The former Made In Chelsea star, 33, took to Instagram on Thursday to share her horrific experience in which she felt like she ‘couldn’t breathe’ and feared the plane would have to be diverted to hospital.

Sharing a snap of herself wearing sunglasses on the flight, Millie added that though she’s a ‘nervous flyer’, she was surprised at how quickly the attack had come on, noting that she hadn’t had one in nine months.

Trying to break down the reasons for the attack, Millie recalled having a hectic 48 hours prior to her trip, which saw her have little sleep or exercise which she claims ‘set her up’ to ‘feel anxious’.

In a lengthy post, she wrote: ‘I haven’t spoken about my mental health for a while, it’s easy to get caught up in sharing the good moments and I wanted to pause and be real with you.

‘I thought I was really on top of things but then wham out of nowhere I had a really scary panic attack on the flight to Cyprus. I am a nervous flyer but it was a smooth flight, the attack came on quickly, I suddenly felt like I couldn’t breathe and for about an hour I truly believed they would need to divert to the nearest hospital because I was moments from my death.

‘I know that may sound dramatic, but those who have experienced a panic attack will know, there is no rational thought process, you get so stuck in your own head and your mind just runs wild.’

Millie went on to say that though she looked happy and content in her holiday snaps, she was left ‘frazzled’ and ‘sensitive’ from her flight experience and even sought help from her therapist afterwards.

She said: ‘I posted photos where I look happy and smiling, but for the first few days after, the shockwaves from the panic attack left me feeling frazzled and overly sensitive.

‘I haven’t had a panic attack like that for nearly 9 months and the last one triggered my decision to stop drinking alcohol. Now I have had some time to reflect and a chat with my therapist and I’ve learnt that although I removed a triggering substance from my life, I still need to put in the self work to heal and be in a healthy balanced head space.

‘When I look back at the 48 hours before the trip I had been struggling with insomnia, I didn’t have childcare so I had been juggling more than usual, I hadn’t been working out, meditating or getting enough sleep.

‘Now I can see that I was basically setting myself up to feel anxious. Panic attacks are the body’s way of telling us to stop and take a look at the way we are living and this has definitely made me reevaluate.’

The TV personality then went on to reflect on what she’s going to do going forward as she looked for ways to improve her mental health.

Tough time: Trying to break down the reasons for the attack, Millie recalled having a hectic 48 hours prior to her trip, which saw her have little sleep or exercise which she claims ‘set her up’ to ‘feel anxious’

She shared with her fans: ‘I know that whilst the panic attack wasn’t caused by turbulence the flight, I am an anxious flyer, so a fear of flying course is something I want to do over the next few months and I’m also going to try EMDR [Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing] therapy.

‘Whilst our experiences with our mental health are very different, having these open conversations are so important, knowing that it’s ok to have a bad day, ups and downs are normal and it’s all part of the journey.

‘I love to know if you have any advice for dealing with anxiety during a flight.’

Millie has in the past been open about her mental health and last year revealed she has started taking medication to help with anxiety which she has struggled with for years.

In a candid post about her struggles with mental health, Millie explained she has been seeing a therapist to deal with some ‘painful experiences’ from her teenage years and has found the medication to be helpful.

She said: ‘I wanted to have a catch up. I shared a lot about how I felt during my pregnancies & 4th trimester journeys, but I haven’t checked in for a while so thought I’d share a bit about life lately, particularly my own self-care.

‘I recently recorded a podcast for @thegoodglow.ie where I shared something, that in all honesty I didn’t think I would. I have had anxiety most of my life and found helpful tools manage it.

Candid: Millie has in the past been open about her mental health and last year revealed she has started taking medication to help with anxiety which she has struggled with for years

Candid: Millie has in the past been open about her mental health and last year revealed she has started taking medication to help with anxiety which she has struggled with for years

Family: Millie is married to fellow former Made In Chelsea star Hugo Taylor and the couple are parents to daughters Sienna, three, and Aurelia, 17 months)

‘However, since lockdown & becoming a mother my anxiety (particularly social anxiety) really started to take over, consuming my thoughts leading me to feeling trapped.

‘I engaged with therapy, to try and understand where the anxiety stems from, which meant visiting some painful experiences from my teenage years in hope it would release some of the association and anxiety, Instead I found it really triggering & became more anxious than ever.

‘After a lot of thought & discussions with my therapist we decided a low dose of prescribed medication, whilst continuing talk therapy would be the best way forward for now.

‘Although I knew this was the best decision, I found it difficult to admit to myself & to my family that I needed this kind of help.

‘I would always encourage and support friends and family in their own mental health journey but I guess it’s different when you are the one in need.’

Millie added that she is now feeling better than ever and feels like she is ‘in control’ of her life once more.

The Mail