11 December 2023 , 20:26
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Sam Thompson has said he hopes to raise awareness of ADHD after talking about it in the jungle.
The star opened up following his jungle victory in an exclusive wide-ranging chat with the Mirror’s Tom Bryant. His time in the jungle was praised for shining a light on his ADHD, which he was only diagnosed with last year.
Viewers watched as he opened up to Marvin and Josie Gibson, saying how he was ‘not ashamed’ of the condition. And he says that he hopes by talking about it, it can raise awareness and lead to more people getting diagnosed. “I wish I’d got diagnosed way earlier in my life so if it has helped people or if it helps them get diagnosed at a young age or get their kids diagnosed, then that is absolutely brilliant,” he says.
Viewers saw Sam open up to Marvin Humes and Josie Gibson (James Gourley/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)“Also, I hope it might push adults to go and get a diagnosis as so many have no idea and it could change their life. “I’m really glad that it stayed in the edit and by talking about it, it could make a difference.”
Sam stayed out of trouble during the show when it came to getting involved in any of the fiery political debates such as Brexit. And he says that this wasn’t a deliberate tactic to avoid controversy…but that he didn’t “have a clue” as to what they were talking about.
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“I didn’t know what was going on, and I had nothing to add, so I’d literally sit there and obviously with my ADHD, my gaze would go everywhere, and I’d just find myself following a butterfly instead down by the creek,” he says. As for Nigel Farage, he says he didn’t know “much about him” ahead of the jungle.
He added: “The guy that I got used to in there was a sweet enough dude, he kept himself to himself but mucked in when he needed to. “He is like 61 or something and going up and down that creek to get water, it’s tough. I’m glad I didn’t have any preconceived notions of him or anyone in there because, you know, it really makes the experience the most original you could ever have. “