Kerry and Danniella bond on air over battles with addiction

SHE reached out to recovering addict Danniella Westbrook last week on Loose Women. And Kerry Katona was joined by the former EastEnders actress on yesterday’s show for an emotional TV interview in which they bonded over their ‘parallel’ experiences of drug addiction and recovery in the limelight.

Danniella, 44, said her addiction to cocaine was still a ‘daily battle’ as she spoke about her 13 years of relapsing.

‘I came off air [after last week’s show] and Danniella got in touch,’ Kerry (above right) revealed. ‘Which is amazing.’

She said: ‘I know how hard it is to talk about addiction, there’s a sense of shame and embarrassment. But I think the fact she’s coming on to talk about it needs to be applauded.

‘We have lost so many amazing people to addiction, suicide, alcoholism etc, because we’re all too afraid to speak out and ask for help. It took me ten years,’ she added.

Kerry – who previously said she’d taken ‘100 lifetimes worth of cocaine’ at her worst – recalled that her lowest point was during her marriage to second husband Mark Croft.

Breaking into tears, she said: ‘My turning point was at a bootcamp ten years ago. I was with Mark at the time. I remember sitting with my mum thinking: “I don’t want this any more”.’

Kerry, now a mother of five children, first started using drugs when she was 14. However, in 2008, she also confirmed that she was an alcoholic.

The star checked into rehab in 2008 and 2010, before embarking on a completely clean lifestyle.

Fellow TV star Danniella has also had a 20-year battle with addiction, but checked into rehab in February after vowing to quit for good.

Last week, Kerry reached out to Danniella live on air and urged her to get help, as she shouldn’t ‘suffer in silence’.

Kerry was later joined by Danniella, who explained the parallels between their showbusiness careers and also their downfalls.

‘We’ve had such parallel lives,’ she said, ‘And I think it’s a wonderful thing. I had 13 years clean but have relapsed along the way – it’s a struggle. Recovery is an everyday battle.’

She added: ‘I can ring Kerry and know what I say won’t end up anywhere else – we both know what it’s like to be sold out and torn down and have to get back up alone.’

On how she moved on, Kerry added: ‘I moved miles away from everyone. It’s about getting rid of your address book and starting completely afresh. It’s the hardest thing – but it’s not until you realise it yourself and reach out that things get better.’