Siva Kaneswaran needed therapy for "shell shock" and PTSD after his stint on 'Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins'.
Siva Kaneswaran needed therapy
The Wanted singer's fiancee Nareesha McCaffrey urged him to seek professional help after he became aggressive and very unlike himself after taking part in the gruelling reality show, which sees celebrities put through tough military training.
He told the Sunday Mirror newspaper: “I’m quite soft and gentle. Coming out of that, it was shell shock. I came away from the show and felt more full of life and brave, but there was also this aggression, proper aggression.
"I’d be full throttle at everything I did, and Nareesha was like, ‘OK, Siva, this is too much’. I just wasn’t me. I had to take myself to therapy. I was supported by SAS and also my therapist in America to ground me again and remind me of my qualities.”
The 34-year-old star had to become a different person to survive on the programme and he is haunted by flashbacks from the tough training handed out by ex-Special Forces operatives Mark 'Billy' Billingham, Jason 'Foxy' Fox, Rudy Reyes and Chris Oliver.
He said: “In order to lift a 40kg box over your head and hold it on your shoulder for 40 minutes, you have to get to a certain mindset where you can push your body through physical pain for a long period of time.
"You have to get very aggressive so you come out and your brain is still set like that. It’s an extreme place.
"It gave me a whole new respect for soldiers and people with PTSD and made me realise that I’m not invincible. Even thinking about it gives me PTSD. I start shaking a bit and I can see Billy’s blue eyes staring into my soul.”
Tagged in The Wanted