Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins star Ben Cohen has revealed his daughter’s devastating heart condition.
The former England rugby player, 47, described his ‘horrendous’ past 18 months in an upcoming episode following his on-off relationship with Kristina Rihanoff.
During tense interrogation scenes, Ben said that he wants to be a ‘pillar of strength’ for his daughters – twins Isabelle and Harriette, 17, and Milena, nine.
‘It’s been horrendous. Izzy is having a pacemaker fitted and it’s a lot to process,’ he says, according to The Sun.
‘How do you deal with it? You be strong for your daughter, you have to be that pillar of strength. That’s when the self-neglect comes in because you prioritise other things before yourself.’
While Ben did not explain what his daughter’s condition was, a pacemaker is a small, implanted electronic device that regulates your heartbeat by sending electrical impulses to your heart for people with abnormal heart rhythms.
The 47-year-old opened up about his personal life, after he reportedly ended his relationship with Kristina last year.
Speaking during an interrogation scene, he added: ‘There’s so much going on in my life personally, in so many different areas, when you get to this point it almost takes the lid off the can and all those emotions swirl with each other.
‘There has been a lot of horrible stuff happening in my life and you don’t realise what is going to come back and get you a little bit later.’
In September last year Ben and Kristina were spotted together at a fashion event and had ‘decided to give things another go’, according to The Sun.
During the show, Ben is also reported to have written a letter to Isabelle where he applauds the teenager for her bravery.
As part of the gruelling process that puts the celebrities through mental torture, the rugby star was told to write a letter home that could be sent if he died.
What is a pacemaker?
A pacemaker is a small, implanted electronic device that regulates your heartbeat by sending electrical impulses to your heart, preventing it from beating too slowly or irregularly, and improving quality of life for people with abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias).
It consists of a pulse generator (with a battery and circuit) and thin wires called leads, which are inserted into the heart to deliver signals, taking over or assisting the heart’s natural electrical system.
He says to Isabelle: ‘You are such a brave girl and have been so mature since finding out about your heart problem.
‘You’ve been beyond amazing deciding what treatment you want, which pacemaker you would prefer.’
Ben is also said to open up about the death of his father who died in 2000, after attempting to break up a fight at the nightclub he owned.
The 47-year-old says it left a ‘hole’ in his life.
Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins continues on Sunday at 9pm on Channel 4.
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