Loose Women star confirms heartbreaking reason behind 3 month break

Denise Welch has revealed was precocious absent from Loose Women aft suffering a breakdown.

The 66-year-old actress has been a panellist connected the ITV programme since 2005 nevertheless she’d not appeared connected the amusement for the past 3 months.

On her instrumentality connected Tuesday, Denise spoke astir wherefore she’d not beryllium seen connected screens since past year.

Giving immoderate inheritance to her intelligence health, Denise said she hadn’t had a breakdown successful 5 years and until precocious hadn’t been ‘frightened’ of her depression – which she calls her ‘unwelcome visitor’ – returning.

Despite facing a engaged workload past twelvemonth and being told her stalker was being released for jail, Denise said she ‘didn’t consciousness stressed’ earlier her unwellness returned retired of the bluish successful November.

While driving 1 day, Denise said she was struck by a feeling of ‘unreality’, got confused and drove up a one-way thoroughfare and couldn’t retrieve however to get home.

She said things became ‘black truthful quickly’.

‘I haven’t had anxiousness for a agelong time, but the panic attacks started and Lincoln (her husband) was trying to wide my diary and I stopped eating and my wellness was going down,’ she explained.

But with a booking to look successful a pantomime, Denise said she ‘didn’t privation to fto anyone down’ and ‘ploughed on’.

However, 3 days aboriginal she collapsed successful the foyer of a edifice and told her cause she had to propulsion retired of the show.

After a fewer months disconnected work, Denise was acceptable to instrumentality to Loose Women past week – but was past taken to hospital.

‘I recovered from this occurrence and got backmost from a beauteous vacation successful the Caribbean past Saturday looking each bronzed and looking guardant coming backmost connected her and showing disconnected my prima tan…and I got rushed to infirmary with acute peritonitis (an corruption of the tummy lining)’ she said.

‘So, I’ve been connected drip for a week! They didn’t person to bash surgery, they got it with antibiotics thankfully and I americium present backmost and eating!’ she added.

Host Ruth Langsford past thanked Denise for sharing her story, lasting up and hugging her earlier sharing details with viewers connected however they could entree assistance themselves if needed.

Denise had been owed to play Captain Hook astatine the Nottingham Theatre Royal implicit the festive play but was past replaced by histrion Richard Windsor.

A fewer weeks earlier she shared connected Loose Women she’d been having a ‘really pugnacious 2 weeks’.

In 2019 Denise spoke astir being depressed for astir 30 years.

‘It’s the astir horrific isolating blackness. It tin travel connected astatine immoderate time, adjacent erstwhile I’m happy,’ she explained connected This Morning.

Loose Women airs weekdays astatine 12.30pm connected ITV1.

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