Expert warns: ‘Katie Price’s injuries will make or break her new relationship’

Her agony has been palpable since fracturing both heels during her recent holiday in Turkey. And last week, Katie – who was filmed crawling along a gravelled floor with two casts on her legs to reach her car – was told by doctors she wouldn’t be able to walk for at least six months, and her full recovery could take up to two years.

Reports later claimed she was told her post-surgery wounds risk getting infected, and she could lose a leg if she doesn’t take the recovery process seriously.

Her surgery was brought forward because doctors said her injuries were as “severe as they could be”. In one recent Instagram post, where she showed off her casts covered in blue and pink glitter, Katie described her fractures as “life-changing”.

Supporting the 42-year-old former glamour model is her mum, Amy, who she’s described as her “rock”, and new toyboy boyfriend Carl Woods, who she told fans was being “caring” and “supportive”.

But while she has people looking after her, Closer’s psychological therapist, Emma Kenny, believes the mum of five will need all the help she can get.

Emma says, “Katie has had her freedom taken away and it’ll be really challenging. She’s going to be hugely reliant on other people. I would imagine she’s feeling really nervous, anxious, and worried about work and money, because she still has to earn a living.

“She’s very limited in terms of what she can do, and won’t be able to do a lot of the things that make her who she is, such as going on adventures on her reality show or taking the kids on days out, so she’ll feel very vulnerable and fragile. It’ll also be make or break for her new relationship. It’ll be a challenge and a test – which is a bit unfair, as nobody wants to be tested that way so soon – but at least she’ll get to see earlier on if he’s the kind of guy who will commit and look after her, which is something she obviously wants.

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“This would be such a tough test for any new relationship, because people want to enjoy the honeymoon period without a problem. To some degree, it could answer many of her questions, such as if he’s committed, if he can take care of her vulnerabilities, or if he will be an individual who knows how to protect her during challenging times. If they survive this, it will be very positive for their relationship.”

Katie’s injuries have come just weeks after the star was caring for her eldest son, Harvey, 18, after he was rushed to intensive care with breathing difficulties. It was the latest in a long line of devastating events in Katie’s life. Over the past two years, she’s had to cope with her mum’s terminal lung condition diagnosis, divorce from Kieran Hayler, bankruptcy, a broken engagement to Kris Boyson, a burglary, a cocaine exposé, a kidnap threat, a driving ban, a [restraining order {href='https://closeronline.co.uk/celebrity/news/katie-price-guilty-verbal-abuse-michelle-pentecost/' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer'}), a rehab stint, and her children Junior, 15 and Princess, 13, moving in with their dad Peter Andre.

Emma adds that one of the things Katie isn’t very good at is allowing herself time to heal.

Last week, she shocked fans when she shared a gruesome video of her teeth without veneers, comparing herself to Bond villain Jaws – and had her teeth done the day after news of her foot injuries was confirmed.

Reports claimed doctors had banned her from getting out of bed ahead of her surgery, due to take place last week, but she posed provocatively on the floor showing off her casts.

Emma says, “She was just at a point where she was starting to get herself back together, after vowing to focus on herself after rehab. She’ll just be desperate to get back to health, and that’s going to be frustrating for her. She’s likely to have some problems with it, because she doesn’t like to take the emotional advice of others.

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"Physically, she’s going to struggle to acknowledge that she needs help, hence her dragging herself across the gravel. She wants to prove she’s independent, but unfortunately she does need help. She’s going to be really frustrated, vulnerable, exposed and helpless, and they’re really not nice feelings.

“Katie’s always struggled to have a close network of people who care for her in a positive way, as her closest friends have become her enemies over the years – such as her friend Jane Pountney, who she accused of having an affair with Kieran. Now she’s going to need people to be supportive on a bigger scale than normal, because she needs physical attention all the time.”

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But while the last few years have been hugely stressful for Katie, her emotional life has also been a roller-coaster. She’s endured three public divorces, a broken engagement, two miscarriages, postnatal depression, and premature births, while raising a severely disabled child – all in the public glare.

Following her split from Kris Boyson last year, Katie said, “I’m stronger, better than ever. I’m a survivor. I feel like I’m going to go back in the jungle again. I’m that survivor where I try anything. I promise you, this is a new road of the fun Price. What’s my saying? ‘Never underestimate the Pricey’. She is back, back for good.”

Emma says, “She will get through this – but not necessarily without emotional injury or damage. She will be immobile for a while and instead of reacting to fear, frustration and anxiety, Katie needs to use this time to think about what she really needs in life.

“She goes from one drama to the next and she should take time to stop, reflect and heal old wounds.”

Read the best celeb stories each week in Closer magazine.