Sam Thompson has candidly opened up to his fellow I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! campmates about his ADHD diagnosis and his worries for the future.
The Made in Chelsea star has settled into life in camp and won over his fellow contestants and viewers with his positivity and constantly high energy levels – so much so, in fact, that he was voted as the current camp leader.
During Thursday (30 November) night’s episode, Sam sat down with Marvin Humes and Josie Gibson at the creek and spoke about being diagnosed with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) last year.
Earlier this year, the 31-year-old presented a Channel 4 documentary titled Sam Thompson: Is This ADHD? about his quest for a diagnosis.
Marvin mentioned that Sam had alluded to having ADHD a couple of times in the camp, asking him: “How old were you when you were diagnosed with it?”
“Last year, mate,” Sam said. “There’s loads of people who are actually of a certain age who get diagnosed way later. When the low bits happen it goes low. But then the highs are really high.”
Sam said that his girlfriend, Love Island star and recent Strictly Come Dancing contestant Zara McDermott, was a huge stabilising force in his life.
“My girlfriend Zara is so steady and it’s so good for me. When she’s going steady I’m going like that,” he explained, miming a wavy line.
“My time-keeping is terrible. I get quite selfish, not just with her, with everyone – my mates or whatever. My listening to Zara… I’m just finding myself staring off at something completely different. You sort of feel like you’re a bit of a k*** sometimes.”
“But you would not be Sam without it,” Josie said, with Marvin adding: “I would just always say you’ve got loads of energy. Your energy is crazy bro, and it’s what makes you great.”
Sam said that it was “weird no one spotted it beforehand at school”. He continued: “But if you look at all of my report cards, every single one says the same, it says: ‘Likeable enough guy, but lacks focus.’ It’s staring at you in the face.
“If I’d known as a kid, not much would have changed, but how you feel about yourself probably changes. I remember crying into my textbook because I couldn’t understand the words going into my head. You want to do good. You don’t want to be mischievous or anything like that.”
Speaking in the Bush Telegraph, Sam said: “I’m not ashamed of having ADHD in any way. But I know that I would have felt better about myself at school if I’d been diagnosed with it at a younger age. I really was just like, ‘I just suck at everything.’”
Back with Marvin and Josie, Sam said that he hoped to have kids in the future, meaning that “we’ve got to get a handle on it” as “you’ve got to look after a child.”
Marvin told Sam he would be “the most incredible dad”, insisting: “Trust me, all my kids care about is giving them attention, being with them in the moment, loving them, cuddling them. They just want to have all of you and to be as fun as possible and feel loved.”
He added: “I can’t imagine doing this without you being here and you being as much fun as what we’ve had.”
ADHD is a behavioural disorder that can make it difficult for those affected to concentrate. While most cases of the condition are diagnosed between the ages of six and 12 years old, differing symptom levels often mean some adults aren’t diagnosed until later in life.
According to charity ADHD Action, approximately 1.5m adults in the UK have the condition, but only 120,000 are formally diagnosed.
I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! airs Sunday to Friday at 9pm and Saturday at 9.30pm on ITV.
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