Featured Image Credit: ITV
Topics: Louis Walsh, Celebrity Big Brother, Mental Health
Anish Vij
Louis Walsh was dealing with a secret health battle during his time in Celebrity Big Brother.
The 71-year-old finished in fourth place on the show, behind Coronation Street actor Colson Smith, Strictly Come Dancing dancer Nikita Kuzmin and Ibiza Weekender star David Potts, who was announced as the winner of this year's competition on Friday night (22 March).
During his time on the show, Walsh revealed he was diagnosed with a 'rare' form of cancer during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In a conversation about lockdown with Love Island winner Ekin-Su Culculoglu and Dragons’ Den star Levi Roots, he revealed that 'no one knew he was sick'.
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Walsh said: “I was sick, and I think nobody knew I was sick”.
Ekin-Su then asked if he had the coronavirus, and Walsh responded: “No, I had cancer – a mild version, a Waldenstrom, a rare one”.
Levi asked: “Which part? Pancreatic cancer?”
The 71-year-old responded: “In my blood, I didn’t even know that I had it until I went to the hospital, and they checked me, checked me, checked me, then they found it.
“They said it’s a rare one.”
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Gesturing his head, he added: “It’s just up here, even when I go past a hospital I almost get sick.
“It’s all gone, I’m fine. It was just the shock of being sick and that word – nobody wants that word.
“I have it blocked out, it’s just a reality check, you see so many people sick and it’s terrible.
“In my world it was all about pop music and all that. I didn’t think of anybody getting sick or anything like that, and that was like wow, reality check, you’re in the real world.”
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Now the competition is over, Walsh has opened up about how he struggled with his mental health during his time in the CBB house.
He told The Sun: “We weren’t allowed to get up and do anything if we woke up in the night so I’d wake at 3, 4 In the morning, and just lie there in the dark, worrying about things.
“Worrying about my mother, my health, what I had said that day - for the first time ever, I suffered from anxiety.
“They gave me my prescription sleeping pills but they would only give me one rather than two and after they wore off I was awake, panicking. The night times scared me.
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“But there are medics on-call 24/7, and they were brilliant. They spoke to me and calmed me down after I started having a panic attack and they really helped calm me down.
“I’ve never had therapy before, not even when I was diagnosed with the cancer, but for the first time ever I spoke to psychotherapists when I was in that house.
“It was surreal because you couldn’t see them, your just spoke to them through an ear piece - but they really helped me.”
If you're experiencing distressing thoughts and feelings, the Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) is there to support you. They're open from 5pm–midnight, 365 days a year. Their national number is 0800 58 58 58 and they also have a webchat service if you're not comfortable talking on the phone.