Tragic Details About Billy Bob Thornton's Health Struggles

Billy Bob Thornton leads quite a healthy lifestyle these days. The "Landman" star told AARP that when he welcomed his daughter, Bella, with his wife, Connie Angland, in 2004, he decided to take his health seriously. He became a self-proclaimed "vegan who cheats" and seemingly stays active by bowling any chance he gets, per a 2018 interview with The New York Times. However, before he took his health off the back burner, Thornton went through a slew of trying problems, some even starting as a child. 

The Hollywood star told the Los Angeles Daily News in 1998 that he suffered from an eating disorder while filming his movie, "U Turn." It is common for celebrities to drastically change their appearance for a role, but Thornton said his habits, which caused him to shed a whopping 59 pounds, had a medical diagnosis. "I got anorexic," he admitted (via RadarOnline). Thornton said he even repudiated concerns from his then-girlfriend, fellow actor Laura Dern. He only ate canned tuna and Twizzlers to look "gaunt," as he revealed on "Nightline" in 2012. 

In 2000, Thornton was rushed to Los Angeles' Cedars-Sinai Hospital with what his agent asserted was a viral infection. However, a firestorm of speculation that he had suffered a heart attack couldn't be extinguished. Supporting the heart attack theory was another rumor that Thornton would only eat orange-colored foods, which he eventually denied. However, while it may not be the case for Thornton, according to a paper in the National Library of Medicine, there's a correlation between eating disorders and another health issue Thornton has dealt with.

Billy Bob Thornton was diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), which he told NBC News was a result of a tumultuous childhood; his father frequently beat him. OCD is characterized in two-fold: obsessions, which are unwanted thoughts, and compulsions, uncontrollable behaviors, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. "It exhausts you," he told NBC in 2004. "You're constantly doing mathematics in your head." Thornton is one of many celebrities who have OCD, including Howie Mandel, who is famously candid about his experience with the disorder.

One of the struggles Thornton faces with OCD is his peculiar phobias. In an interview on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" in the early 2000s, the actor revealed that he is afraid of crashing in an airplane, antiques that were made before the 1950s, and live theater. "That almost borders on Tourette's," Thornton admitted about the latter phobia. "I have a thing where, if I'm in a quiet, dark place, where people are doing something on stage — if it's a speech or a play — I can't stay in my seat." He added that he experiences a very real compulsion to get up on stage, to the point where he no longer can sit in an audience of that nature.

Thornton also noted that his habits can often stem from a desire to protect loved ones — for instance, being unable to speak the numbers that corresponded to his children's ages. "It takes up a lot of energy and a lot of time."