Getty Images
Real Housewives of Melbourne star Janet Roach has revealed her recent struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder, five years after her son was badly burned in an accident in 2011.
Jake Zogoolas suffered third degree burns to his 69% of his body after a campfire accident in Deniliquin when a fellow camper poured petrol on the flames. According to a statement on the Roach Foundation Jake says, “I thought I was OK, but I got to the hospital and they said, ‘You’re not OK’, and they put me under. I woke up a couple of weeks later.”
For Janet, it has been a long road towards Jake’s recovery involving the co-ordination of extensive private medical treatment. She recalled in 2015 this cost was beyond $500,000.
In an interview with POPSUGAR Australia, the Melbourne-born star said: “I had a relatively easy season this year. I was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder this year, and I didn’t have any major fights with the girls. The first two seasons I was in the middle of them.”
She went on to talk about the lack of stigma surrounding her diagnosis, and the incredible support she got once admitting to suffering from PTSD. “I didn’t want to tell anyone in the beginning,” she said. “Then a few things happened, they asked me a few questions… and then I decided that I would. When I did, I honestly got about 40 telephone calls from people, which was amazing! It didn’t turn out to be a bad thing, it turned out to be a good thing.”
But even with all of the support, Janet revealed that life as a Real Housewife can be a bit tiring at times. “I get to the end [of the season] and I say, ‘I’m never coming back. I hate you all, don’t ever speak to me again’,” she said. “That’s really how you feel; you’re just so emotionally dead. And everyone changes their story at the reunion and you sit there going, ‘I was there! You are making this up!’ It’s really frustrating, emotionally.”
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
