Unbearable Lightness: A Story of Loss and Gain

Unbearable Lightness: A Story of Loss and Gain by Portia de Rossi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I love to play armchair therapist. Books about addiction and recovery are a personal favorite of mine. It's fascinating to hear what drives others to the decisions they make, and to try to figure out what caused it all. In Portia de Rossi's case, it seems to be a destructive cocktail of her father dying at an early age, her drive for acceptance through modeling and acting, and hiding the fact that she is a lesbian, with a side dish of her feeling her mother wanted her to be perfect, pretty, and straight. Whether this is actually true or just what she heard internally, we can't really be sure, but she seems to have worked through most of it. I found myself wanting to sit her down and tell her that who she is will be enough, and to just enjoy life.

I first discovered Portia de Rossi on Arrested Development, one of my all-time favorite shows. I was never a fan of Ally McBeal so I had never watched her on it, and had only heard with half an ear about her struggles with her weight in the tabloids. To me, she will always be Lindsey Bluth. It was interesting to read about her descent into the depths of her eating disorder and how she finally came to terms with being who she really is, although hopefully she understands that's a journey that never ends, and she will be in recovery for the rest of her life. A well-written account of the struggles with an eating disorder. WARNING: some of her stories may trigger behaviors if you have struggled with ED in the past, so be careful.

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