A student who spent her entire degree recovering from anorexia is delighted now that she's beaten her decade-long illness - after finally enjoying the feeling of being full up.

Alice Cachia, 21, from Wateringbury near Maidstone, once tipped the scales at a tiny five-and-a-half stone - the same weight as a ten-year-old.

But now she is proud to have no idea how much she weighs, after finally putting the condition behind her.

She was hospitalised for three months with the illness at just 12, and then had multiple relapses over the past few years.

At her smallest, the third-year English literature student at the University of East Anglia, in Norwich, Norfolk, weighed just 76lbs.

But last year, after fearing she may die from the illness and nearly dropping out of her degree, she took drastic action to treat her illness.

Now Alice, who refuses to look at the scales, argues that with the help of friends and family, focussing on a healthy lifestyle helped change her attitude to food - and now she loves feeling full up after a good meal.

Speaking to student newspaper, The Tab, she said: "Making myself go to the doctors telling and telling them 'I'm not okay' was the first step in my recovery.

"A week into my second uni year, I walked in the door and just burst into tears - I was probably in there for hours."

Alice was put on a high priority waiting list and began being treated as an outpatient a couple of months later.

Before she began treatment, Alice was desperate for help from her mum - who would drive from their home to visit her.

Alice, who edits her university paper and hit the headlines earlier this month after finding herself on a foot fetish website

, said: "Mum paid for me to have a massage to treat me, but I was so depressed about my anorexia I said to her 'you need to take me home today or I'm going to die.'

Alice went on to recover and learn how to deal with her food-related anxiety.

She was told in April last year that her BMI meant that she was no longer clinically anorexic - which left her struggling with her identity.

She said: "I've been anorexic since I was 12. For me, thinness equated to my self worth.

"I remember feeling angry that they'd taken that away from me."

But soon, she realised she's more than that and learned how to exercise and cook healthy meals.

Alice said: "Since I started getting better I absolutely love cooking, and that's definitely come from my anorexia recovery.

"I love to know what goes in my food and knowing it's healthy.

"The gym was so essential. I go to the gym four times a week where I like to do half an hour of cardio and an hour of weights."

The student still struggles to differentiate between what she calls anorexia-related thoughts and what is normal thinking and often has to ask friends how to portion control.

She said: "I'm always texting my housemate and 'checking' that the extra slice of cake I had as a treat is allowable.

"Even when it was pancake day I messaged her and ask if it was normal to not have dinner and just have pancakes instead.

"It makes me feel silly but it also clears my mind having someone else's confirmation that the food I am eating is okay, that food is not my enemy.

"It took me around ten months before I recognised hunger and fullness again.

"It still blows my mind when people can say no to a chocolate biscuit - is it because you don't fancy it or because you're being good?"

Alice said communicating her thoughts with friends and family helped her through her darkest moments.

She said: "Communication is really important. It's such a secretive illness so even if it meant I wasn't ready to make a change, at least I was telling someone that I was feeling awful and self loathing.

"I'm never going to be a stick thin person, but that's absolutely fine.

"I've got more going for me than the fact that I don't look like Kate Moss. I can have fun, I've got great friends."

If you or someone you know suffers from an eating disorder, call Anorexia and Bulimia Care on 03000 11 12 13