Helen Flanagan reveals shock psychosis diagnosis after emotional struggle over split from ex Scott Sinclair
HELEN Flanagan has revealed she was diagnosed with psychosis after struggling with the breakdown of her relationship to ex Scott Sinclair.
The Coronation Street star returned to social media to explain why she’s been missing for the last few months.
Helen, 33, told how a bad reaction to ADHD medication sent her into a psychosis.
Sharing a picture of her smiling as she poses with a peace sign, Helen reassured fans she’s in a “really good happy place now” after therapy.
The mum-of-three posted online: “Basically I really struggled mental health wise December/January.
“I felt really not great in my head over Christmas and I didn’t really feel that much different when I took the kids away for new year.
“I had a lot of difficult things going on things I just can’t talk about on Instagram. I felt terrible.
“I was due on my theatre tour which I was excited about so when I came back from holiday I thought it was best for me to take some medication so I’d feel better and be able to cope better with being a working single mum of three and I was emotionally struggling with the break up from the father of my kids but I had a really bad reaction though to the medication ( an ADHD medication) and it sent me into a psychosis for a few days which I didn’t know I was in.”
What is psychosis?
PSYCHOSIS is when people lose contact with realist.
According to the NHS website, this might involve seeing or hearing things that other people cannot see or hear (hallucinations) and believing things that are not actually true (delusions). It may also involve confused (disordered) thinking and speaking.
Experiencing the symptoms of psychosis is often referred to as having a psychotic episode.
Psychosis can be triggered by:
- a traumatic experience
- stress
- drug misuse
- alcohol misuse
- side effects of prescribed medicine
- a physical condition, such as a brain tumour or dementia
- head injury
- childbirth
“I just love my kids so much,” Helen added in the emotional Instagram post.
She had been due to make her acting comeback in a UK tour of murder mystery play Cluedo 2, but pulled out because of medical reasons.
Today is the first time Helen has spoken about her medical struggles since.
She had been set to play Miss Scarlett in the play, but was “advised to withdraw” for medical reasons.
The 33-year-old was replaced by Strictly Come Dancing winner Ellie Leach, who played Faye Windass on Coronation Street from 2011 until 2023.
Helen – who split from her fiancé Scott in October 2022 – continued: “This bad reaction though was a few days before rehearsals were starting and sadly I just wasn’t mentally well enough to do it.
“I was heartbroken as I’ve always been professional as an actress but i needed to stay at home and feel better for me and my kids, with the help of my amazing parents.
“I’ve always been honest on here and I feel in a really good happy place now.
“Therapy can be amazing and I feel like I’ve worked on myself with things that were quite tough to me but I feel lighter now. Anyway sending love and please be kind.”