Christine McGuinness, the former wife of Paddy McGuinness, has bravely opened up about experiencing suicidal thoughts when she was in her teens. The 36-year-old, who was diagnosed with ADHD and autism a few years ago, admitted she found it hard to cope as she hadn’t been diagnosed while growing up.
The 36-year-old mum-of-three, who previously said she’s “scared” to date a new man, appeared on Spencer Matthews’ Big Fish podcast and revealed she tried to attempt taking her own life, but each time she was interrupted by her family members. She explained: “My late teens was where it was really, really difficult. I had years of just thoughts, just passing thoughts, you know, ‘I just don’t want to wake up any more’.
“I’d pray every night that I wouldn’t wake up in the morning.” When asked by Spencer if she’d ever thought about how she would end her life, the ITV star responded: “I thought about it a lot, I thought about it an awful lot.
“There were times when I took every tablet. My mum had a cupboard with all the medicine in. And I didn’t physically take them, but I would take them out of the cupboard and take them up to the bedroom and think, ‘Ok, I’m just going to do this tonight, I’m just going to get it over and done with’.
“And it was like something would always happen. Whether it would be my brother shouting at me to go help him on his Xbox or my sister asking what outfit she should wear. It felt like someone would always interrupt or disturb me.”
The television personality, who said she’s focused on her career following her split from fellow TV star Paddy, went on to add that it was a “really, really low time,” and it would have been “absolutely devastating” for her mum to deal with.
Her revelation comes after her nan sadly died over the Easter weekend, as she confirmed the news with her 734,000 Instagram followers. Alongside a picture of her beloved nan, she penned: “My nan got her angel wings. I know wherever she is, she will be knitting and watching LFC. Finally at peace.”
Christine’s famous pals and fans rushed to the comments section to share their words of love and support for the Pilgrimage star. Loose Women star Denise Welch commented with three red love heart emojis, while Blue singer Duncan James said: “Sending you love my bestie xxxx.” Coronation Street star Victoria Ekanoye penned: “Biggest hug on its way,” with three red heart emojis.
A fan of Christine’s wrote: “Sorry to hear this Christine…I’m sure she was an amazing woman.” A second Instagram follower expressed: “So sad to read this. Sending love to you, your family and all who knew and loved your Nan x.”
If you or someone you know has been affected by this story, Samaritans (116 123) operates a 24-hour service available every day of the year. Alternatively, you can find more information on the Samaritans website: https://www.samaritans.org/
