Malika Andrews opens up about her teenage battle with mental illness

Malika Andrews has risen quickly at ESPN and is currently anchoring NBA countdown for the NBA Finals on ABC for the first time. In a new interview with PeopleAndrews revealed the painful details of her battle with mental illness as a teenager and how she recovered over time.

In past interviews, Andrews chose not to discuss the time she spent away from her family in high school. Now, Andrews has detailed her challenges with eating disorders, self-harm and more as a young woman.

Andrews recalled from the age of 12, struggling with racism and being an outsider in a predominantly white school in Oakland, as well as eating junk food. She later entered therapy for depression and considered harming herself.

When she checked into the ER and an inpatient psychiatric unit, Andrews' problems only intensified.

"I was looking for ways to make sense of my anger," she said People. "I didn't know how to live in my own skin."

Andrews' family sent her to an outpatient therapy facility in the wilderness that set her up to work outside, where she was forced to cook her own food and was limited to alone time or access to crazy items like shoelaces. However, Andrews continued to self-harm and scavenge food. Treatment did not help.

Andrews eventually found solace in horseback riding, which she continues to do today.

While Andrews slipped into another bad stretch just before graduating college, losing significant weight due to disordered eating and affecting her heart activity, she is healthier today.

"We talk about depression and recovery as a 'before and after,' something you get over," Andrews said. People. "My experience is that it's something you deal with every day. Depression, anxiety, eating disorders, anger—those are the shape-shifters that can grab you and control you, and just when you feel like you've got a handle on one part, another pops out to share in your progress."

Andrews has covered challenging stories for ESPN, including coverage of the 2020 NBA Bubble in Orlando. This week, she scored an exclusive interview with Luka Doncic after colleague Brian Windhorst criticized the Dallas Mavericks star for losing his cool in Game 3 of the Finals.

But as she told him Peopleshe has faced strong personal challenges from a young age.

Andrews will host Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Friday night for ABC and ESPN.

[People]