'It was a very bad time': Nikki Sanderson suffered depression in her 20s

Nikki Sanderson suffered depression in her 20s.

The \'Hollyoaks\' actress has been trying to keep her mind motivated during the coronavirus lockdown because it is "bad for [her] mental health" to do nothing, after she battled depression in her 20s, during what was a "very, very bad time".

Asked whether she is keeping busy at home during lockdown, she said: "I have to. If I go from a busy lifestyle to nothingness it\'s very hard. It\'s bad for my mental health, feeling empty, so I try to keep my mind motivated. I suffered depression in my 20s and it was a very, very, bad time.

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"I\'m lucky my mind is healthy now. But I have to stay busy to avoid the feeling of a lull. I\'m fortunate I always have someone at the end of the phone."

But Nikki - who plays Maxine Minniver - admitted it is "hugely helpful" receiving regular emails from the soap\'s bosses to check in on her, and the former \'Coronation Street\' actress cannot wait to return to work.

She said: "At \'Hollyoaks\' they email us all the time, reminding us they\'re there and checking in on us. That\'s hugely helpful."

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Quizzed on whether she\'s excited to get back to \'Hollyoaks\', she said: "I\'m well excited. And for the events. I love seeing my other soap family, the \'Corrie\' lot. Don\'t get me wrong, I\'m sure some people in Soapland don\'t get on, but I\'m not one of them.

"If someone wants to do me up and send me out to mingle, I absolutely love it."

Nikki recently took part in \'Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins\' - on which stars are put through a unique version of the SAS\'s selection process - and while she made it through to the final day, the 36-year-old star has admitted watching some of the show back gave her anxiety.

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She added to the Sunday Mirror newspaper: "Some scenes gave me anxiety in the pit of my stomach and took me back - the car journeys to the challenges where you had no idea what you were doing, I\'d feel sick.

"The cold water challenges particularly, I could feel how freezing I was. The emotions came flooding back."