Celebrity News November 04, 2010
Portia de Rossi: 'I Collapsed on a Movie Set'
Actress Portia de Rossi sat down for a one-on-one interview with "Extra's" Terri Seymour, in which she opened up about her dramatic battle with anorexia and bulimia -- which once left her a frail 82 pounds.
Now on tour with her revealing new book, "Unbearable Lightness," the actress is looking to help others. She'll appear on Thursday's "Ellen DeGeneres Show."
"It started when I was 12 years old, because I started modeling at 12," said de Rossi. "I started dieting because I was not model-thin. I would find myself binging immediately after I completed the job."
When she was only 82 pounds, Portia said she would only eat five different foods. "Oatmeal, turkey, tuna, egg whites and Jell-O... I'd eat 40 calories of egg whites or 40 calories of oatmeal, totaling 300 calories a day," she admits.
Portia revealed she would have dreams of eating pizza, which would leave her in tears because she felt like she betrayed herself.
"What really ended this for me was I collapsed on a movie set. I blacked out and I was sent to doctors," the actress told Terri. "I was osteoporotic at 25 years old, and my liver was one step below cirrhosis."
The former "Ally McBeal" star entered intense therapy at an eating disorder clinic 8 years ago, which she credits with saving her life.
Now married to talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, Portia says she feels like she's living in a "fairy tale." "It's amazing, Ellen met me when I was 168 pounds, my heaviest weight... she just saw something that made me uniquely me."
