Former Hollyoaks star Ellie Henry has shared details of a terrifying health scare with fans after suffering a seizure.
The actress, who played Freya Calder in the Channel 4 soap, has epilepsy and had been free of seizures for five years.
However, Ellie told her Instagram followers how she’d been unable to shower, walk her dog, or be in the house unsupervised after having a seizure last month.
In a candid update, Ellie said: ‘I should be celebrating 5 years seizure-free this week but instead I announce 0 days.
‘Having a seizure out of nowhere after almost 5 years has been the biggest confidence knock. I’d be lying if I said this didn’t feel like a huge step back but I have to choose to keep moving.
‘I can no longer shower, walk my dog, nip to the shop or just be in the house alone as I have to be under constant supervision because my seizures can/have been life-threatening which is a big loss for someone who has worked so hard to become independent.’
Ellie also said she’d had to say ‘goodbye to my beloved car and driving licence’ too, as a result of her seizure.
Seen posing on the bonnet of her car holding a zero-shaped balloon, she said: ‘As a wheelchair user, my car may as well be my legs and ticket to freedom. The loss hurts a lot.
‘This is life with epilepsy.’
Her former co-star David Ames, who played Carter Shepherd, said: ‘I’ve got your back, kiddo. Always.’
Ellie, who uses a wheelchair, has previously opened up about her personal journey with her disability.
Earlier this year, she shared on Instagram: ‘July is #DisabilityPrideMonth which is always a notion I’ve slightly struggled with because I’ve never really been proud to be disabled before. I grew up sporty, daring and never stopped moving, so when disability forced me to live a life sitting down I couldn’t find a single positive. It’s only now, 8+ years later, that I’ve started to find myself again.’
She revealed how sit skiing had been ‘a massive deal’ for her, allowing her to ‘finding adrenaline and adventure in a way I didn’t think I’d be able to has really unlocked something in my mind’.
‘Throwing myself down a slope and hoping for the best is my new form of therapy,’ she wrote.
‘I’ve got really good core friends around me who take the time to figure out how to include me despite the inaccessible world we live in. We now laugh at situations which would’ve previously weighed me down. We celebrate piggybacking through inaccessible spaces, getting carried in and out of bars and laugh at all the times I fall over/out of my chair. Laughter really is the best medicine.’
She added: ‘And finally; I’m no longer shocked when I see myself in a wheelchair in a mirror. Maybe that’s because I see myself on screen in the chair so much, or maybe it’s because I’ve stopped being scared to look and truly see myself sat down. Either way, I now see myself, and not a version of me I don’t know who’s sat down. That’s the biggest win.’
