Medical student battling severe anorexia says modelling saved her life – as she qualifies for Miss England title

A woman ‘close to death’ due to severe anorexia has turned her life around to study medicine at university – and reach the semi finals of Miss England.

Alisha Marr, 26, from London, started to have issues around food when she was bullied for being a ‘teachers’ pet’ and gaining weight from a complex knee injury from badminton, aged 14.

Her weight plummeted to dangerous levels and Alisha claims one specialist said she was ‘the most unwell patient’ he had ever seen.

After the disorder left her in and out of hospital for years, she finally beat anorexia in April 2023 following a terrifying ‘lightbulb moment’ when doctors warned she could be sectioned.  

Returning to a healthy weight allowed her to take up modelling – with Alisha eventually being scouted for Miss England.

She is now in the semi-finals, which will take place in October 2025, after Alisha was crowned Miss Asiana at the UK’s biggest Asian beauty pagaent last December. 

Alisha, a model and medical student from north London, said: ‘If I win Miss England, I would be the first Sikh and Punjab person to win it – I’m in the top 10 for the semi-finals across the country, which I’m really proud of.

‘I lost 10 years of my life but I’ve managed to gain it back in one.

 ‘I still have days where I feel like I’m 17 and struggling again, but I don’t see it as a weakness. It is about how I deal with it now.’

She was transferred to a specialist adolescent eating disorder unit for at 17, before attending a specialist adult unit called St Anne’s in north London upon turning 18. 

Alisha stayed there for nearly a year before she was discharged – only to be readmitted 11 different times between the ages of 18 and 24. .

Her condition was included under the bracket of a severe and enduring eating disorder (SEED), which is a term used to describe the most serious and long-lasting eating disorders.

Despite being in hospital, Alisha managed to take her A Levels, achieving As in Biology, Chemistry and Maths.

She applied to do medicine and secured a place at King’s College University but she was unable to accept due to health reasons.

She said: ‘I did my A Levels at hospital, while patients were screaming and shouting, being taken into different rooms for whatever.

‘I used to hear all these noises and I still studied and got great grades – I would constantly be carrying my books around.

‘It was a very tough time, because mentally and physically I was going through such a big change.

‘At such a low BMI (body mass index), to do these exams was quite an accomplishment, and one that went against medical advice and was completed without help and extra support.’

‘But when I went to Kings, they said my weight had dropped drastically, and the university said they would defer my place for a year.

Speaking of her ordeal, she added: ‘I was told that I was so unwell, if I had stood up and had a shower I could die and that I could die in my sleep.

‘The minerals and vitamin levels in my body were so out of range that I had to have a really special diet.

‘I was actually so severely underweight at points that I got transferred from place to place.

‘I would sneak into the kitchen where they used to have the meal plans with everyone’s intake, I would sneak into the kitchen at night when everyone was asleep and change the paperwork.

‘At one point I actually got caught but I still didn’t learn my lesson because I did it two or three more times – I was told I was a “headache” by staff.

‘I would go home and lose the weight and then come back into the hospital and gain the weight, because I struggled without the support in the community.’

She struggled with mental health issues.

She said: ‘I used to be a national badminton player and I lost my place so I went into depression – I had a mental breakdown. I was withdrawn, I was in my room, I thought there was no point to life, where everything was lost.’

‘For me, part of the turning point was losing the medical school place that I had worked so hard for in 2020, but the full recovery was when I turned to a modelling agency in July 2023 which really helped me, even though it seems counter-intuitive.

‘I also eventually gained weight without hospital support because I was close to being sectioned, which I really wanted to avoid, so I gained the weight by myself,’ she said.

‘And then when I started to regain weight, I was able to model, which helped, and then I applied to regain my place at Kings.

‘Modelling was a blessing in disguise. It helped my anorexia – when usually it worsens the condition – which is very unique.’

She has also passed the UCAT, the entrance exam for medical school, and has been offered a place to return to Kings to study medicine.

‘I want to be a doctor to help people like me,’ she said.

‘I’m trying to bring awareness which is part of the voluntary work I’m doing – providing support for people with mental health conditions, particularly in the local Asian community, where there seems to be a bit of a taboo around it.

‘I am trying to create a safe space and a platform for people who have anorexia who are unable to speak about it or are denied treatment.

‘From being in hospital in the last ten years, I know countless people who have died, because some of the support is inadequate – patients are being treated like animals, being fed and then left.

‘But I have managed to beat my worst enemy and that was me.’

Alisha has developed some advice to give to others – with one key point to take away.

She said: ‘Believe in yourself, people can say things and label you, but you are the one that can take charge of your life – try and stay off social media and focus on yourself.’

If you’re struggling with an eating disorder or caring for someone who is, visit beateatingdisorders.org.uk for advice and support.