Roxanne Pallett has broken her silence following "punchgate" on Celebrity Big Brother last year, revealing that she was told she was "more hated than a murderer" following the controversy on the reality TV show.
The former Emmerdale actress hit headlines last August after she wrongly accused former Coronation Street star Ryan Thomas of intentionally punching her in the ribs.
The incident sparked a huge backlash among viewers. Pallett apologised on national television, admitting she had got it "massively wrong", and she has been out of the limelight ever since.
In her first interview in ten months, Pallett opened up to Closer magazine about being diagnosed with Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and revealed her nerves at talking about the situation publicly.
She said: "It's been a real mountain to climb, for me to get to this point today. I've been nervous about it, because my confidence has taken a knock.
"It's daunting, as people still have their opinions of me, which they are completely entitled to.
"It's bad enough when one person doesn't like you, but when thousands are against you... But I do understand it. The last few months have been the most valuable and rewarding of my life. I've completely reset my mind and my thoughts. I went off the grid for therapy, which was needed for my mental health.
"I absolutely regret what happened on the show, 100%. I got it monumentally wrong, and I'm sorry to Ryan and his family, for the pain I inflicted on him and others who were watching".
The 37-year-old actress and radio presenter said she "dropped to a size 4" and suffered hair loss in the fallout after the furore.
She said: "It was an awful blur. All my insecurities were heightened. I had feelings of paranoia, and feared something bad would happen to me.
"When the phone rang, I'd feel sick. If I passed someone on the street, I was convinced they meant me harm. I was told that people were saying they wanted to throw acid in my face and that I was more hated than a murderer.
"I lost a stone-and-a-half, and dropped to a size 4 during the period between leaving Celebrity Island With Bear Grylls and after CBB. My hair was falling out, and my insomnia got worse. I felt drained, exhausted and out of breath. I wasn't eating or sleeping or leaving the house, and I was only talking to three other people."
The soap star said her recovery has been aided by a combination of counselling sessions, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and time she spent away in the US.
The full interview is in this week's Closer magazine.
