LOVE Island star Sharon Gaffka has revealed she suffered a heartbreaking miscarriage 18 months ago.
The 27-year-old, who appeared on the show in 2021, opened up about her pain as she marked what would have been her baby’s first birthday.
In an emotional post, Sharon explained how she felt she had been “hit by a bus” and she was struggling to “function” as normal.
She shared: “‼️TW: pregnancy loss‼️ You know that classic saying… “Be kind because you don’t know what someone is going through”, I’ve been trying to find the strength to be open about something I’ve been healing from for the past eighteen months.
“I want to start by saying that everyone’s healing process is different. The foetus I miscarried would’ve been celebrating their first birthday this week. Which hit me like a train and I have surprisingly found it incredibly tough to function as I normally would.
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“Miscarriage affects 1 in 4 women in the UK. While I know I’m not the only one to have experience such loss, I’ve struggled with finding a space where the unique emotional journey that those who don't envision motherhood in their future go through when facing such a loss, being talked about openly.
“For individuals who never intended to become parents, the grief following a miscarriage is confusing. The traditional narrative surrounding motherhood doesn't apply, making it challenging to find spaces that resonate with their feelings.'
Sharon continued: “My healing process has had to come in stages, weirdly one of the things I was the most scared about was people finding out and having strangers comment on it.
“But once those feelings passed, I’ve had to contend with feelings of failure. How as such an ‘accomplished’ woman - can I be a failure? I can only put it down to societal norms that as a woman, this is what my body “is supposed to do”, which has only amplified the grief.
“Grief is not a linear process, I’m tired of being told that time is healer and this truth is especially evident in the aftermath of miscarriage for those who never planned to have children. Feelings of loss, confusion, guilt, and even relief can surface unexpectedly, and these emotions are all valid."
She added that she wasn’t sharing her story for sympathy, but as part of her healing process.
Sharon was briefly coupled up with Hugo Hammond during her time on Love Island, but later accused him of "inappropriately touching" her - something which he then denied.
She alleged her friendship with Hugo ended because of his behaviour following their appearance in the villa.
But Hugo strongly denied the allegations, calling them "completely false" in a social media post.
The beauty also previously accused Love Island bosses of editing out her bisexual confession.
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In April of this year she made a rare admission about her love life – revealing she had enjoyed a celebrity romance.
She said: "I have only ever dated one person in the public eye in the past two years, it lasted for the best part of five minutes, so it's no even known about outside my inner circle.
"I'd want a relationship that was known of, not known about."
She added: "I'm not dating atm anyway. I have no interest in it."
If you have been affected by this story - you can find support through the Miscarriage Association (miscarriageassociation.org. uk, 01924 200 799).
