Little Mix star Jesy Nelson has opened up about being the victim of cyberbullying ahead of her documentary, 'Odd One Out'. The documentary, which follows Jesy's journey 'of rehabilitation' after suffering years of abuse at the hands of cruel online trolls, is set to air on BBC One this Thursday.
Ahead of the hard-hitting documentary, Jesy has opened up about the journey she went on whilst filming it, and has revealed in an interview with the Guardian that after two years of being in the band, she'd developed an eating disorder and even tried to take her own life.
Jesy - who won The X Factor alongside Perrie Edwards, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Jade Thirlwall in 2011 - told the publication that the abuse became too overwhelming, "All I cared about was what people were saying about me. I felt that I physically couldn’t tolerate the pain any more."
She added, "A lot of people think "stop moaning'", but until you’ve experienced it, it’s hard to understand – and it doesn’t just happen to people in the limelight. There’s so many people struggling with social media and online trolling. People need to know about the effects it has."
Jesy has now taken to Instagram to share a message ahead of the documentary. She wrote, 'Hey guys, I've been wanting to share this for such a long time and tomorrow I finally can. I haven't really told anyone what's in my documentary yet. I think a lot of people are going to be quite shocked."
Her boyfriend, Love Island's Chris Hughes, commented on the post with a supportive message, writing, 'Well done Jess, you’re an amazing girl, you should forever be proud of yourself and all you’ve come through and achieved ❤️.'
In an interview with Emily Atack on Lorraine this morning, Jesy also revealed that her depression even affected her relationship with Chris. She said, "I had a fear of, if I’d get into a relationship, like even with Chris when I first got with Chris... I’d get tagged in old pictures of me.
"I’d message the fans asking them to take them down because I honestly hated that version of me so much because of the way I was made to feel. I never hated them before - that’s what got me where I am today."
Jesy has also shared the full trailer for her documentary on Instagram, writing, 'So this is it guys! Here is the official trailer for my documentary #oddoneout which is airing this Thursday at 9pm on BBC 1, and on BBC Three iPlayer.
'I've gone on such a journey since filming started and met some of the most inspirational people. I can't wait to finally share it with the world and hope that it helps other people who might be going through what I did. ❤️'
Jesy's documentary 'Odd One Out' airs on BBC One on Thursday 12th September at 9pm.
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK.