Megan Barton-Hanson Reveals She Had “Suicidal Thoughts” But Love Island Was Like A “Rehab Retreat”
11 October 2018, 13:13
The reality TV star opened up about her mental health to raise awareness amongst her fans.
Love Island’s Megan Barton-Hanson has bravely opened up about how she felt suicidal before entering the Love Island villa earlier this year.
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Posting on World Mental Health Day, Megan revealed to her followers that she has struggled with mental health problems since she was a teenager and coped by putting on a persona on social media.
She wrote, “Today is world Mental health Day. I’ve put writing this off all day as depression and anxiety are still pretty raw for me and part of who I am. Mental health issues are more common than ever especially with the increased use of social media and the resulting feelings of inadequacy.
“It’s funny because a lot of the time it’s the people that appear strongest on the outside that can also be the ones suffering the most on the inside. You just don’t know what they are dealing with on a daily basis. It doesn’t seem like that long ago that it took so much just to get the mental strength for me to get out of bed and face the world each morning.
“A lot of people can’t get their heads around why if I was so depressed and suffering from anxiety I would go on a reality show. For me it’s was a make or break moment. I’d suffered on and off with mental health problems since my teens. At the end of 2017/early 2018 was probably the lowest I’d ever felt.
“There were a few times that I just didn’t want to wake up, I had suicidal thoughts, and had even gone to my mum sobbing about what I should do as I didn’t want to be alive anymore. My way of coping was putting on a persona for social media, partying, earning money and buying half of Harrods! None of it helped, maybe for 5 mins it distracted me from what was going on inside but as soon as I was back in my flat on my own the negative thoughts and emotions would return.
“I was sad and lonely with it, my own mind working against me. I did some therapy and that helped me by providing techniques for coping in moments of crisis. I’m so lucky that the Love Island opportunity arrived when it did.
“I didn't realise at the time what the impact of being away from it all in the villa would have on my mental state. I thought it would make me famous and I would earn lots of money and that would bring me happiness but actually it was more like a rehab retreat for me stripping everything back and forcing me to see what was most important in my life. Meeting people and experiencing them loving me not for the persona I was presenting online gave me strength and made me realise that I need to love myself more.”
Mental health problems are a daily and ongoing struggle for many, but having high-profile people like Megan speak out definitely helps to end the stigma surrounding it.
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