Hollyoaks star Nikki Sanderson has stood up to a troll who called her a series of vile names on Instagram about a picture of the actress wearing a short skirt.
The troll branded the 37-year-old a “s**g” and a “w****” in a message and also said she was a s*** “not for the way she dresses but for the way she existed”.
Nikki told fans she was grateful for their support and that luckily she is in a good place right now, otherwise, the slurs may have really affected her.
She has previously opened up about her mental health and about suffering from depression.
Nikki said to fans in an Instagram stories video: “I wanted to say ‘thank you’ to everyone who reached out to me to see if I was okay.
“I appreciated that very much. If I was down, those messages would have hurt me and upset me.”
She finished by adding that rather than let the troll get her down, she wanted to pass on the following message: “I mean, it’s disgusting to call someone those names but I’m in a good place and I’m happy and positive and strong so when I saw them, instead of feeling hurt, I kind of felt like: go f*** yourself and have a nice day.’”
She also said: “’You don’t know what people are going through behind closed doors.
“Messages like that can tip the balance. Be kind. Always.”
Nikki then referenced a note she had put out in New Year’s Eve where she outlined how she had been struggling mentally and been feeling “upset and overwhelmed”.
She went on to say that a lot of people had reached out to her thanking her for being open about feeling low.
She wrote: “Obviously with lockdown and everything that is going on, people’s mental health is at an all-time low, so I just wanted to say, if you are feeling like that, please do speak up and speak out.
“Whether it be to family or friends or alternatively on my next story I’m going to put a list of numbers so if you do feel like you need to speak to someone please call one of them and, yes, sending love.”
Nikki’s helpline numbers included those of Samaritans, Child-line and Mind.
Nikki is a former glamour model and Coronation Street star – aged just 15 she was cast as Candice Stowe in the hit soap.
She went on to join Hollyoaks in 2012 as Maxine Minniver.
Nikki split with her boyfriend Greg Whitehurst during the lockdown and is currently single.
She is also a keen singer and karaoke fan and appeared on the celebrity version of The X Factor.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
