18 March 2023 , 20:03
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Real Housewives of Cheshire star Tanya Bardsley has revealed she attempted suicide on three occasions.
The reality TV star, 41, candidly discussed how she believed she tried to take her own life due to having ADHD; Tanya was only diagnosed with the condition at the age of 40.
She confessed she had always thought that there was "something different" about her and wondered why she wasn't able to mix with people as easy as others.
She also revealed she found everything so hard, saying it was always just a "list of tasks".
Tanya went on to describe how her diagnosis allowed things to become clearer, but explained how she had a tough time of things in the lead up to her discovery.
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Tanya was speaking to GB News (GB News)Speaking to GB News, she said: "It wasn't until my 40th birthday that I got diagnosed with ADHD and everything sort of made sense, but leading up to that I've been to doctors the past 20 years about crippling anxiety and inner restlessness.
"All the doctors and GPs just threw me antidepressants, which of course is like giving flu tablets to someone who's got a broken leg.
"So that upset the chemicals in my brain as well as the ADHD which led to me having a breakdown."
In a chat with Esther McVey and Philip Davies on the TV channel, she claimed it was like "living with 17 TVs on in my head at the same time" before making the frank suicide confession.
"Luckily, I'm very, very bad at trying to take my life, thank god," she said. "I'm laughing about it now but it's not a laughing matter. I just try to see the funny side"
And she admitted she is focussed on trying o raise awareness about the issue in a bid to help others.
She was discussing her ADHD diagnosis (GB News)Tanya continued: "The waiting lists are so long for people to get diagnosed, two to seven years. Seven years, it's just so long."
She said she believes it's harder to diagnose women as they are better at masking their feelings and don't open up as easily as men.
She added: “I did a lot of studying of the mind, so I get hyper-focused. I used to hyper-focus on bad thoughts, which we used to take me to like trying to complete suicide.
"Now I'm trying to steer away and focus on the positive and whenever I’m hyper-focused, I can get a lot done and then I'm just lying in bed for a couple of days, just completely burnt out.
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"The turning point in my life was just being diagnosed and just knowing about it and being aware about it so I know when to rest, I know the tools to use."
*If you're struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email [email protected] or visit their site to find your local branch