Christine McGuinness revealed she has more meltdowns now than ever before and is ready to show her authentic self after hiding behind a smile.
The model, 35, opened up about how much she has been struggling recently and admitted that it is ‘exhausting pretending to be fine’.
In an exclusive chat with , Christine, from Liverpool, revealed that she still has days when she needs to cancel plans because she is so burnt out.
The mother-of-three, who has autism and ADHD, lives a busy life as she balances the workload of motherhood, presenting gigs, making TV appearances, and launching her own line of lifestyle products.
When asked how she manages her seemingly endless list of responsibilities, Christine told : ‘I don’t, and that is to be completely honest. I don’t manage it as well as what I present like I manage it. I still have meltdowns. I probably have more meltdowns than ever.’
Christine McGuinness, 35, revealed she has more meltdowns now than ever and wants to show her authentic self after hiding behind a smile as she said pretending to be ok is exhausting
In an exclusive chat with , Christine, from Liverpool, revealed that she still has days when she needs to cancel plans because she is so burnt out
She continued: ‘I still have days where, you know, I’ll cancel plans because I burn out. My main resolution this year is to try and plan better try and make sure that I schedule things to make sure that I get time off in between.
‘The most important thing for me is to focus on my children, be a good mum and be present as much as possible while trying to be a businesswoman and try and look after myself. But it is something I’m still learning about.’
Christine was diagnosed with autism and ADHD in 2020 after spending the majority of her life confused as to why she acted differently from everyone else growing up.
Now, after four years of living with her diagnosis, the TV personality is still trying to understand herself and how her ‘brain works differently to others’.
While promoting her new launch, Lifestyle By Christine McGuinness, she said: ‘I got diagnosed autistic about four years ago, and then ADHD. And not long after that I am trying to understand myself and figure out how my brain works differently to others. It is still a learning curve every day, but I am getting there.’
After spending last year putting on a brave face and smiling her way through hard times, Christine has revealed that she will star in a ‘big show’ this year to show her ‘most authentic’ self.
She explained that she is now ready to show the world the ‘real’ her and that her big, beautiful smile is very much a front.
Christine has had a difficult couple of years following her split from Paddy and supporting her mother, who has spent nearly half a decade battling cancer.
She is now going to show the world how she has desperately tried to mask the anxieties stemming from her autism and ADHD.
Christine said of the new show: ‘It is probably the most authentic version of myself I’ve ever shown on television because I want to do that. I want to be able to show myself when I am vulnerable, when I’m sad, when I’m down, when I am having struggles.
‘Whether it being with a new group, being in a new environment, trying new foods, because with my autism I struggle quite a lot with with sensory issues.
‘In the past, I’ve always try and hide that, and I try and act like everyone else and try and fit in and mask it. The show I’ve just done, I’ve just tried to be me and say if I’m having a hard time and talk about it and be open about it.
‘It’s exhausting, pretending that you’re fine when you’re not. So I’m hoping that people will love and warm to and understand. And I’m hoping that people will understand it.
‘I understand the autism a lot more and see that it’s better for me to be able to do that than to go and pretend and just laugh and giggle and act fine because pretending is just exhausting.’
The mother of three lives a busy life as she balances the workload of motherhood, presenting gigs, making TV appearances, and launching her own line of lifestyle products (pictured with her mother Joanne and her three children: Leo and Penelope, 10, and seven-year-old Felicity)
Christine was diagnosed with autism and ADHD four years ago after spending the majority of her life confused as to why she acted differently from everyone else growing up
Now, after four years of living with her diagnosis, the TV personality is still trying to understand herself and how her ‘brain works differently to others’
The blonde beauty still lives with comedian and estranged husband Paddy, 50, despite announcing their split July 2022 after 11 years of marriage.
Christine has struggled to feel upbeat about the turn of the new year despite having a long and exciting trail of TV appearances, product launches and glitzy events up her sleeve.
She admitted that she has felt the Monday blues coming into 2024 and has been feeling tired from the pressures of Christmas.
Christine said: I’ve got so many exciting things for this year for 2024. I was expecting to come into the year feeling excited. And then I wasn’t.
‘I don’t know if it’s an overwhelming feeling or just the tiredness from December with the children being off for three weeks. I don’t know if I’ve had a bit of holiday blues. I’m not sure what it was, but I didn’t get that whole new year buzz.’
Christine spent her Christmas in the company of her estranged husband as the two are still living in the same house with their three children – twins Leo and Penelope, 10, and seven-year-old Felicity.
Despite the awkward living situation and the glum start to the year, she revealed that her three little ones had the ‘most amazing Christmas’ and despite it being different to other families, the pair are doing what is best for the children.
She said: ‘We had the best Christmas the children have too, and I think they are maturing and understand it more and me understanding their needs and what works for them and being OK with our Christmas being different to other families, but it’s all what’s best for the children.
‘And they did have the most amazing Christmas, and then they’ve just gone back to school. And they were absolutely fine. It was just me that was a little bit lost.’
Alongside her split, Christine has been supporting her mother, Joanne, who has been battling breast cancer for nearly half a decade.
The TV star was forced to spend eight months away from her beloved mother after she underwent chemotherapy during lockdown.
Christine revealed her mother is incredibly proud of everything she has achieved and is doing much better after her chemotherapy as she gave an update on her mother’s health.
The blonde beauty still lives with comedian and estranged husband Paddy, 50, despite announcing their split last July after 11 years of marriage
Alongside her split, Christine has been supporting her mother, Joanne, who has been battling breast cancer for nearly half a decade
LifeStyle By Christine McGuinness is a health, beauty, and wellness range sold exclusively in B&M Stores nationwide starting 17 January 2024
‘My mum’s cancer, unfortunately, is one of those that can come back anywhere in her body, so she’s always going to be in recovery mode and she certainly still is.
‘She’s still having treatment. She’s finished the biggest part of the treatment, which was the chemotherapy and the radiotherapy, but she is still having to go for injections. She is going to be on tablets for the rest of her life.
‘I think we all know now more than ever how important it is just to look after yourself.
‘I’m always reminding her, she’s always reminding me to just look after our well-being and look after our health as much as we can because she’s the best nanny to my children. She’s the grandparent and they absolutely adore her.
READ MORE: Christine McGuinness reveals the one way autism is an obstacle to her dating life after Paddy split
‘She’s been incredible and has absolutely been a rock for me over the last couple of years. And I’m so, so proud of her. Really, really proud of her. She’s doing well. I don’t know where she gets her energy from.’
Christine revealed she and her mother will be visiting B&M together to see her new LifeStyle products on the shelves.
LifeStyle By Christine McGuinness is a health, beauty, and wellness range sold exclusively in B&M Stores nationwide starting 17 January 2024.
The range includes face serum, body moisturiser, wonder oil, lip balms, dry shampoo and hair and nail gummies.
She said of the launch: I’m always conscious of people’s budgets. Coming from a state, I know that the struggle is real. I remember going to B&M with my mum, really fond memories of going to B and M with my mum, that should be so happy.
‘That should be able to fill a back door because financially, she wasn’t secure, we weren’t that fortunate.
‘I wanted to be able to, when I’m talking about stuff online, when women ask me what lip gloss is that, I want to be able to say,” oh, actually, it’s this. It’s on B&M and I know it’s good quality. I know that it’s in a really good budget and affordable prices so that everyone can use stuff that I’m using.”
‘I have been using it myself before I’ve advertised it before it’s gone on sale for the last 12 months, I’ve only used this face serum. I haven’t used anything else.
‘ I’ve only used these gummies, these vitamins, I have only used this moisturiser. It is to make sure I am happy with it before I’m saying to anybody else, you can get this, it’s affordable and and it works, and it’s really good and it smells amazing. It looks cute on your dress table.
‘I wanted to do something affordable for everyone, because I remember I went to my mum as a single parent on a budget.’
Christine is also set to appear on Antiques Road Show on January 23 on BBC Two at 7pm.