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Daisy Lowe's hair fell out in secret breakdown after 'Strictly' appearance

Model Daisy Lowe poses for photographers after the Roland Mouret Autumn/Winter 2019 fashion week runway show in London, Sunday, Feb. 17, 2019. (Photo by Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP)
Daisy Lowe has revealed she suffered a secret breakdown in 2017. (AP)

Model Daisy Lowe has revealed she suffered a secret breakdown after taking part on Strictly Come Dancing that left her unable to sleep or leave the house and her hair began to fall out.

The 31-year-old daughter of fashion designer Pearl Lowe and Bush singer Gavin Rossdale took part in the BBC dance show in 2016 and made the decision to continue in the competition following the death of her grandfather Eddie Davis.

Lowe told addiction podcast The Wagon how taking part in the Strictly was the “greatest experience in my career” and “the dream”.

Read more: Daisy Lowe reveals 'heartbreaking' abortion in Mel B podcast

But she revealed: “It’s incredibly high-octane and my favourite person in the world passed away on my very first day as I was being introduced to everyone who was part of the Strictly family.

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - JANUARY 19:  Daisy Lowe and Alijaz Skorjanec attend the photocall for the 'Strictly Come Dancing' live tour at the Barclaycard Arena on January 19, 2017 in Birmingham, England.  (Photo by Dave J Hogan/Getty Images)
Daisy Lowe and Alijaz Skorjanec took part in the 'Strictly Come Dancing' live tour at the start of 2017. (Getty Images)

“I got the call and I had to make my choice. I wanted to quit and come back some day after I’d grieved. But my grandmother called me and said, ‘Don’t you dare - go and win this for him.’”

Lowe - who was partnered with Aljaz Skorjanec on the show - was voted out in week eight of the 13 week series, which was won by won by BBC sports presenter Ore Oduba.

She confessed she felt she had failed her grandfather.

Lowe admitted, “I had no idea how much I was struggling,” but she went on to suffer heart palpitations, and was unable to eat, sleep or even talk and did not leave the house for seven months.

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - JANUARY 19:  Daisy Lowe and Aljaz Skorjanec attend the Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour Photocall on January 19, 2017 in Birmingham, England.  (Photo by Eamonn M. McCormack/Getty Images)
BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - JANUARY 19: Daisy Lowe and Aljaz Skorjanec attend the Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour Photocall on January 19, 2017 in Birmingham, England. (Photo by Eamonn M. McCormack/Getty Images)

She said: “The strangest thing happened. I think that I was so burned out that I lost the ability to speak. All I could really say was, ‘I’m sad’ or ‘I’m scared’ or ‘I feel really anxious’.

“I’d been to the doctors and I’d been signed off work with clinical depression. I had been tried on a few different antidepressants and all of them had very adverse effects. I didn’t sleep for four months. The insomnia was so unbearable.

“I was shaking, I lost my appetite and my hair started falling out. It was horrific.”

British Fashion designer Pearl Lowe, right and her daughter, British model Daisy Lowe pose for photographs before they sign bottles of their charity edition body cream, at a central London store, Thursday, March 15, 2012. Profits from each sale go towards the Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity. (AP Photo/Joel Ryan)
Daisy Lowe's mother Pearl Lowe persuaded her to check into rehab. (AP)

Lowe revealed her mother Pearl Lowe, 50, encouraged her to check into a rehab clinic in Ibiza, run by psychotherapist John McKeown, who also presents The Wagon podcast.

The TV star revealed spending time caring for chickens, doing yoga and kickboxing all played a part in her recovery.

Read more: Daisy Lowe blames Strictly for ruining her relationship

But she returned to the luxury clinic for a second time because she was no longer afraid to admit she could not cope.

Lowe also said that embracing her anger played a big part in her recovery.

She said: “I realised that I had never really gotten angry and it is a really powerful emotion... I think I had suppressed it so much that it had all gone inward.... I had been holding on to that stuff for a very long time and I had to expel it all in an explosion.”