'I was bit of a mess': Amanda Abbington says she contemplated suicide after split from ex Martin Freeman
Jeff Spicer/Getty ImagesIf you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the National Suicide Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Amanda Abbington and Martin Freeman decided to go their separate ways in 2016 after a 16-year relationship. The former couple has two children together, Joe and Grace. Abbington was deeply impacted by the breakup, as she hated herself and was overcome by sadness every day, making it difficult for her to wake up in the morning.
Recently, Abbington spoke about her breakup experience in a candid interview on the 'Full Disclosure' podcast. Amanda Abbington is best known for her role of Miss Mardle in 'Mr Selfridge' and Mary Watson in 'Sherlock,' the BBC adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle's 'Sherlock Holmes' stories. The couple met on the set of the film 'Men Only' in 2000, and it was immediately clear that they had fallen in love.
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'I was a bit of a mess'
On the 'Full Disclosure' podcast hosted by award-winning LBC host and best-selling author James O'Brien, Amanda Abbington spoke candidly about the experience and enlightenment she drew from her breakup with ex-husband Martin Freeman and how it shaped her life. "It was breaking up with Martin and then realising I needed to sort myself out because I was a bit of a mess. I hated myself."
Abbington went on to talk about how her separation has directly affected her children and that her actions have caused some damage, "It was funny because the other day, and I’ve never told anyone, not even my therapist, I’d had a row with Grace [her daughter] because she couldn’t find her uniform and was late for school. So in the end I had to drive her to school instead of the bus and I was sitting in the car and I was having a go at her and I was getting nothing back from her because she’s a 15-year-old and she’s going through all this stuff," reports Daily Mail
Amanda Abbington reflects on her childhood
Amanda talked about the deepest and darkest cracks that opened up after the breakup, and shared how for a moment she thought about ending it all. She also reflected on how childhood experiences shape us and who we attract, clearly pointing to her ex-husband Martin Freeman. "That was a genuine option for me, quite a few times in my life. Then I don't have to be this bad person because I don't have to be here any more. And I thought about that and I thought, 'Oh my God, I haven't thought about that in six years.'"
She went on to talk about her mental health, continuing, "It all stems back to childhood and who you surround yourself with and what you put out there, the signals you send out."