About Bex Quinlan
My Story
Hi! I’m Bex, thank you for visiting. I have suffered with an eating disorder for over 15 years. I am now in recovery & am passionate about raising awareness & understanding of mental health & eating disorders.
My Lived Experiences
My eating disorder started when I was 14. I was a competitive track and field athlete & it was my dream to run for Great Britain. I was convinced that if I lost weight I would run faster. I went to Loughborough University, aged 19, to pursue my dream of becoming a professional athlete. But anorexia took control. Within eight months, I was admitted to an eating disorder unit.
I spent the next three years (between 2008-2011) as a revolving door patient. In those three years, I had three admissions to eating disorder units. Two admissions lasted for a year and one for six months. I was sectioned & tube fed in each admission. Once discharged, within four months I would relapse & be readmitted. But since my discharge in 2011 I have fought to stay well.
I was discharged in 2011 under a Community Treatment Order (CTO). This helped save my life. It outlined a weight that I could not go below which provided me with the motivation I needed to maintain my weight. It broke the revolving door cycle. The longer I stayed out of hospital, the more I realised that there was more to life than my eating disorder. I started on the journey of recovery & built my life. I went on to complete my degree, work full time as a cook for two & a half years, & complete a Masters.
What I Do Now
I am determined to use my experiences to help others & improve treatment, education & understanding of eating disorders.
I have written a book about my experiences. It is called Running Free: My Battle with Anorexia. You can find out more about it here Rebecca Quinlan Book
I work as a public speaker & deliver talks & workshops on eating disorders, mental health, & my story to university students, schools, athletics clubs, the NHS, & businesses.
I am also the Patient & Public Voice (PPV) for Eating Disorders for NHS England & am a campaign volunteer for the eating disorder charity Beat. I also do specific lived experience work which has included being an advisor on a PhD study into eating disorders and CTOs, attending Parliament to contribute to round table discussions, and meeting with MPs to discuss eating disorder services.
What do I offer?
To find out more about the talks, workshops & training on eating disorders & mental health that I deliver, please click “Work with me” below
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If you want to keep up to date with my YouTube videos, then head over to my YouTube channel (Bex’s Anorexia Recovery) & subscribe!