Stacey Solomon has bravely opened up about being a victim in an abusive relationship. The TV star recalled her past experience during Monday's episode of Loose Women, saying that she was left feeling like a shadow of her former self. Stacey, who is in a loving relationship with boyfriend Joe Swash, fought back tears as she said: "What it does is it makes you forget who you are and a part of you does feel like I'm never going to be the same person again, and no matter what I do, I'll always be this weird version of myself."
She added: "You can almost see what you used to be like. You can remember it, you get the feeling, you sometimes act how you used to act… I used to be less worried about everything, less worried about what people thought about me, less worried about how I behaved, I just thought I was okay, there was nothing wrong with me, I was quite confident."
Stacey shares gorgeous snap with Joe and kids
Stacey Solomon opened up to Ruth Langsford on Loose Women
Stacey, 27, went on to say that she does resent her ex for the way he treated her. "A part of me does really begrudge that person for taking it away from me, because I think someone can say something to you over and over again and it does embed in you," she said. The mum-of-two went on to empathise with people who find it difficult to leave an abusive partner, saying: "I think these people manipulate you in a way that makes that seem normal."
Viewers were quick to praise the former X Factor singer, who has two sons Zachary and Leighton from previous relationships. "@StaceySolomon just watched you on @loosewomen and you were inspirational you helped me so much. Thank you xxx," wrote one fan on Twitter. A second commented: "I thought your statement that you never really leave an abusive relationship was so astute. You are forever changed. Thanks x" while a third agreed, writing: "Stacey thank you for opening up today on LW… this is exactly how I feel will I ever be me again x."
"It makes you forget who you are," said Stacey
Stacey shares guilt at having children by different fathers
The singer and fellow TV star Joe have been dating for just over a year. A few months into their relationship, Stacey admitted to HELLO! Online: "We are like the same person, we come from really similar backgrounds and we've got so much in common. He's absolutely lovely, I'm so lucky."