Suzy Favor Hamilton details mental health issues in upcoming memoir

ByABC News
September 16, 2015, 11:22 AM

— -- MADISON, Wis. -- Former U.S. Olympian and University of Wisconsin track star Suzy Favor Hamilton said Wednesday that she will release a memoir next month that will touch on the mental health issues that compelled her to lead a double life as a Las Vegas call girl.

Favor Hamilton told her Twitter followers that the book, "Fast Girl," will go on sale Sept. 14. She tweeted that she's "so excited to finally share my story with you next month."

A blurb on publisher HarperCollins' website says the book will recount how manic depression and bipolar disorder drove Favor Hamilton to excel as an athlete. It will also explain how medication exacerbated her mania and made her become hypersexual, giving her a newfound strength and a desire that drove her to secretly become a $600-an-hour Las Vegas escort known as Kelly.

The blurb also promised that Favor Hamilton will discuss how she contemplated suicide after word of her secret life was revealed on The Smoking Gun website in 2012 and how she finally got the right medical help.

"Today, thanks to diagnosis, therapy, Kelly has stepped into the shadows, but Suzy is building a better life, one day at a time," the blurb states. "Sharing her story, Suzy is determined to raise awareness, provide understanding, and offer inspiration to others coping with their own challenges."

Favor Hamilton, a middle-distance runner, competed for the U.S. at the Olympics in 1992, 1996 and 2000 but didn't medal. She also captured seven U.S. national titles.