Heston Blumenthal is reflecting on potential early signs of his bipolar disorder after he was diagnosed after being sectioned following an acute manic episode in 2023
Celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal has opened up about an early warning sign that he had bipolar disorder.
The star was sectioned in 2023 following an acute manic episode, although his disorder had started years before. However, it wasn’t until years later when he received a bipolar diagnosis, while in the psychiatric hospital. During his crisis, the TV chef experienced mania, suicidal thoughts and suffered from hallucinations.
Now, Heston is opening up about the early signs, pointing towards road rage. Speaking on The High Performance podcast the 58-year-old revealed he’s been looking back for early signs. “When I was in my late teens, I had a good level of road rage,” he said. “I’d get really angry at people in the car and think I was Knight Rider,” the star continued.
Upon more reflection, the chef looked back on surviving on barely any sleep when starting up his restaurant, The Fat Duck. Revealing he was working 120 hours a week at the age of 20, he then questions whether that was a sign of the disorder as the tiredness “makes you behave differently. In that altered state imagination and creativity flows.”
According to the NHS, bipolar disorder “is a mental health condition where you have extreme mood changes.” The main symptom of bipolar is extreme changes to your mood. Someone who suffers with bipolar is said to sometimes either have high moods (mania or hypomania) or low moods (depression). “These moods usually last a few days or weeks at a time.”
Those with bipolar disorder will usually have times where their mood is stable and they do not experience any symptoms. “This can last for weeks, months, or years.” Blumenthal’s wife, entrepreneur Melanie Ceysson has previously recalled the moment his “tornado” moods meant she was forced to have him admitted to hospital.
“It’s when I pushed the red button,” she said, marking the beginning of what she called “the most horrible house” of her life. The celebrity chef has been open about his struggles, breaking down in tears during an interview on The One Show last year.
“These recurring highs to lows were getting stronger and stronger and more regular. I was on a massive high and had been for several days. I was having hallucinations, feelings of paranoia, and even suicidal thoughts,” he said. He then opened up on his wife’s “difficult decision” to have him sectioned, which included him being sedated.
“There was a knock on the door, there’s a policeman, then five firemen and then a doctor with an assistant and I was like ‘What the hell is going on here?’ And then I saw the doctor pulling out this big syringe and then I woke up in hospital,” he said. Since his diagnosis, the star has revealed he’s hoping that talking about the condition can change the way people see it.
*If you are struggling with mental health, you can speak to a trained advisor from Mind mental health charity on 0300 123 3393 or email [email protected]
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