Alex Jones has revealed that her husband Charlie Thomson became a 'shadow of himself' after suffering from Lyme disease and viral meningitis, plunging him into a 'dark depression'. The One Show presenter said her family was 'knocked for six' as she watched her partner of seven years 'fall apart'.
Speaking on the How To Fail podcast, the 45-year-old said there was a time when she thought she was 'losing him'. 'I was looking at him and I'm thinking, "I'm looking and hearing somebody who's not my husband",' she said.
Jones admitted she struggled to understand his mental health battle, but said her husband appreciated her efforts. 'He tries to explain it and I said, "Do you think I'm a terrible person because I don't quite get it?" And he says, "No, but because you're trying to get it, I love you for that",' she recalled.
The couple, who married in 2015, have three children: Teddy, five, Kit, three, and Annie, 17 months. Jones said she felt pressure as the breadwinner and functioning parent while supporting her husband. 'Just life admin is now your responsibility, plus the person you love most is falling apart in front of you,' she added.
Jones said her husband is now 'coming up the other side in peaks and troughs', but acknowledged the difficulty of knowing how to help someone with depression. 'We all talk a good game, but do we actually know how to help people?' she asked.
