Loose Women's Linda Robson has opened up about her heartbreaking rehab ordeal after self-harming and battling OCD.
The 64 year old former actress, best known for playing Tracey Stubbs in the sitcom Birds of a Feather, got candid about her struggles with mental health and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) after a viewer of the show, Connor, got in touch about his own battle with OCD.
Speaking to her fellow Loose Women panellists, Linda opened up about her experiences, which was at its worst around two years ago and resulted in her being put on medication.
She said: "Well I, like Connor, have got a bit of OCD so everything has to be really clean, and at the moment we've got mice in our house so it's really stressful.
"I have had really bad mental health problems. I was off work two years ago and I turned to drink, I always drunk wine of a night time, spritzers, but never drunk of a daytime.
"I got put on medication that sent me a bit mad. I got put on a certain drug that was supposed to help my depression but it just heightened it."
"So I had to go into three different establishments.
"It was the worst time in my life, I completely ruined by family's life. You were there [Nadia Sawalha]."
The mother-of-three went on to divulge that she had a "breakdown" during a girls' trip to Ibiza, and that her good friend and fellow Loose Women panellist Stacey Solomon, 32, had taken her home and got her to rehab.
Linda explained what happened, saying: "We were in Ibiza and I had a proper breakdown with all the girls out there, and Stacey had to take me home and take me to The Priory and from there I went to another establishment.
"So for two years I had really really bad depression, was self harming, was cleaning everywhere that I went, when I got home then I was cleaning my bedding every day."
Linda then went on to give some advice to Connor on how to deal with OCD when it becomes debilitating, saying: "What I find that helps is if you keep yourself busy so you work out what you're going to do in the day, and don't have time to sit and think about the things you worry about.
"I think about going into Loose Women with my mates and I'm happy.
"The OCD is a horrible thing to have, it really is. My mum had it. She couldn't have any rubbish in the house, we were washing our hands long before Covid, washing hands 20 times a day.
"Keeping busy, reading a book, I read a lot of books and try not to watch too much TV."
If you've been affected by this story, contact mental health charity Mind on 0300 123 3393, or visit their website for more information.
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