Something Spectacular The True Story of One Rockette's Battle with Bulimia

by Gleissner, Greta

• ISBN13: 9781580054157
• ISBN10: 1580054153
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-05-29
• Publisher: Seal Press

Summary

Greta Gleissner, a longtime professional dancer, dreamed her whole life of becoming a Rockette. Then she became one—and she fell into the grips of a powerful eating disorder that began poison her life from the inside out. Something Spectacular is Gleissner’s raw, personal chronicle of the devastating effects bulimia exacts upon her life during her time as a Rockette. As her disorder takes over, she begins to lead a dual life: happy-go-lucky on the outside; tortured by obsessive, self-destructive voices on the inside. Immersed in an environment in which even talent is secondary to appearance, Gleissner hides her disorder by any means necessary—lying, cheating, and stealing with no regard for the consequences of her actions—until she hits rock bottom and is forced to face the truths behind her disease. Her intensive odyssey of self-discovery ultimately gives her the strength to reshape her self-image, embrace her sexuality, and break free of the malignant hold bulimia has on her life. The first book to give voice to the pervasive but often unaddressed problem of eating disorders in the dance industry, Something Spectacular is a gripping exposé of the insidious nature of eating-related diseases—and a profound account of one woman’s journey toward self-acceptance and recovery.

Author Biography

Greta Gleissner is a former dancer who danced professionally in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, New York, and Europe in the course of her career—most recently as a Radio City Rockette in the Radio City Christmas Spectacular for three seasons. She has appeared on All My Children, danced in Taylor Dane’s "Original Sin" music video, performed at the movie premier of 102 Dalmatians, and assisted choreographers in New York and Los Angeles. Today, Gleissner is active in self-help groups that specialize in addiction, where she sponsors others and acts as a role model for those in recovery. She has been a recovery speaker for the world-renowned Sierra Tucson treatment facility in Arizona, and is a guest speaker on the marketing video for Sierra Tucson, in which she shares her experience at the facility and how recovery has changed her life. Gleissner is a staff writer for The Disordered Times, an eating disorder recovery website read by recovering persons and health and medical professionals, and The F-Word, a blog about food, fat, and feminism. Greta also publishes a personal blog, Life With Cake, about bulimia recovery. She recently received a master’s degree in social work at New York University, and is now pursuing post-graduate work, focusing on eating disorders, at The William Alanson White Psychoanalytic Institute.