Suranne Jones is on medication following her father's death in January.
Suranne Jones
The 42-year-old actress admitted she had been struggling to cope since her father died from COVID-19 earlier this year and she wanted to speak out about how medication has helped as she thinks it is a "taboo" subject.
Speaking to Fearne Cotton on her 'Happy Place' podcast, Suranne said: "I think there's a huge taboo around it. I decided last night I should [speak about it] because it's important.
"The pandemic hit, and my dad got sick. I got a call from my dad and he was grey and he couldn't breathe and he said that he'd done a COVID test and it was positive.
"So my work - 'Gentleman Jack' - sent him a medic and the medic said he needed to go to hospital.
"He was there for three months in ICU. He didn't make it and then I got COVID myself at Christmas. At that point I felt like I wasn't coping again so I had to go on medication.
"I think it's important to say that I'm doing great and I'm still filming my job and professionally I've always been really strong and on point. But I'm on medication, and at some point I'll need to get off that."
Suranne previously went on medication after her mother Jenny died in 2016 and she suffered a breakdown in 2018.
She explained: "My mum had been sick for many years, she had an aneurysm. She slowly got worse and she developed dementia and she was in a home. In 2016 I had my son, and by the end of 2016 I lost my mum.
"What I did was go straight into work because I thought well, I'll take a job because I want to show that I'm back in the game.
"So I took on a tough job (2018's play 'Frozen') - I don't know to this day why I would choose a subject that was about a paedophile.
"I had a very public breakdown on stage in front of the audience and there was a build up to it that I didn't recognise.
"I thought it's OK, I've got this brilliant opportunity - 'Gentleman Jack' - I'm going to do it because I think it will help me. It did to a certain point.
"I'm trying to control stuff. I'm trying to control the inevitable. Because I haven't yet grieved for my mother and I haven't given myself any time.
"So after the first 'Gentleman Jack' I had a really big breakdown and I was offered medication, and I took it. And I didn't want to. Kicking and screaming I took it, but I was so far gone by that point, because I'd had the death of my mother and then I'd gone on to do two huge shows and my husband did not know how to help me."
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