Ex EastEnders star sparks concern as she reveals new health battle, saying ‘I’m consumed with constant fear and dread’
It comes after she was diagnosed with another crippling health condition back in 2023
FORMER EastEnders actress Melissa Suffield has sparked concern after revealing a new health battle.
The actress, who played Lucy Beale on the BBC One soap from 2004 to 2010, took to her Instagram stories to let her followers know what’s going on.
Alongside a picture of her five-year-old son River, she penned: “I’m not going to lie gang, my mental health isn’t great at the moment.
“Just finding myself consumed with anxieties that I never used to have and a kind of constant fear and dread as a result.
“Really need to shake it ideally because it’s starting to p**s me off. You know me, I’m always going to be honest with you – and that includes when things aren’t so rosy.
“I’m fine, but also just very stressed and overwhelmed a lot of the time and it’s not like me.”
The BBC One star continued: “But, took River to see Back To The Future today at the cinema on his inset day and that was lovely because I’ve always loved that film, and it was great sharing that with him – and I bought a really camp Christmas wreath for the door.
“I also booked a really exciting thing for next year.”
Melissa concluded her post by asking her followers: “Tell me something nice that you’ve got going on at the moment please.”
After being inundated with messages from her followers about what they’ve got going on in their lives, she posted another story with a picture of her smiling.
She gushed: “Thanks so much for all your messages and telling me all the lovely things you’ve got going on in your lives.
“I love being lifted up like that and I LOVE people celebrating their wins, big and small!”
Her new health woes come she was diagnosed with small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) in December 2023.
After around 40 appointments with her GP and spending more than five figures on tests and other medical costs, Melissa got a diagnosis of SIBO and B12 deficiency.
Melissa experiences nausea, reflux, constipation, and other symptoms like her hair falling out and suffering from dry skin.
According to the Mayo Clinic, the condition occurs “when there is an abnormal increase in the overall bacterial population in the small intestine — particularly types of bacteria not commonly found in that part of the digestive tract.”
Symptoms are listed as a loss of appetite, abdominal pain, nausea, bloating, an uncomfortable feeling of fullness after eating, diarrhoea, unintentional weight loss, and malnutrition.
Melissa updates her fans on her health journey on her instagram feed, The Confident Mama, which she initially set up after her six-year soap stint to post about body positivity.
Speaking to The Sun last year about her time on the show, she admitted: “I don’t keep in touch with anyone from the show, but then again I’m not in touch with old school mates either.
“I’m a different person, one door shuts and another one opens.”
Melissa went on to star in plays and pantomimes and it was during a stint on Beauty and the Beast seven years ago that she met her now-husband, director Robert Brendan.
She continued: “If I hadn’t been in Eastenders then I wouldn’t have been in pantos, so wouldn’t have met Robert and wouldn’t have River, I can’t regret any part of my life as it’s led me to the next chunk.”
