LOVE ISLAND STAR SAYS SHOW ‘NEARLY RUINED HIS LIFE’ BEFORE HE FLED TO BALI
OPENING UP
Love Island star admits ‘show nearly ruined his life’ as he reveals he quit UK and moved to Bali after ‘feeling lost’
LOVE Island star Ikenna Ekwonna has admitted that appearing on the show nearly ruined his life.
He featured on the eighth series of the ITV2 show back in 2022 as part of the original line-up on day one.
Love Island’s Ikenna has said the show almost ruined his lifeCredit: Rex
He took to Instagram to share a detailed postCredit: Instagram/@ikenna._
But four years on from his stint on the dating programme, he’s revealed that the aftermath of his appearance left him feeling “lost”.
He took to Instagram to share a series of pictures of his life over the years as he opened up for the first time.
Ikenna began: “Love Island almost ruined my life…
“I came out of the show lost. Branded as someone I wasn’t, trying to prove myself to everyone except me. It took years to shake that.”
Ikenna said he had no “sense of direction” after his stint on the showCredit: Instagram/@ikenna._
He was hospitalised last year following an injuryCredit: Instagram/@ikenna._
The reality star went on to give readers a back story of his upbringing and detailed his early life in Italy, USA and the UK.
He studied biomedical science and after graduating from university, he went into pharmaceutical sales before starring on Love Island the following year.
Ikenna continued: “Then Love Island 2022. I came out of it more confused than when I went in. I lost my sense of direction.
“I spent years trying to prove myself to other people instead of building something for myself.
“Always had dreams I never chased. Things I kept saying I’d do when the time was right. The time was never right.”
He went back to working a 9 to 5 job but things took a turn in July last year, after tearing his ACL while in LA which led to a “brutal” recovery process.
“But it forced me to stop and for the first time in years, I actually asked myself what I wanted, not what looked good.
“Not what other people expected, what I actually wanted.”
Ikenna went on to tell his followers that he booked a one way ticket to Bali to “finally build something for myself.”
“I’m here now, rehabbing, training, building in public, for the first time in a long time everything feels like it’s in my hands.
“And while I’ve been on this journey, I’ve been quietly helping others do the same.
“Building plans, fixing nutrition, holding people accountable because I know exactly what it feels like to be lost and not know where to start.
The reality star is now helping others on their own journeysCredit: Instagram/@ikenna._
Ikenna appeared on series 8 of Love Island in 2022Credit: Rex
“Everything I’ve been through has led me to this point. Life isn’t meant to be linear. Drop a follow, you don’t want to miss what comes next,” he concluded.
Ikenna captioned the post: “Everything you need to know about me.
“Love Island almost ruined my life but everything that came after it brought me here & a lot of this I have never shared publicly before so welcome to the journey so far.”
His Love Island co-stars flocked to the comments section as Liam Reardon said: “I feel you with this bro, it can be a very mixed up journey post show. Keep doing your thing.”
Danica Taylor commented: “Good for you man,” while Andrew Le Page penned a red heart emoji.
Ikenna appeared on series 8 alongside the likes of Ekin-Su Culculoglu, Davide Sanclimenti, Gemma Owen, Tasha Ghouri and Luca Bish.
He was initially paired with Indiyah Polack by fans at the start but two weeks later, they decided to stay as friends.
The Nottingham lad was dumped from the villa on day 15 alongside Amber Beckford after receiving the lowest votes from the public.
cre: https://www.thesun.co.uk/tv/39621238/love-island-ikenna-show-ruined-life-quit-uk/
