People News

Ellie Goulding had panic attacks

Oct 5, 2012, 10:01 GMT

Ellie Goulding

Ellie Goulding used to suffer from crippling panic attacks.

The 'Anything Could Happen' singer struggled to cope with the pressures of being a pop star when she first got famous and used to think she was having a heart attack because the episodes were so frightening. 7

Ellie was eventually prescribed Diazepam - a sedative used to treat anxiety - for her panic attacks but she didn't want to take the drug.

In an interview with The Sun newspaper, she said: 'There were times when I felt like I was having a heart attack. There was too much adrenaline and my heart was pounding. It's just such a horrible, horrible thing to go through.

'I hadn't even released my first proper single when I started to feel the strain of attention. But I don't believe that it was the attention that was giving me panic attacks.

'I think it was everything in my life colliding at the same time.

'It really did get to a serious point where I couldn't even walk down the street without getting the pain.

'I'd have a numb arm, a very strange lump in my throat and a really hot chest, like my heart was on fire.

'I had to take Diazepam but I found it debilitating.'

Ellie, 25, started having cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), which has helped her cope with the pressures in her life.

The 25-year-old musician - who is getting ready to release her new album 'Halcyon' next week - revealed: 'I couldn't do anything so I had cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) instead and that actually really worked.

'The other day I was in Germany and it was a really hectic day and I thought, 'Oh god here we go,' but I laid down, started breathing, closed my eyes and told people not to talk to me, and then I was fine.'