A popular television personality has opened up about her struggles with anxiety for the first time.

Lucy Mecklenburgh, best known as star of ITV’s The Only Way Is Essex, has laid bare her ongoing struggles with anxiety, saying that the condition has ‘held her back’ ever since she was a child.

In a recent interview with OK! Magazine, she said that she always felt like the least confident person in her class, and that anxiety has plagued her throughout her life.

“Reading out loud in English was always my fear. I would go bright red and shake, I used to wander the corridors and hope that if I was late, they may have finished,” she said, describing how her symptoms affected her.

As she grew older, the now-26-year-old’s experiences with the condition grew more serious.

In particular, she was plagued by “sleepless nights,” worry and fear during her three years appearing in the popular ITV show.

“I’d have sleepless nights because I didn’t know what my scene was in the morning.

“I’d feel very anxious because I don’t think, as a teenager, you’re ready for what I was thrown into.

“But if I hadn’t done things like TOWIE and been out of my comfort zone, I wouldn’t have achieved the things that I have,” she said.

“Everyone thinks this celebrity life is all glitz and glamour and perfect, but everyone has struggles,” she added.