RIP Nikki Grahame

IngridM20

85603 wrote: »

Shocked that I actually recognized the name. After all the years, plus I hated that BB shyte.

Looked at a best of clip of her meltdowns just now, and yeah she was clearly very mal-adjusted to adult life, very histrionic and dramatic. Childish, attention seeking tantrums.

Something was very wrong whether it was psychiatric/physiology or just her

personality/behavior.
The anorexia must have been related to whatever was going on, horrible illness. She deserved better.

This. It’s amazing they let her on, looking back. But she said that it was great for her.

IngridM20

RIP Nikki. I don’t watch BB now (!) but I did when I was young and enjoyed the one she was on (2006) She was very entertaining!

I had an eating disorder for 7ish years too, around that time, so I related to her. I acted a tad mental also so I understood her flip outs. I’m out of that now and I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. A very misunderstood illness. I hope she’s at peace now. 🕊

DerekC16

I seen a video of her a couple of weeks ago, it was horrific.

Very sad. RIP

IngridM20

Sardonicat wrote: »

I think poor Nikki wanted to stay a little girl forever. The older she got the less physical resemblance to a child she had, the less tolerance her childish behaviour would find. The uncertainty around Covid and her vulnerability to it must have sent her compulsion to restrict her food intake into overdrive. It's such a tragic life and death.

Yes. She was on Good Morning Britain alongside her therapist. The therapist said she knew she’d be dealing with the mindset of a 7/8 year old as that’s when the eating disorder began. 30 years of it. So sad. 😔

Alf Veedersane

TP_CM wrote: »

I just can't understand anorexia. How can you see yourself as being fat when you're so small in comparison to others? When you feel so weak and are clearly starved, or about to die, can you not see that you need to consume calories? I would love to understand it a bit more because I have a young daughter and it does seem to hit teenage/young women the most. I understand an obsession with being lean, but not starved. It would be an AMA I would definitely read with interest.

I can't speak for everyone and I can't speak for anorexia but it's not always purely done to self image alone. It can be a coping mechanism...having an element of control over something. It may be the manifestation of something deeper and its very much a mental thing. The mind plays tricks on you. You can justify anything really. Especially if admitting that behaviours are wrong is the far scarier alternative.

I say that as someone who had an eating disorder for years but fortunately not to the degree Nikki Graham had.

There is no logic to it to anyone outside of the person who is suffering and it's not always purely a manifestation of body image alone.

Ckendrick

TP_CM wrote: »

I just can't understand anorexia. How can you see yourself as being fat when you're so small in comparison to others? When you feel so weak and are clearly starved, or about to die, can you not see that you need to consume calories? I would love to understand it a bit more because I have a young daughter and it does seem to hit teenage/young women the most. I understand an obsession with being lean, but not starved. It would be an AMA I would definitely read with interest.

Unless you have a professional medical qualification with experience in the field of ocd/eating disorders or you’ve suffered from an eating disorder yourself then you wouldn’t be expected to “understand anorexia”.
It’s a complex mental health issue which, amongst other things, disables the sufferers ability to think in a logical manner.
When you look at a sufferer you see an emaciated creature. When they look at themselves in the mirror they don’t see that.

frosty123

A real beauty in her day

May she RIP

I was just thinking her death might help raise awareness for people suffering with anorexia and how it can ultimately end as I think it's been a bit of a shock for a lot of people finding out that she has died. I watched a video of her ex from the show Pete Bennett paying tribute to her. He's heartbroken. Very sad altogether. Life can be cruel.

bitofabind

RIP Nikki. What a horrible way to go. I hope her death brings about some awareness of eating disorders, they are so badly misunderstood, even often by the health services. I suffered badly with some issues as a teenager, I’ll never forget being told “but you look great” or “I know you’ll be ok because you’re not as bad as most people who walk through these doors” by Ireland’s then top eating disorder psychiatrist. I was 19 and terrified by the complete lack of control I had on my mind and my behaviours. They are such a lonely, scary disease and the reaction to them can by the general public just be so triggering.

And to echo someone else - they’re not about food, they’re so much deeper and more complicated. My experience was not that I looked in the mirror and saw someone “fat”, moreso that if I started eating again and letting go of these compulsive behaviours, I would become “fat”, it’s a prison of your own mind.

retro:electro

I remember watching her on one of those celebrity therapist shows and she discussed her battle with anorexia and it all began when she was a little girl, her parents were splitting up and she stopped eating because she thought the longer she could stay little and infantilise herself, maybe her parents would stay together. It was her way of trying to control the situation and her battle continued on and off for years. Her mother was on tv a few weeks ago and said the lockdown was very challenging for Nikki as all her supports like the gym were taken away. Usually what would be keeping her going was planning trips with friends and having people around her able to keep an eye on her. It seems she just spiralled, the poor thing.