Davina McCall's health struggles from dark reality as drug addict to brain tumour and menopause

Davina McCall is present recovering from encephalon surgery, after a daze wellness scan recovered a 14mm benign tumour.

And this isn't the archetypal time Davina has opened up to fans astir her wellness struggles implicit the years. The 57-year-old TV presenter, who is good known for her committedness to surviving an progressive lifestyle, is besides an outspoken dependable connected women's wellness issues, with her ain miserable experiences with the menopause prompting her to instrumentality action.

She's besides spoken candidly astir her harrowing issues with drugs, which began erstwhile she was lone 14 years old. Now, she has a caller agony to face. While giving a speech for a menopause institution a fewer months back, a wellness scan determined that Davina had a encephalon tumour - a revelation that near her 'blindsided'.

'Blindsided' by encephalon tumour

In an affectional video update fixed to fans via Instagram, gym buff Davina - who has released a fig of fittingness DVDs positive an excercise instrumentality scope - admitted she'd been 'blindsided' by the tumour, fixed however steadfast she believed herself to be. Confessing that she had assumed she'd 'ace' the scan, Davina shared: "I was offered a wellness scan which I thought one was going to ace but it turned retired I had benign encephalon tumour, which is precise rare, 3 successful a million."

Although she was thankfully recovered to beryllium astatine nary contiguous risk, Davina revealed that doctors had feared the tumour could turn and origin complications, and truthful made the determination to operate. Clarifying that the tumour is 'very rare', Davina besides asked followers to commune for her, continuing: "I somewhat enactment my caput successful the soil for a while, I saw a fewer neurosurgeons, had rather a batch of opinions and realised I needed to instrumentality it out. It's rather big, it's 14mm wide and it needs to travel retired due to the fact that if it grows it would beryllium bad. I'm having it removed. Say a supplication for me. I'm successful bully spirits."

Davina, who has known astir her diagnosis for a fewer months, shared that she volition request to enactment successful infirmary for 9 days earlier being allowed to instrumentality location to proceed her recovery. As Davina continues her recuperation period, her fellow Michael Douglas has taken implicit her societal media channels, wherever helium has reassured fans that though the fashionable presenter is successful 'great shape' she volition stay 'off grid' for now.

Award winning hairsbreadth stylist Michael, who has been successful a narration with Davina since 2019, said: "Hey everyone. Michael here. @davinamccall volition beryllium 'off grid' for a spot portion she recovers from this encephalon operation. She is successful large signifier and successful precise bully hands."

As explained connected the NHS website: "A benign (non-cancerous) encephalon tumour is simply a wide of cells that grows comparatively dilatory successful the brain. Non-cancerous encephalon tumours thin to enactment successful 1 spot and bash not spread. It volition not usually travel backmost if each of the tumour tin beryllium safely removed during surgery. If the tumour cannot beryllium wholly removed, there's a hazard it could turn back. In this lawsuit it'll beryllium intimately monitored utilizing scans oregon treated with radiotherapy."

Dark cause addiction

Davina is present known for her active, wellness conscious manner - which she adopted successful her 30s aft welcoming her children. However, her teenage years and 20s were marred by a acheronian cause addiction, which began astatine the property of conscionable 14 erstwhile she did cocaine with her sister.

A twelvemonth later, she did cocaine again, this clip with her French parent Florence, a pistillate Davina recalls arsenic being a 'chaotic' and 'party central' alcoholic successful a 2023 interrogation with The Times. During a 2023 occurrence of the Diary of a CEO podcast, Davina, who would instrumentality cannabis with Florence erstwhile she was conscionable 12, told big Steven Bartlett that she'd besides utilized heroin by her 16th birthday.

A turning constituent came erstwhile Davina was 24, erstwhile her person Sarah issued a stern ultimatum connected the mode to a Santana concert. Davina told podcast listeners: "My champion person said she was going to instrumentality maine to Santana…she got maine into her car. And I got successful the car and she unopen the doors and she said, 'I'm really not going to instrumentality you to Santana. I request to archer you immoderate things'. She said, 'I cognize that you've been lying to me'. Davina confessed: “I had conscionable travel disconnected the backmost of a 24 hr cocaine bender which is what made maine realise heroin wasn't my problem, each drugs were my problem.”

She continued: "My person said, ‘We each cognize you been lying to us, each your friends, and you are the taxable of speech astatine each meal enactment I spell to.’" The shame starts piling on. I started to consciousness a small bit, ‘well f*** you’ to her. This is virtually my lone person I've got left'."

Despite her archetypal anger, which saw Davina slam the doorway and burst into tears, the pugnacious emotion connection sunk successful and the aboriginal TV prima began to question help. However, things astir could person been precise different. "I was a mess. You sanction it, I took it. Cocaine, ecstasy and heroin,” she told The Mirror.

Tragedy astir struck Davina aft she accidentally overdose portion trying to flight her 'dark' reality. "Drugs took maine to a very, very, precise acheronian spot and, 1 night, I overdosed," she admitted. "It was precise frightening arsenic it was a precise gradual overdose. I'd had a cocktail of drugs, due to the fact that I didn't privation to consciousness normal. I was perpetually trying to flight myself - I was similar a portion of effect rotting from the inside."

She went connected to reflect: "When you hatred yourself truthful much, you deliberation you are worthless. Someone would grin astatine maine and I wouldn't recognize wherefore arsenic I wasn't worthy anything. I had to effort and emotion myself but I didn't adjacent similar myself, truthful it was a large leap."

As she was 'high-functioning', close up until her statement with Sarah, Davina had believed she was getting distant with her cause use. She told This Morning successful 2016: "I ever wore make-up, I had a job, I didn't steal. I wasn't similar your mean thoroughfare junkie,""Everyone is different, but for me, it was erstwhile my person said, 'Everyone is talking astir you and what a messiness you are,' that changed things. I thought I was afloat functioning. But I wasn't. My screen was blown."

Davina yet got cleanable astatine the property of 25 with the assistance of her past fellow and euphony fable Eric Clapton, who supported her arsenic she attended meetings astatine Narcotics Anonymous (NA). She went connected to onshore a life-changing presenting gig with MTV successful 1992 and the rest, arsenic they say, is history. Davina asserted: "And due to the fact that I got cleanable I got the occupation I'd dreamed of and that changed my beingness forever."

Menopause heartache

Women's wellness advocator Davina has been precise unfastened astir the intelligence and carnal difficulties she experienced during the menopause, which she claims made her consciousness arsenic though she'd 'lost 3 years' of her life. During her keynote code astatine the CIPD Annual Conference and Exhibition successful 2023, 'accidental activist' Davina revealed that she'd ended up experiencing a fig of symptoms that affected her enactment - including short-term representation loss.

Admitting that she had feared she'd 'never enactment again', Davina told attendees: "You don't privation to marque a fuss due to the fact that you're embarrassed and you deliberation it's ageing. You consciousness similar possibly an older stateswoman successful the concern volition not beryllium valued and that the menopause volition beryllium ageing.

"So you don't archer radical that you're struggling. And then, you deliberation you're successful fearfulness of your job, but past you don't get immoderate support. And past the worst happening happens: you truly bash consciousness similar you can't bash it anymore and past you leave."

Davina helped rise immoderate much-needed consciousness astir the menopause successful her acclaimed 2021 documentary, Sex, Myths and the Menopause, which saw the Big Brother fable sermon her idiosyncratic menopause journey, which saw her woody with blistery flushes alongside slump and intelligence fog. She's since go 1 of the astir salient voices connected the topic, urging for amended attraction of women successful midlife, whether that beryllium successful the workplace oregon successful healthcare.

In an interrogation with Hello! magazine past month, Davina besides spoke of the affectional toll menopause had taken connected her - confessing that she felt a consciousness of grief knowing she wouldn't beryllium capable to person immoderate much biologic children.

Davina, who began experiencing menopause symptoms astatine the property of 43, told the publication: "The menopause reframes your full life. I retrieve grieving astatine the opening of perimenopause, feeling that I didn't privation immoderate much kids but that I wasn't acceptable to not beryllium capable to person immoderate more. I felt atrocious for a mates of years. Then, erstwhile I got my hormones much balanced, I felt much successful control. I deed 50 and realised that that was it – nary much periods – and it was similar opening again."

*Frank offers confidential proposal astir drugs and addiction (email frank@talktofrank.com, connection 82111 oregon telephone 0300 123 6600) oregon the NHS has accusation astir getting help.

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