Loose Women star Nadia Sawalha has opened up for the first time about receiving a diagnosis for a ‘life-changing condition’ during an interview on the ITV daytime programme.
The 57-year-old former soap star told the panel she has been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), during Thursday's episode.
The mum-of-two pre-recorded a segment about ADHD for the show, as she told viewers she had been living with the condition since childhood unbeknownst to her.
Nadia spoke to an ADHD specialist as she described her symptoms, which are characterised by inattentiveness, hyperactivity and impulsiveness.
She said: “I couldn't sit quietly without noise, I have to have something on to relax. Years ago I gave myself a lifetime ban on driving and the reason I give is, I lose consciousness.
“Everyone gets annoyed about this, saying I should pull myself together.” Nadia was then overcome with emotion as she continued: “But actually the thought that I could…”
At the end of the assessment the ADHD specialist confirmed Nadia's diagnosis and said: “The symptoms you exhibit are consistent with ADHD.”
Back in the live studio, Nadia was applauded for her honest segment and spoke more about the condition, which her husband Mark Adderley also lives with.
She told her fellow panellists of her past compulsive eating, saying: “The point is you are very high risk of addictive behaviour. It's not just silly people running around doing silly things."
Nadia said she had also started a course of medication and hopes to one day be able to drive without losing concentration.
She said: "If any of this resonates with you, just investigate it a bit further because I am now finding out so much stuff. I have now started medication and things are really changing."
Viewers praised the star for sharing her journey and one penned on Twitter : "So proud of you Nadia."
Another related to her story and penned: "I’m watching Loose Women I don’t know why it was on after the football.. they’re talking about women with ADHD who were diagnosed after later in life.. it’s so sad because Nadia is talking about not being able to drive - and that’s me."
The show returned to ITV on Thursday after several days off air to make way for the ITV coverage of the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
ITV took Lorraine, This Morning and Loose Women off air in a schedule shake-up to make way for the World Cup group stage matches.
Both ITV and BBC will be seeing huge changes to their usual TV schedules to make way for the games as the broadcasters team up to cover the matches live from the Middle East.
