Narnia actress Georgie Henley has revealed how she was embroiled in a secret battle with a rare bacterial infection that nearly took her life.
The 27-year-old movie star, who played Lucy Pevensie in the The Chronicles of Narnia series, has told how she was rushed to hospital and underwent “extensive surgery” to treat Necrotising Fasciitis.
The infection, which she picked up in her second week of university, is rare type which spreads very quickly.
It “wrought havoc” on her body and almost ended with Georgie having to have her hand amputated.
Georgie received a "gruelling invasive surgery and later extensive reconstructive surgery which resulted in a series of skin grafts and scars” to save her hand while under the care of specialist medics at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge.
She was just 18 when she contracted the infection but it has taken nearly 10 years to talk about what happened to her, the actress explained to her Instagram fans on Tuesday.
Alongside a new snap in which she showed followers just how much she had grown up since her days on the Narnia film set, Georgie wrote:
"It has taken me a long time to heal both physically and mentally but I hoped that one day there would be the right time to talk about what happened. Today is a start.”
In the brave picture, Georgie held her hands up either side of her face, showing her scar which extended from her left hand and down her forearm.
She continued: "For the last nine years I have been open about my scars in my personal life, but have hidden them entirely in any professional context: wearing bandages or coverings, makeup on set and stage, long sleeves whenever I might be photographed, trousers so I could put my hand in a pocket.
"The industry I am part of often focuses on a very narrow idea of what is deemed aesthetic ‘perfection’, and I worried that my scars would prevent me from getting work. The truth is there is no such thing as ‘perfection’, but I have still lived with the shame of feeling different, exacerbated by the expectations that came with beginning my career at a young age.
"But my scars are not something to be ashamed of. They are a map of the pain my body has endured, and most importantly a reminder of my survival. They do not affect my capacity as an actor, and I’m proud to be a person who has visible scars in this industry."
She then went on to thank the Cambridge hospital for its care.
She said: "I would like to thank Addenbrooke’s Hospital for their exceptional care. I want to thank my family and friends for their enduring love and support throughout the hardest of times, particularly my parents who have weathered every storm with me no matter how devastating.
"Thank you to my agents and the people who have employed me in the last nine years, who never saw my scars as a problem and respected who I was as a person and actor. Thank you lastly to every person who is reading this and has supported me and my work, it truly means more than you can know.
"I’m sure I will talk more about my experiences in the future but today I am simply happy to feel, for the first time in a very long time, finally free."
Fans rushed to the comments section to praise the actress for her candidness.
One person commented: "You are beautiful inside and out, Georgie! Thank you for sharing this with us! So proud of you!"
Another said: "Oh Georgie! Thank you so much for sharing this with us. Hope you keep feeling better and better as life goes on. You're awesome!"
While a third penned: "Scars that are experience, life lessons and wise, it doesn't define your talent, beauty or worth."
