Ferne McCann has revealed she’s kept seeing a therapist ‘secret’ but now understands the importance of seeking help.
The former TOWIE star is currently promoting her new fitness platform Embodyment and explained that the past few years have been difficult but now realises therapy is ‘healthy’.
Speaking to new! magazine, Ferne explained: ‘When I first started seeing a therapist it was something that was really secret to me. Mental health Awareness Week is all well and good, but actually it’s important to seek help and for it to be OK.
Strong: Ferne McCann has revealed she’s kept seeing a therapist ‘secret’ but now understands the importance of seeking help
‘There’s nothing wrong with you because you see a therapist. It’s really healthy to talk to someone who is impartial.’
The reality TV star has had a tumultuous few years after falling pregnant with Sunday and then splitting from her then partner Arthur Collins when he carried out an atrocious acid attack at an east London nightclub in April 2017.
Arthur was found guilty of five counts of grievous bodily harm and nine of actual bodily harm, and was jailed for 20 years.
And ever since, Ferne has been a single mum to Sunday – but has found lockdown a cathartic experience as she explained she’s become comfortable ‘being on her own’.
Support: She explained that the past few years have been difficult but now realises therapy is ‘healthy’
‘Lockdown gave me the space and time, which was something I wasn’t quite comfortable with – being on my own,’ she added. ‘But working through that was a good thing. Looking back, the positives outweigh the negatives.
‘It gave me the chance to get to know Sunday like I’ve never done before.’
Her comments come after she spoke candidly on pal Vicky Pattison’s podcast about the realities of raising her little girl on her own, saying ‘being a single mum is hard’.
The ITVBE star also revealed she would want to to be in a ‘partnership’ if she had another child and is looking for love on celeb dating app Raya.
Speaking to Vicky on her podcast The Secret To earlier this month, Ferne discussed how it is tough at times being a single parent but that now she just sees herself as ‘Sunday’s mum’.
Changes: The former TOWIE star said she would want to to be in a ‘partnership’ if she had another child after seeing her pals having babies and working as a ‘team’ with their partners
However the reality star did reveal that she would want to be in a relationship if she ever had another baby.
She said: ‘I am just Sunday’s mum and I look at I think that if I were to have another baby, I would love to do it in a partnership and as a team.
‘Because I look at my friends and people on Instagram, even though that’s not as it seems, but I look at my friends and sister and her husband and think you make a fantastic team.
‘So it wasn’t what I’d hoped [becoming a mother] but honestly now, it’s kind of, being a single parent is hard, I’ve got an amazing support network and I felt for so many single parents in lockdown.
Mother and daughter: Ferne explained how she just sees herself as ‘Sunday’s mum’ now instead of a ‘single mum’ as it’s all she has ever known
‘I was so lucky that my mum moved in with me for a considerable amount of time, but there were people that didn’t have that luxury, and it was hard.’
Ferne also agreed with the Geordie Shore star, who she met in the I’m A Celebrity jungle in 2015, that there’s more pressure on her to provide as she’s a single parent.
The reality TV pals also discussed Ferne’s dating life, with her revealing that she’s giving the celeb app Raya a try to look for love.
Reality: Ferne also agreed with the Geordie Shore star that there’s more pressure on her to provide as she’s a single parent
Ferne said: ‘Every single celeb is on it. There’s loads of influencers, footballers, sports men, you name it they’re on it. And it is a lot of fun and it definitely did pass the time in lockdown.
‘But I’m not here to talk about my experience on this dating app, what I was going to say is you’re perception of age, mine’s skewed because when I’m seeing thirty year old men on this celebrity dating app, I’m like nah, too old! (..) Haha!
‘Now I’ve kind of checked in with myself and I’m like, Ferne you are turning thirty, and it’s time to maybe try talk to some older guys!’
Killing the time: The blonde beauty also discussed being on celeb dating app Raya, revealing that she’s been looking on the app during lockdown