Katie Price has backed charity PTSD UK's condemnation of I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! for allowing hosts Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly make a joke about the mental condition.
PTSD UK is the only charity in the country which is dedicated solely on raising awareness of post-traumatic stress disorder, a condition the former glamour model was originally diagnosed with in 2018.
The Geordie duo came under scrutiny after joking that they suffer from PTSD when they hear their hit single Let's Get Ready to Rumble during a segment on the hugely-popular ITV reality show on Tuesday evening's show.
Jacqui Suttie - founder of PTSD UK - posted on an excerpt of the open letter she wrote to ITV about the gag, calling on the broadcaster to do "better" in its role as an ambassador for 'Britain Get Talking'.
The letter read: "Using PTSD as a punchline in a joke not only further stigmatises the reality of the condition, but it also incorrectly and unhelpfully desensitises people to the debilitating symptoms that can lead to family problems, unemployment, physical health issues, self-harm, homelessness, alcohol and drug addiction, and ultimately suicide.
"Jokes like this, using PTSD as part of the gag is only one in a long line of examples where people are using PTSD in a really disrespectful way – but feel that as the leaders of the mental health campaign ‘Britain Get Talking’, you should be setting an example and so feel that ITV has a duty of care to its viewers which includes comments like this which are not only unnecessary, but can also be incredibly damaging to those affected by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."
Katie shared the post on her Instagram Stories, adding several clapping emojis in a nod of agreement with the open letter.
The 44-year-old has previously spoken about her mental health. She told The Sun: "After years of neglect, I suffered a mental breakdown in 2018. I was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
"I hit severe depression a couple of years ago, depression on top of PTSD, I was suicidal, didn’t want to be here. I tried to kill myself."
Katie appeared in the third series of I'm A Celebrity in 2004 and met future husband Peter Andre while in the Australian jungle. She is the only person to compete in two separate series, having returned to the show in 2009.
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