Linda Robson: ‘My rehab hell’

Loose Woman opens up on her year from hell

linda robson

by Amy Lo |
Updated on

Linda Robson has returned to Loose Women after more than a year away, and revealed the turmoil she has been living through.

She had secretly been battling problems with prescription pills, alcohol and OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder). That subsequently led to a police visit, and a stint in rehab after an intervention from some concerned colleagues, which Linda has bravely opened up about. Here’s her story…

In 2017, Linda, 61, went on a sugar-free diet after she was warned that her habit of drinking a bottle of wine a night meant that she was consuming the equivalent of about 100 doughnuts - worth of sugar a month.

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Linda has opened up about her secret battle ©Getty Images

While the weight quickly dropped off, and she managed to lose 2st 7lbs, her mental health deteriorated, with Linda admitting, "I was having a meltdown."

After giving up wine to be healthier and aid her weight loss, she upped her dose of sleeping pills.

However, becoming rather concerned with the amount she was taking, she sought medical advice and was given another tablet – an antidepressant. She said, "I had a really bad reaction to it – a meltdown. I got really bad anxiety and depression, and my OCD kicked into overdrive.

"Everything needed to be spotless. I was like a mad woman cleaning every day. At one point, I was having four baths a day and washing my bedding every day. People joke when they hear about OCD, but it’s not really a joke. It took over my life."

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Linda alongside Kaye Adams, Stacey Solomon, Jane Moore and Brenda Edwards ©Getty Images

Some of the people who saw Linda’s OCD first-hand were her Loose Women co-stars. While on a trip together in Ibiza in June 2018, they initially feared Linda had dementia.

Nadia Sawalha told Linda, "We were so worried. We watched you losing weight, and we also talked about it. It was like a dimmer switch had been turned down, and we were losing you.

"Our fear many of us had was that you might have dementia." Talking about the Ibiza trip, Stacey Solomon said, "I remember thinking that is the only time I’ve seen severe OCD in action.

"I remember your phone had to be charged 100 per cent. Every two minutes, you’d say, ‘Oh, it’s 99 per cent,’ and you would go straight to the charging point."

loose women
The Loose Women ladies at the NTAs 2020 ©Getty Images

Nadia added, "It was really sad for all of us, because we could see how much you’d been struggling. But I think if we’re honest, there was also a certain amount of relief between us all because you finally said, ‘I cannot cope, I need help.’"

Linda left the Ibiza trip early with Stacey, and they went straight from the airport to the hospital.

As Linda’s struggles continued, doctors increased her medication. She said, "Getting through every day [was tough], being hyper when they were giving me more tablets to calm me down, and more and more.

"At one point, I was on 16 tablets. I was wired all the time."

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Linda spent six weeks in rehab ©Getty Images

Her family found her a rehabilitation facility, where she went for six weeks, but came out with more tablets.

Eventually, her doctor realised Linda was having a reaction to the antidepressant – one of the worst they had ever seen. She explained, "I came off that medication, but even then, you can’t come off straight away, you have to come down slowly.

"So, it took a long time to get back to feeling normal again."

During this time, Linda turned to alcohol to help numb her pain. "I was waking up every day and wondering how I was going to make it through," she revealed.

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Linda turned to alcohol ©Getty Images

"I started drinking again, anything just to black out because I couldn’t face getting through the day. I’d never drunk spirits in my life, but I would’ve drunk anything.

"I turned to drink because I couldn’t medicate myself."

This escalated over Christmas 2018, when police were called to her home. Linda said, "Because I was drinking, [my family] were locking me in, so I couldn’t get out, and I was shouting out the door, ‘Someone let me out,’ and then the police were called.

"I think they thought I’d been kidnapped or something. My family were trying to keep me safe."

She continued, "I completely ruined Christmas. [The family] say I didn’t, but I did."

In 2017 and 2018, Linda had dropped down to a size 10, but reflecting on this now, she says, "I looked absolutely terrible. I went down to 8st.

"I look back now and think I look so gaunt, I look like I was 90 years old."

Nadia added, "Sometimes I found it quite hard on social media because everyone was going, ‘Oh, you look amazing.’ We were worried about it."

It was also stressful for Linda to stay looking slim, as she said, "That was a pressure because I’d be at the supermarket, and people would be looking in the trolley to see if I had wine, which I never did.

"I never touched a drink for a year after going on the sugar-free diet, but that’s when it all went to pieces, really."

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While it’s been a difficult year for Linda and her family, it seems like she is happy and healthy again, as she says, "It has been a long time, but touch wood, I’m finally there."

She spoke about learning to not put as much pressure on herself to be the main provider and rock for her family, saying, "They have been amazing."

At the end of 2019, Linda had "the most amazing Christmas" with her family, playing games while she cooked the dinner. She has been off alcohol for 11 months.

Now, she’s focusing on how far she’s come on the road to recovery, and after a tough period, she’s even working again, saying, "I’ve been doing a few jobs, and I’ve got a few things in the pipeline. I’m just feeling at home."

We’re glad to see Linda back to her joyful self.

You can read more celebrity news in this week's Bella magazine - out now.

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