REALITY STAR BRAV
REALITY TV star Joey Essex has revealed turning 30 was the moment that made him finally seek help for the lasting trauma caused by his mum taking her own life.
Joey, who shot to fame 10 years ago when he appeared on The Only Way Is Essex, also says taking part in last year’s Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins made him confront his demons.
“I’ve been dealing with this pain all my life behind closed doors,” Joey says.
“The day I hit 30, I knew that I had to grow up a little bit. I had to sort my life out. I felt like I was finally ready to dig deep, find happiness and deal with the grief.
“And when I did SAS, in my head that was my time to say something about it, and that was the first time I ever offloaded about it. It was like a weight was off my shoulders.”
Behind Joey’s luxury lifestyle and fame, he has battled panic attacks and anxiety, and also struggled to maintain romantic relationships after his family tragedy.
Joey’s mum Tina died when he was just 10, after she battled physical medical problems and depression. His sister Frankie, who also appeared on Towie, was 13 at the time.
Therapy
Now, a new BBC documentary Joey Essex: Grief And Me, sees Joey undertake therapy sessions for his trauma, as well as explore the links between grief and mental health.
In the show, Joey watches home videos of his mother for the first time and reveals this has helped bring back “happy memories”.
Joey says: “I watched the videos with my family – if I’d watched them on my own I would have got upset.
“I can’t look at pictures of her, because every time I do it brings back negative memories. All my memories are dark and depressing, I found out it was because of my trauma.
“I remember being at Mum’s funeral and the day I got taken to my Nan’s house with an ice cream in my hand thinking it was a beautiful sunny day and being told: ‘Mummy’s gone.’
“These are the memories I can visualise, but watching the home movies and hearing her voice brought back the happy memories.”
For the documentary, Joey started receiving counselling from clinical psychologist Dr Stephen Blumenthal, which he says is “definitely helping” as it has encouraged him to feel more relaxed.
However, Joey reveals he had unsuccessful courses of therapy in the past, and was even
convinced one recording him.
“When I was in my early 20s, my U Tony sent me to a therapist, but walked out without telling him anything,” Joey recalls.
“I was so paranoid and didn’t trust him at all. I wondered if he was secretly videoing me.
“I had anxiety and trust issues, massively, and I still live with that. I’m not fixed at all, but I’m now on the mend which is great.”
When he appeared on Celebs Go Dating earlier this year, Joey admitted that he is ready to become dad and settle down with “the right p
But he says that his trauma ha
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