Michelle Heaton has opened up about her battle with depression, which was a result of her early menopause which set in aged 35. The personal trainer, of Liberty X fame, said she has her "down days" and feels more of an "emotional impact". Speaking to the Daily Mail, Michelle said: "Early menopause at 35 has hardly been fun. I have my down days where I feel really low. I feel so tired and lethargic and I can't seem to snap myself out of it. You don't fully realise how depressed you are at the time until you've been able to pick yourself up eventually and you look back at it."
Michelle posts bikini video showing surgery scars
Michelle Heaton had early menopause aged 35
She added: "I'm lucky that I haven't suffered the physical symptoms so many women going through the menopause get – such as hot flushes and night sweats. For me it's had a big emotional impact." Michelle had a double mastectomy and hysterectomy to reduce her risk of breast and ovarian cancer, saying that having surgery was a "no-brainer" for her. Michelle is a fourth-generation carrier of a gene mutation, and fears for her daughter Faith, five.
"There will come a day – much sooner than when it happened for me – that I will have to sit down with Faith and tell her she has a 50 per cent chance of having the faulty gene," said Michelle, who also has a three-year-old son Aaron with her husband Hugh Hanley. "Discovering I was a carrier was devastating and turned my world upside down. I will back Faith 100 per cent if she opts for surgery but also I don't want her to go through what I went through unnecessarily."
The reality TV star with her children and husband Hugh Hanley
The personal trainer, who recently showed off her surgery scars live on Loose Women, decided to postpone having a hysterectomy because she wanted a second child with her husband. Thankfully, Michelle fell pregnant with Aaron before she even started trying. "These are issues that Faith will have to face and it breaks my heart to think about her having to choose between having a family or saving her life, she said. "These are life-changing decisions and women deserve the best risk assessment and advice.'"
Michelle was speaking to raise awareness for Prevent Breast Cancer, which offers women a more tailored screening trial to find out how much of a risk they have of contracting cancer. The campaign launched in Greater Manchester but its pilot scheme is being offered to women in the North West, with the aim for a national roll-out.