Mike Thalassitis was encouraged to ‘seek therapy’ after ‘struggling’ with Megan McKenna split: ‘It was the first time he’d fallen in love’

Mike Thalassitis’ manager has revealed he encouraged the star to “see someone” after his split from Megan McKenna last year.

Thalassitis, who appeared on Love Island in 2017, was found dead in a woodland close to his Essex home earlier this month.

Dave Read, owner of Neon Management, revealed Thalassitis had been “hit really hard” by their July break-up and was feeling “down” for some time afterwards.

Speaking to new! magazine he said: “He openly admitted that he had really fallen for her. She was his first proper girlfriend and, although he'd dated other people in the past, it was the first time he'd fallen in love.

“He was quieter than usual and I suggested he needed to see someone to get help.

"The break-up hit him really hard and he was down for a few months. He was very open about how he was feeling, telling me he was struggling with his emotions and we spoke about it on numerous occasions."

Thalassitis’ Love Island co-star Montana Brown previously confirmed the star had been to see a therapist following a “rough time”.

In a tearful appearance on This Morning following the shock news of his death, Brown said: “When he was going through a rough time I was checking up on him every day and he opened up and said he’d been to see a therapist. He wanted someone to tell him how to get out of this dark place because he’d tried everything.”

McKenna broke her silence on the tragic news last week, admitting she had been left in “complete shock” and had avoided social media in a bid to “come to terms” with it.

“Sorry I haven’t been on social media but I’m in complete shock and trying to come to terms with this,” she wrote on Instagram. “I can’t believe I’m even writing this post.

“My thoughts and prayers are with Mike’s family. Rest in peace Mike.”

The singer had initially faced backlash online for not commenting sooner on the star’s death after a slew of stars paid tribute.

Thalassitis found fame on Love Island, earning the nickname “Muggy Mike”, and was on E4’s Celebs Go Dating in 2018.

Former Love Island contestants have called for bosses to do more in support of the contestants after the show has wrapped.

In the wake of his death, ITV vowed to offer therapy, social media training and financial advice to its future Love Island stars.

A statement from the show read: "This review has led us to extend our support processes to offer therapy to all Islanders and not only those that reach out to us. And we will be delivering bespoke training to all future Islanders to include social media and financial management.

"The key focus will be for us to no longer be reliant on the islanders asking us for support but for us to proactively check in with them on a regular basis."