Ashley Roberts has revealed the emotional collapse she suffered after her life in one of the world’s biggest girl groups left her unable to even look at the thing she loved most – dancing.
The Pussycat Doll, 44, suffered extreme burnout from the exhausting routines and touring that she reached a point where she couldn’t face it anymore.
She told Fearne Cotton on her Happy Place podcast: “It was absolutely heartbreaking. I couldn’t even actually watch dancing because I would just be bursting into tears.”
When she first turned professional, Ashley says it felt like a dream.
She said: “When it first became my job, I was like, ‘Well, this is epic’.”
But once the girl group went global, the pressure began to take its toll.
Ashley said: “It got wrapped up in this bubble of a major pop group that was a global success.”
The fame, the pressure and the relentless pace left her questioning everything.
She continued: “I got a bit on the other side and I was like, ‘Well, who am I actually outside of this?’
“I just felt very lost, very disconnected to the one thing that actually made me feel like it was the essence of life to me. I didn’t really recognise myself. And it was a really, really tough time.”
But Ashley has rebuilt herself – and her relationship with performing – and is now gearing up to hit the stage again with Nicole Scherzinger and Kimberly Wyatt for a major UK tour this autumn.
Despite everyone insisting she’s ready, Ashley says the comeback is no small feat.
She said: “Everybody’s like, ‘No, you’re in shape – you got this’. I’m like, ‘No, this is a whole other beast’. It’s like running a marathon in heels.”
The When I Grow Up star says they’re lucky to get another shot at it — so she’s not about to walk away now.
She added: “We’re like, ‘Screw it’. You never know when we’re going to be able to do this again. We’ve got to just do it – we’ve got to say yes and just go for it.”