Hear'Say star says she would 'really fear leaving the house' due to depression

19 May 2023 , 05:37

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Suzanne Shaw spoke about her mental health struggles after finding fame with Hear'Say (Image: ITV)

A former pop star and soap actress has revealed that her crippling depression meant she would "really fear leaving the house" during the height of her career.

Suzanne Shaw opened up about her experiences with mental health struggles while making an appearance on Lorraine on Thursday morning.

Suzanne, 41, found fame in 2000 when Hear’Say won the TV talent contest, Popstars. Their debut single, Pure and Simple, was the fastest selling non-charity record ever in the UK.

But the band broke up less than two years later, leaving Suzanne battling anxiety and depression.

She told host Lorraine Kelly: "I don't ever remember suffering from anxiety until after the band. I think it was such a big thing to go through.

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Suzanne found fame in 2000 when Hear’Say won the TV talent contest, Popstars (Getty Images)

"That overwhelm and anxiety really manifested in depression for me."

She continued: "It was tough. At some points I would really fear leaving the house. I would be in my bed and my self esteem was so low at times.

"My self esteem was shot. I would self sabotage - nobody hated me more than me. I had to try to hide that, I hid that for a long time."

In an interview with The Mirror, Suzanne spoke about how she knew she needed to give up alcohol after drunkenly impersonating Friends star Matthew Perry when she met him.

'At some points I would really fear leaving the house' (ITV)

Matthew – who played wise-cracking Chandler Bing in the hit US comedy – was starring in a play in London’s West End when Suzanne accosted him in 2016.

Suzanne, who starred as Even Jenson on Emmerdale between 2010 and 2011, thought it was hilarious to repeat some of his character Chandler’s best-known lines at a showbiz do after having "three large wines".

She said: "I’d had three large glasses of wine. I promised myself I wouldn’t go up and blurt something out to Matthew, but I did. I said to him, ‘You’re one of my son’s favourites’, and did a few impressions.

The former Emmerdale actress has been sober since 2020 (ITV)

"I had my arm around him, was slurring and my balance was off. He just wasn’t impressed. It still makes me cringe."

In 2020, to coincide with the 20th anniversary of being in the entertainment industry, Suzanne vowed to give up alcohol and get fit. She has launched her own wellness app, The Happy Health Club.

The mum-of-two said: "If somebody had said to me that I’d end up sober and running a wellness app, I’d have laughed them out of the pub with a kebab in hand.

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"But I’m a different person now. Getting sober has changed my life."

Josh Luckhurst