The Secret Life of Mary Margaret Portrait of a Bulimic
The Secret Life of Mary Margaret: Portrait of a Bulimic starring Calista Flockhart can be viewed here for free. With so few eating disorder movies out there portraying bulimics and bulimia nervosa, this eating disorder movie does just that, and sometimes in disgusting detail.
It is a real-life story of a beautiful girl growing up in the perfect family. With a mother who was mercilessly critical of herself, how could Mary Margaret escape the never-ending trap on her quest for beauty. Mary Margaret never felt beautiful - no matter what she did. No matter how hard she tried.
In her story, Mary Margaret begins modeling. She begins learning the tricks from the other models - how to lose weight, make it look like she was eating when she really wasn't. And she started smoking cigarettes to control her weight.
In an off-hand conversation with a friend, Mary Margaret learns about bulimia nervosa. And thus it begins. Making excuses. Hiding food. Learning how to make herself throw up. And the most wonderful and yet most destructive part of being bulimic ... "I was the happiest girl in the world. I could eat anything I wanted and never gain weight." But the high doesn't last long. And Mary Margaret soon learns that you get addicted. And there's nothing you can do to stop it ... at least not at that point in her disease.
View Part One this Portrait of a Bulimic now.
Eventually Mary Margaret starts puking into bottles and hiding them in her closet. Like so many bulimics, the secrecy is horrible, degrading, humiliating, disgusting. "I felt like a freak," she says. Don't we all. She did her "binge shopping" in other towns where no one would know her ... to avoid the embarassment. She ate in the back of her car, hiding.
And the control she once had was suddenly ... gone.
View Part Two of The Secret Life of Mary Margaret: Portrait of a Bulimic now.
Mary Margaret's mother finds the jars of vomit in her closet and finally the family starts talking ... the perfect family where no one talks about feelings. And mother asks, "What is WRONG with you??" Unsupportive. Cold. Sad. And so they send her for treatment.
View Part Three of The Secret Life of Mary Margaret: Portrait of a Bulimic now.
The Secret Life of Mary Margaret concludes with Mary Margaret's best friend dying while they were in college. Mary Margaret finally realizes she needs help. And she gets it. The first step toward recovery - it doesn't happen until the sufferer wants it.
