Louise Thompson "drank to oblivion" to try and cope with her anxiety which was caused by shooting ‘Made In Chelsea’.
The 28-year-old brunette has been a part of the cast on the E4 reality TV show since it began in 2011 but she admits the televised bust-ups with ex-boyfriend Spencer Matthews and continuous drama resulted in her suffering from mental health problems.
When she was a student at Edinburgh University, Louise suffered with the mental health condition ‘Derealisation’ which affected her ability to process conversations and left her feeling "crazy" and "disconnected from the world" as well as anxiety.
With the help of a friend, she was able to get her anxiety under control without the need for medication, but being filmed for ‘MIC’ brought it all back and Louise turned to booze to self-medicate.
In an interview with The Times newspaper, she said: "I drank to oblivion … If I’m honest, I had a few instances where I thought I might have been dying. I have laid in bed and thought, ‘I’m sure other people would go and get their stomach pumped or something.’ "
Louise credits her current boyfriend, personal trainer Ryan Libbey, for helping her stop abusing alcohol and getting her mental state in a good place.
Louise admits she never disclosed her mental health struggles to producers and they never enquired about it in the early years, although they do now.
When asked if she was ever quizzed about her mental health by bosses, she said: "No. I think they do now. So now, when you join the show you have to speak to a psychologist, which is a good thing."
Despite all her troubles, Louise has never thought about quitting ‘MIC’ and intends to remain a part of the cast.
She said: "Oh my friends say it to me all the time. All the time! ‘Why don’t you just quit?’ And I think, ‘I’m not a quitter.’ That’s probably what it is.
"And they would never fire me. Trust me, any fireable offences have happened in the past and I haven’t been fired. I don’t think it will ever come to that."
Louise Thompson: Made In Chelsea gave me anxiety
