Danniella Westbrook Admits She Feels Shame Over Drugs Relapse During 'Loose Women' Appearance

Danniella Westbrook Reveals Shame Over Drugs Relapse
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Danniella Westbrook has opened up about her drugs relapse last year, during an appearance on ‘Loose Women’.

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The former ‘EastEnders’ actress was a guest on the ITV lunchtime chat show on Wednesday (2 December), where she admitted the shame she felt over her fresh battle with cocaine addiction.

Speaking to hosts Ruth Langsford, Coleen Nolan, Penny Lancaster and Janet Street-Porter, she revealed that she was back in therapy.

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Danniella Westbrook

“I think you can never stop working on yourself and if you want to prevent things happening in your life, you need to keep moving on and moving forwards,” she said.

“I do feel very blessed that I am still here and I do feel ashamed that I made a huge mistake with relapse and everything. I do feel ashamed for my weakness. I have to keep that at the forefront of my mind, if I don’t, it’s a very dangerous place for me.”

Danniella went on to admit that there had been occasions when she didn’t want to live any more.

“There have been a lot of times I’ve felt that way,” she said. “I’m an actor and most actors and comedians are very depressive people anyway in this industry.

"I’ve always been that way from a child, very up or very down. People always think they know me because I talk to everybody, I am very easy going and tell everyone what they want to hear, but there are only a very few people that do know me and I isolate a lot.

“As much as I am very much out there...I do isolate a lot in my own time. That’s not a good place for me either really. I’m very lucky that I’ve got my very good friends around me, that know when I am isolating and come and let themselves in.”

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Coleen Nolan gave Danniella a reassuring hug

The star insisted that she was in much happier place now because she had “embraced” her recovery.

“I’ve embraced therapy and not tried to lie to people,” she said.

“As addicts we always find the little loophole where we can slip and slide and lie to people and to ourselves, in case we want that back door left open to go out and use and I’ve decided to get really real and honest.

“I’m 42 and I need to be me, I need to be happy in my own heart, not for other people and I need to get on.

“I’m not going to say I’m never going to mess up or there might be a time when I’m not going to be depressed but at the moment I’m in a good place, I’ve got my good mates around me and I’ve got my kids in my life and we’ve got our health so you can’t be much happier that that,” she added.

12 Stars You'd Forgotten Were 'Loose Women'
Karren Brady(01 of12)
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Long before she was answering to Lord Sugar, 'The Apprentice' star Karren was letting loose on the ITV daytime show. She was one of the original line-up of ladies, appearing on the first episode in 1999. However, her stint was short lived, as she left just a year later. (credit:REX)
Kerry Katona(02 of12)
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Back when she was Kerry McFadden (those were the days, eh?), the Atomic Kitten singer appeared as a panelist between 2003 and 2004. She was only 23 when she joined the show, making her the youngest 'Loose Woman' regular ever, and her sometimes naive outlook on life meant she often clashed with Sherrie Hewson, providing many hilarious moments. (credit:REX)
Nina Wadia(03 of12)
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She's best known for playing the opinionated Zainab Masood in 'EastEnders', but Nina offered up plenty of opinions of her own when she appeared as a series regular between 2005 and 2006. She later returned as a guest panelist for one episode in 2015. (credit:REX)
Gillian Taylforth(04 of12)
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Another 'EastEnder' who graced the 'Loose Women' panel was Gillian - better known as Walford's Kathy Beale. The actress enjoyed two stints as a Loose lady - one in 2006 and another in 2008. (credit:REX)
Sarah Millican(05 of12)
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In our humble opinion, Sarah's tenure as a 'Loose Woman' was simply not long enough. The comic only appeared as a panelist for less than a year in 2011, before leaving to concentrate on her stand-up career. (credit:REX)
Beverley Callard(06 of12)
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During one of her many breaks from 'Coronation Street', Beverly (aka Liz McDonald) took up a seat behind the famous desk in 2010. (credit:REX)
Kym Marsh(07 of12)
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While Kym has recently enjoyed a few turns as a guest panelist, many have forgotten her original stint as a regular on the show in 2005, back when she sported an interesting (if that's the right word?) set of hair extensions. (credit:REX)
Claire Sweeney(08 of12)
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The former 'Brookside' actress enjoyed over two years on the panel back in 2003, and later returned for six episodes in 2010, and a further two in 2012. (credit:REX)
Cilla Black(09 of12)
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While the late Cilla will be remembered for her huge TV hits 'Blind Date' and 'Surprise Surprise', her last regular TV gig was actually as a 'Loose Woman'. She appeared first as a guest anchor in 2009 and was invited back as a regular panelist between 2010 and 2011, returning for a one-off appearance in 2014. (credit:REX)
Sheree Murphy(10 of12)
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Sheree was a welcome addition to the panel in 2006, after she finished playing Emmerdale's much-loved Tricia Dingle. While she left in 2007, she later returned as a guest panelist for an episode in 2015. (credit:REX)
Claire Richards(11 of12)
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After the departure of many of Loose Women's biggest names in 2013 and 2014, Steps singer Claire made a string of guest appearances. She impressed bosses so much, she was soon promoted to a regular. However, a massive revamp of the show in the September of 2014 saw her leave the show with no explanation. (credit:REX)
Jenny Powell(12 of12)
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The 'Wheel Of Fortune' assistant was finally given a break from turning around letters on a board in 2004, when she joined the 'Loose Women' panel for a year. (credit:ITV)