Frank Bruno: I was sectioned three times but now I’ve got my life back

The boxing legend, 56, has been sectioned three times after struggling with bipolar disorder following his retirement 20 years ago.

“It is the toughest fight I have ever had to face and the darkest period of my life,” the former heavyweight champion admits.

“I did not know how I was going to get through.”

But thankfully today he is firmly on the road to recovery and has been free of any medication for the past 18 months.

Now he is passionate about raising awareness of mental illness and has charted his battle and recovery in his new book Let Me Be Frank.

Figures from the charity Mind show that one in four of us in the UK experience a mental health problem every year and one in six has a common mental health problem in any given week.

“Mental illness can affect anyone, whether you are the heavyweight champion of the world or you’re working in a shop,” Frank says.

“For a long time there was a big stigma surrounding it and no one talked about it. But thankfully that has started to change, although there is still a long way to go.”

Frank’s problems came to the fore in 2003, two years after his divorce from Laura, with whom he has daughters Nicola, 36, Rachel, 32, and son Franklin, 22.

“Laura and I had split up and she and the kids had moved out,” recalls Frank.

“I was left alone in a big house and I felt increasingly depressed. I had retired from boxing so the pressure of being on my own and suddenly having to do everything myself gradually got on top of me.

“When I was married Laura provided a structure to my life and without her everything came tumbling down. I was burning myself out trying to hold everything together and I couldn’t cope.”

Frank’s behaviour became increasingly erratic.

His daughters recall he slept in a boxing ring he built in his garden and often walked to the high street in his slippers.

Pleas from his family to get help fell on deaf ears. Eventually daughter Nicola, by then legally his next of kin, signed papers to have her father sectioned.

“I remember police and social workers arriving at my home in Essex and telling me I needed to come with them because I was being sectioned under the Mental Health Act,” says Frank.

“I didn’t understand why they wanted to take me away and I initially refused to go with them but it became clear I had no choice.”

This resulted in a 28-day stay in hospital, which Frank describes as “a complete nightmare” and even led to a newspaper cruelly branding him “Bonkers Bruno”.

“I was locked up and felt like a caged animal.

“I was given a lot of medication and injections. It was very tough and I didn’t like the way the system forced you to take so many drugs. I was like a zombie and I just wanted to get out of there.

“I don’t believe medication is always the answer when it comes to treating people with mental health issues. It’s important to get down to the underlying reasons behind it.”

After being released Frank gradually managed to pick up the pieces of his life with the help of friends and family. But in 2012 his mental health took a worrying turn after a number of personal tragedies.

He was sectioned for a second time for seven days and again just six weeks later.

Frank says: “I was overworking, my mother had died, my brother had died and the pressure of everything meant my life came crashing down.

“I didn’t feel I needed to be sectioned then. I was never a danger to anyone or myself but admittedly I needed to take a step back from life.”

Frank says that being forcibly admitted to hospital caused an enormous strain on his relationship with Nicola which has now started to heal.

“I was angry about being sectioned for a long time but now I have come to understand why she felt she had to do it.”

Since then Frank’s health has gone from strength to strength. “I now realise how important it is to take good care of myself so I don’t have a relapse again.”

For Frank, who also has daughter, Freya, 11, from another relationship but is now single, this means eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly as well as ensuring he doesn’t overwork.

“I go to the gym most days although I don’t do much boxing these days,” he laughs.

“I do run a lot and I try to eat as well as possible – salads, fish, pasta. I make sure I don’t take too much on and work at a good pace.”

Frank has a mental health charity, The Frank Bruno Foundation, to help people affected by the illness and is pleased that high-profile names such as Prince Harry are helping to remove the stigma around the condition.

“People are now more willing to talk about it. It’s no longer taboo or shameful,” says Frank.

“There is much more of an understanding about what I went through. People realise that it could happen to anyone. We can all have situations where we find life is getting on top of us. I’ve had a lot of affection and support from the public, which is great.”

Now Frank feels he can face the future with confidence. As well as his new book he is still in demand for TV and radio work and there are even discussions about making a movie about his life. But whatever happens Frank is certain he is unlikely to be sectioned again.

“I have more awareness about how to keep myself well but more importantly I’m not embarrassed about asking for help,” he says. “I’ve finally got my life back and feel very grateful I’ve come through to the other side.”

● Let Me Be Frank, published by Mirror Books, is available from all good bookshops.

To order a signed copy visit frankbruno.co.uk