Ben Fogle 'happier than ever' as he gives health update after 'breakdown'
New Lives in the Wild's Ben Fogle told GMB he had "healed" from mental health struggles, with a little help from the stars of his Channel 5 show.
Watch: Ben Fogle gives update on mental health as he says 'I'm happier than ever'
What did you miss?
Ben Fogle has given an update on his mental health a year and a half on from his "breakdown", saying he has done "a lot of work" but is "happier than ever before".
The TV presenter might be known to his fans for his positivity and enthusiasm but in 2023 he was hit by mental health struggles with paranoia and anxiety.
Now the New Lives in the Wild star told Good Morning Britain that part of what had helped him to recover was being around the positivity of people he met for his Channel 5 show New Lives in the Wild.
He also added that he did not want to have to speak about his past struggles for years to come as he felt he had managed to "heal" from paranoia and anxiety.
What, how, and why?
Asked by host Kate Garraway how he is doing now, Fogle said: "I'm in an amazing place now. What I always try to say to people is that you should not be tagged by experiences of your past. The analogy I often say is if someone breaks an arm or a leg, you don't keep asking them for years and years how their leg or arm is doing because it can heal.
Read more: Ben Fogle
Ben Fogle 'compromised' with his family over dream of living off-grid (Yahoo, 7 min read)
Ben Fogle 'surprised' by his television success after starting on a BBC reality show (BANG Showbiz, 2 min read)
Ben Fogle reveals he suffered ‘crippling paranoia and anxiety’ during mental health ‘breakdown’ (The Independent, 3 min read)
"It takes time and I went through a lot of work to get to where I am now. I'm in a much better place, in fact I'm happier than I've ever been before. Partly because of all the people I get to spend time with (for New Lives in the Wild), I find it really uplifting and inspiring, positive, hopeful, optimistic. That's what you need to do. My advice to people is try to surround yourself with as much positivity, with as many hopeful, happy, sunshiny people as you can."
Previously, he had shared his struggles with his Instagram followers in August 2024: "I don’t know if there is a specific term for it but it was basically a burnt out, break down," adding that he had turned to cognitive behavioural therapy, medication and alternative therapies to deal with his "crippling paranoia and anxiety".
He said that he had decided to do less and simplify his life.
New Lives in the Wild is set to return to Channel 5 for a new series on Tuesday and Fogle, who has worked on the series about people pursuing a fresh start in a new country or remote area for 13 years, explained why he thought it was still such an attractive idea.
He said on Good Morning Britain: "Aren't we all affected by it. There are so many pressures, there's the economic pressures, there's all the terrible news that people are enduring, but I also think people are just struggling with the burden of modern life and I think that is why more and more people are making a move."
"They're chasing happiness," he added. "It's the beginning of the year, everyone is talking about getting fit and healthy again. A lot of people forget to think about the mind and mental wellbeing. If there's one thing that connects every person that I've met over the last 13 years or so it's that they've all found happiness in their own unique way.
"I find it so moving that people are happy to open up about very personal things...I always try to remind people that you may find happiness but that doesn't mean that life is going to be easy. Every single person I've visited on this series, you take your personal baggage with you."
What else did Ben Fogle say about New Lives in the Wild?
Fogle first found TV fame after taking part ion Castaway 2000, where a group of people moved to a remote Scottish island for a year, and admitted he still gets itchy feet after following people's stories on New Lives in the Wild.
He said: "My whole family used to dread me coming home (from filming). I'd come home from some of the remotest places, the Falkland Islands, Antarctica and I am a very enthusiastic person. I'd say, we are going to move as a family, I've found a little island. I still have that positivity and excitement but I've measured it a little bit to realise that (my family are) very happy in South Oxfordshire where they are now."
Talking about how his own experiences helped him to relate to people in the programme, he said: "This is my 25th year working in TV, it was 25 years ago that I went to live on an island for a year. One of the reasons I'm so fascinated about these individuals is that I've done an element of it myself. It was only for a year, these people are doing it as a lifestyle.
"But I've always tried to be very authentic to myself and a lot of the hard work that goes on in this series is behind the scenes because I have to gain their trust. Many of the people I meet are international so they have no idea who I am and I have to try and gain their trust. A lot of these people have gone away for a reason, for solitude and isolation so they don't want a nosy TV presenter or TV crew there."
Good Morning Britain airs on ITV1 at 6am on weekdays.
