Jacques O'Neill discussed his ADHD and viewer backlash after leaving Love Island.
Jacques joined the Good Morning Britain team to discuss the fallout his exit from Love Island caused. After a rocky time on the show with partner Paige, he made the decision to leave to focus on his mental health. Throughout his run fans called Jacques misogynistic for his comments toward Paige and multiple past islanders came forward to condemn his actions.
Despite the abuse online, Jacques admitted he was receiving warm messages from viewers who connected with him on a personal level. Defending him on the show, Jacques' social media handler penned a lengthy statement regarding his ADHD and how it was affecting his behaviour in the villa.
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Jacques said fans have reached out to him including "grown men" who have said what a role model he is. He added: "If they're thinking this about me then I can't turn my back on them. I need to stand up and actually do something. I was blown away."
The Love Island star said he was embarrassed by the lengthy statement and he was close to deleting it as he didn't want people thinking he was using his diagnosis as an excuse. He added: "I didn't want people to think that.
"The hate that my mum was getting... she was very scared for me so she felt like she had to put something out so I was close to deleting that, then when I was getting the inspirational comments [I kept it.]
Kate Garraway asked how Jacques felt since coming out to which he answered "scared." He said: "When I first come out it was very different for me.
"I was scared of life and what's to come next for me and when I was in that holding villa after the actual villa all I wanted was my mum. I just wanted to go into hiding. I was getting so much hate."
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