Emily Atack suffered panic attack shortly before entering I'm A Celebrity
Comedy actor Emily Atack has opened up about her mental health problems, revealing she suffered her first panic attack shortly before entering ITV’s I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here
In an interview with The Sun, the 28-year-old star revealed the incident - which involves the sudden onset of intense fear or discomfort - occurred while receiving a beauty treatment.
"It was so, so horrible, totally out of the blue and really weird," she said.
“I was getting my eyelash extensions done and I’d had a really stressful few weeks in the build-up to doing the show. I was lying there and it just crept up.
“I didn’t know what was happening. I was sweating, my heart rate was creeping up and I felt like I couldn’t breathe. It was awful.”
Ms Atack, who is best known for her role as Charlotte Hinchcliffe in the Channel 4 comedy The Inbetweeners, also revealed she saw the show’s psychiatrist before and after the show.
“There were a lot of down days in the jungle that weren’t aired," she revealed.
“We all struggled at times. But we pulled each other through it, plus the show psychiatrist helped. ITV were so protective of us all.”
She remains in contact with the mental health professional.
The Luton-born actor, who was runner-up to English football manager Harry Redknapp in a final watched by more than 13 million people, added the jungle has significantly improved her mental health and self-esteem.
"I honestly feel like a different person now," she said.
"It’s hard to explain how much can change in three weeks and although I’m the busiest I’ve ever been, weirdly I’m also the most chilled. I don’t think I’ll ever have another panic attack.”
The star, who told fellow campmate Noel Edmonds she was “soul-searching” in the jungle following a “tough” break-up last year, also opened up about her on-going battle with mental health problems.
“I’m not afraid to admit I have therapy," she told The Sun. "It’s nothing to be ashamed of and it really does help."
“I have struggled in the past. I have been through a lot in my life, my parents divorced when I was 16 and it was a very difficult time.
“I am a very emotional person so, for me, it’s about someone listening to your feelings and giving their professional opinion.
A post shared by Emily Atack (@emilyatackofficial) on Dec 13, 2018 at 9:18am PST
Ms Atack added that she now found "total self-acceptance" following her stint in Australia and hopes to be a role model to young women struggling with self-love.
“Pre-jungle, I used to have women coming up to me in the street saying, ‘Ooh, my son fancies you’ or ‘My husband loves you’," she admitted. "I was very much a man’s woman.
"But now people are saying, ‘My daughter adores you’, and that fills my heart with joy."
If you have been affected by this story, you can get confidential support from Samaritans on 116 123, or contact the following organisations for support:
https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/
