Andrea McLean has shared a health update with her fans.

The 53-year-old former Loose Women presenter, who left the show in 2020 after 13 years to prioritise her mental health, revealed she has been taking time away from work to “fill up her cup”.

Posting a series of photographs to Instagram featuring her husband, Nick Feeny, her mother and her dog, Teddy, on Monday (27 February), the presenter revealed she “ended up poorly in bed” after attending a memorial event last week.

“I had pushed myself at the gym that day, which was too much for my tired body,” she explained in the post’s caption. “So, another episode of one step forward, three steps back.”

The Scottish broadcaster said that she is awaiting blood tests to see why she has been “poorly for so long now,” adding that she has been experiencing three months of “absolute exhaustion”.

“The thinking is that it is Covid / autoimmune related. It’s a nuisance!” she said.

“I was luckily well enough to get dressed up and take my mum out on Friday for a pamper day as a belated Christmas present,” she continued. “So nails done and to our local Ivy for a late lunch. It was really lovely.”

When she departed from the ITV show, McLean told Loose Women viewers: “You get one life. Are you living it the way that you want and are you doing everything that you want to do? Are you taking chances? And I realised, no.”

She added: “It was a really, really big decision to jump to see if I fall or fly. And I just thought. ‘I will never know unless I try.’ So, I’m saying goodbye to Loose Women.”

After leaving the show, McLean released her book This Girl Is on Fire: How to Live, Learn and Thrivein a Life You Love. She now is on a mission to “help midlife women feel great about themselves again” through her podcast This Girl Is On Fire with Andrea McLean.

Though McLean has been vocal about supporting other women to chase their dream careers no matter their age, she revealed that she was forced to sell her house to cope with the financial impact of her career change.

McLean admitted she was dropped from all brand deals the day she quit the talk show to focus on her ‘dream’ of building a mindset coaching app, and described in a guest appearance how it was something she “needed to do”.

Speaking with her co-stars she added: “Everything took way longer than we thought, and we came to the realisation that we’re going to need to sell our house.”

If you are experiencing feelings of distress and isolation, or are struggling to cope, The Samaritans offers support; you can speak to someone for free over the phone, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.

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