Jamelia quit 'Hollyoaks' for the sake of her mental health.
Jamelia as Dr Sharon Bailey in Hollyoaks
The 43-year-old singer-turned-actress - who joined the soap full time as Dr. Sharon Bailey in March 2023 - threw herself into work after husband Darren Byfield left her while she was pregnant with their fourth child but she has grown to realise she didn't give herself enough time and space to "heal" from the turbulence in her personal life, so she's left the soap in order to prioritise her own needs.
Opening up on new reality show 'Drama Queens', she said: “Being on Hollyoaks was putting a plaster on a very deep wound. I know that I’ve not healed. I haven’t done the healing work that needs to be done.
“And I can’t do it while focussing on such a demanding job alongside the world’s most demanding job of being four people’s mum.
"I have loved being on Hollyoaks, but I know that I have been locking something away and I haven’t dealt with a lot of things.
"So I have to take that time. I need to take some time for myself. I need to stop, I need to think and I need to process and deal with all the things I haven’t dealt with.
"I’ve been in the entertainment industry for 25 years and I’ve never prioritised my mental health. I’ve always struggled through.
"You never deal with your issues, but now I know no amount of money or fame is more important than my mental health.”
The 'Thank You' hitmaker admitted she has been through a "difficult, traumatic" time and had few people to rely on after Darren "abandoned" her and their children.
She said: “When I was four-and-a-half months pregnant, my relationship broke down. Me and my daughters were abandoned.
“It was an unexpected life change that absolutely devastated us and changed everything.
"It was like a sledgehammer went through our lives. I thought it was the end of my life because my relationship had ended.
“The past two years of my life have been a car crash.
"I’ve had a really difficult, traumatic time. One of the things I never, ever wanted to be was a single mum.
"I’ve had four daughters to keep afloat, keep alive. There are so many people who I thought would support me and help me and they just didn’t. I had to tap into my resilience. It’s been about surviving.”