Domenica Calarco has broken her silence after completing a 21-day program at a mental health retreat.
The Married At First Sight bride, 31, reactivated her page on Sunday and offered a lengthy explanation of what she’s been going through in a video which was taken at the facility.
‘It’s safe to say it’s been a little while. I wanted to take this moment to have an honest and heartfelt conversation with you all who’ve been with me through thick and thin,’ she began.
‘As many of you know I’ve been on a break for the past month to focus on my mental health. This journey has been incredibly challenging but also deeply transforming for me.’
Domenica said she needed the time to ‘heal, reflect and gain a better understanding of herself’ and thanked fans for their support during this time.
She continued: ‘I had a lot of trauma that I didn’t work through from my childhood and I know that now. And then I went through a divorce in my 20s and then MAFS which in itself was an incredible experience but also quite traumatic.’
The reality star admitted she had ‘reached a point where I no longer wanted to suffer’ and started her journey towards happiness again.
‘I didn’t want to suffer with my mental illness in the way that I was upon reflection I realised that I was putting my happiness in the hands of other people,’ she said.
‘I’m in charge of my own joy and it’s time for me to enjoy my life again and realising that I’m happy with the person I’m becoming is just really life changing for me.’
Domenica explained how she had ‘spiralled into a deep depression’ over a month ago and ‘couldn’t see a way out’.
‘I wanted to film this video here on my discharge day because this place have been instrumental in me getting b ack to who I am and my proper health,’ she said.
‘Prior to admitting myself here, I tried to band-aid the issue and I went and I booked myself into a health retreat but it’s very chalk and cheese to where I am now. I was scared of myself at that point in time. I was having very dark intrusive thoughts and I needed a circuit breaker.’
Domenica said she has learnt a lot about herself during the 21-day program and she ‘cannot let things hurt me’.
She continued: ‘I wanted to come here to reintroduce myself but also tell you guys what I want to achieve moving forward. My mission is to use this platform to raise awareness about mental health and have more open and vulnerable conversations.’
Domenica vanished from the spotlight following criticism from Bachelor star-turned-podcaster Abbie Chatfield.
The backlash arose after she and fellow MAFS bride Ella Ding hosted controversial groom Jack Dunkley on their podcast, Sit With Us.
Posting to Instagram in May, the former MAFS star shared a concerning post revealing how she was taking time out to visit a mental health retreat.
Domenica previously broke her silence in a series of TikTok videos, in which she revealed to fans she’s been feeling extreme anxiety.
In one clip, the brunette admitted she was struggling to leave the house due to the stress, and had even started picking at her skin as a reaction to the anxiety.
‘It’s a really unhealthy thing to be doing,’ she said, showing a series of self-inflicted scratches on her arm.
‘It’s scary that this stress, this anxiety, this pressure, this feeling of failure and this feeling of “I’m not good enough” and this feeling of “I’ve f**ked up is manifesting itself in this way of wanting to do that to myself, wanting to run away, being really scared”,’ Dom lamented.
‘I just wanted to make this little video. I’m not doing it for f**king sympathy at all because that’s not what I’m after here. I’m just putting this out there to say I am human, I’m human,’ she continued, adding that her self-esteem is ‘literally at an all-time low’.
Domenica also shared a video of herself reapplying her makeup after crying in her bedroom.
‘So, this is how I bring myself back after having a cry and pretty much hating myself,’ she said, painting on a new layer of concealer, blush and lipliner.