Channel 4 viewers said they had a 'new found respect' for Gemma Collins as she opened up in a 'brave' documentary.
The former The Only Way is Essex star spoke about her 20-year struggle with depression and self-harm in her Channel 4 documentary, Self-Harm and Me.
The hour-long programme, which aired on Wednesday night, saw Gemma speak honestly about her fears that the urge to self-harm might return and make her an "unfit mother".
It also featured a confrontation between the 41-year-old and her mum as she asked Joan why she didn't address her self-harming when she was younger.
Joan said she thought her daughter was just 'copying someone on TV' .
"Yours and dad's approach was to, 'right let's never mention it'," Gemma said referring to the time she cut herself in the kitchen in front of her parents.
"Life was busy and everything going on..." Joan continued, as Gemma interjected: "But what's more important: life being busy or your daughter cutting herself?"
Later in the documentary, Gemma vowed to be the "best mum" to her own children one day after finding comfort in speaking to various people including her own therapist.
Following the airing of the programme, many viewers took to social media to praise Gemma.
Presenter Anna Richardson said tweeted: "Well done @missgemcollins for being so honest, so raw, and…so strong #SelfHarmAndMe."
@wendyhughes9 said: "A new found respect for #gemmacollins #SelfHarmAndMe , how brave and upfront she was about her issues she’d been through. It’s sad her mum and a lot of the older generation don’t see mental health issues as a problem because they don’t see the pain #ItsOkayToNotBeOkay."
"Watching Gemma Collins #SelfHarmAndMe She’s amazing for speaking up about this and dealing with the issues from her past with her parents. Some of the troll on social media are vile. It’s actually been a nice revelation seeing this side of her on tv instead of the GC," @vixhilton wrote.
@jacklloyd_01 shared: "So so proud of my queen Gemma Collins for that documentary. Honest, emotional and real from start to finish@missgemcollins thank you so so much for speaking out. you’re going to be the most amazing mum you deserve the world#SelfHarmAndMe."
"#SelfHarmAndMe brave and educational account of her journey. People need to hear the why’s. @missgemcollins go you!" @HayleyMaaac added.
Samaritans (116 123) operates a 24-hour service available every day of the year. If you prefer to write down how you’re feeling, or if you’re worried about being overheard on the phone, you can email Samaritans at jo@samaritans.org.
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