An Inverness mum says sharing family cooking videos on TikTok has helped her recover from anorexia.
Ailsa Gardiner, from Balloch, started sharing clips on her account in October 2022 and now has more than 65,000 loyal followers.
The mum-of-two was told she only had days to live after being hospitalised with eating disorder anorexia nervosa in 2022.
Ailsa, now 29, “managed to turn a corner” and found support on TikTok, where she started to share videos of her meals.
Now she is hoping her journey back to health can inspire others.
She told The Press and Journal: “It was nice to see there were other girls in that position, and I wasn’t the only one.
“There were a couple of people I followed who really inspired me, but I never came across an account that had a family.
“There wasn’t anybody I could see who was trying to put everything into this recovery while holding a family together.”
‘Light at the end of the tunnel’
Ailsa started by uploading videos of her recovery meals to TikTok and then went on to share content with her husband Richard, six-year-old son, Lucas, and four-year-old daughter, Vanessa.
“I felt I held myself accountable with posting my breakfast, lunch and dinner because so many people were counting on me to show I’m not skipping meals,” she said.
“Now, I’m building my channel with my love of cooking and baking, and family life, which keeps me going each day.
“We will go to places in and around Inverness that people may not know about, so I try to promote small independent businesses as well.
“I’m always coming up with different ideas for meals and trying combinations that my anorexia would never have let me do before – and showing everyone there is light at the end of the tunnel.”
‘I managed to turn a corner’
Ailsa said she was never comfortable with her body while growing up but her struggle with anorexia did not come to light until she was planning her wedding.
“I was a dancer and a gymnast when I was younger and felt a lot of pressure growing up,” she said.
“But it really came to fruition during lockdown.
“I bought a wedding dress four months postpartum and it wouldn’t zip up, but I knew it was the dress I wanted.
“I forgot about it for a few months and then I tried it on again and it still didn’t fit.
“That’s when I lost a little bit of control and things spiralled from there.”
Over the next two years, Ailsa started walking several miles each day and restricting her food.
When she was hospitalised in 2022, she was told she could only have days to live.
“One night I got really ill and my husband had to drag me to bed,” she shared.
“I thought I was gone – I was saying goodbye to him and my mum.
“I got taken into hospital and I don’t know if something switched in my head, but I managed to turn a corner.”
Ailsa Gardiner sharing life on TikTok
Recovery has been a “rollercoaster” for Ailsa but she said she has been able to stay focused on her family and her “reasons for wanting to live”.
After leaving hospital she was treated as an outpatient in Inverness and was discharged last year.
The growth of her TikTok account – which has led to brand deals with Tesco, Birds Eye and Quaker Oats – means she can also now call it her job.
“I’m definitely riding the wave at the moment and am taking every opportunity that I can from it,” she said.
“I’m doing something I love so it never feels like a chore.
“I try to keep things transparent and positive. I just want it to be reality, not Instagrammable.
“My channel has so so many different audiences who take what they want from my content which I love.
“I get so many messages from people saying they’ve made my recipes and are trying different meals with their kids.
“And, on the recovery side, I’m finding a lot of parents are messaging about their child going through anorexia, and asking my advice on what to say and do.
“It gives them hope.”
- BEAT can help you find eating disorder support services in your area
