Coronation Street’s Sue Cleaver has backed her fellow soap star Simon Gregson after he candidly opened up about his anxiety attacks battle.
Appearing on ITV’s popular daytime programme Loose Women this Thursday, Simon, aged 50, spoke candidly about his mental health journey as he sought to offer support to others facing similar challenges.
Following his emotional segment, Sue made an appearance on the Friday panel, January 3, alongside Coleen Nolan, Nadia Sawalha and Kelly Holmes, expressing her admiration for Simon and confessing that she is ‘proud’ of him.
The 61-year-old actress conveyed openly: “I’m really proud of him for talking out because I think it sounds like a classic example of somebody who was very good at hiding it.”
She elaborated further: “So you wouldn’t have been with Simon and thought ‘oh’ because he was really good at hiding it and he felt like he had to hide it. Now we know – I’m really really proud of him,” reports the Liverpool Echo.
Discussing the difficulties he’s faced with mental health, Simon, famed for playing Steve McDonald since the tender age of 15, shared: “Yeah, with me it all came to a head in about 2015.
“I kept having anxiety attacks, panic attacks. Which is so bizarre because I’ve been having them all day today. I was like there’s no way I can go on. It just hits you like a ton of bricks and it just makes you completely incapacitated.”
The actor opened up about when he first noticed symptoms, admitting: “I’ve been having them since about 1990, but I just kind of got on with it.
“But then when I had children, and they were noticing it and they started talking that they’re getting anxious, I thought ‘Oh I’ve passed it on, it’s like a cold I’ve given them.'”.
He has previously confessed that his ascent to stardom resulted in later struggles, including with alcohol, which contributed to the development of his anxiety disorder.
Simon’s issues with alcohol nearly ended his marriage to Emma Gleave until she presented him with an ultimatum.
Following the ultimatum from his wife, Simon made the life-altering decision to stop drinking. This choice, however, led to intense anxiety, compelling him to take a hiatus from work.
Loose Women airs weekdays from 12.30pm on ITV and ITVX