
This emotionally stirring memoir focuses on Scott, but I would have liked to have known more about Scott’s parents and their side of the story. His parents are supportive of him once he did tell them that he was suffering from anorexia.
Chasing Numbers is a powerful story detailing the author’s battle with anorexia. I highly recommend this enlightening memoir to young readers to inform them of the dangers of anorexia and to let them know that there is more to life than trying to look like people in magazines or on TV.
Pages: 145 | ASIN: B0B8Q13Q87
LITERARY TITAN 