Dr Alex George

The ex-Love Island star says he’s tired of being lonely, and his new book has helped him heal

- With HANNAH STEPHENSON

Ever since he was young, Dr Alex George felt different. And the mental health campaigner, former A&E doctor and Love Island contestant has finally made sense of it with his new book, Am I Normal? where he draws on his own personal experience of ADHD, OCD, alcohol misuse, grief, work addiction, poor self-image and loneliness.

“It sound's like I'm a bloody walking list, doesn't it?” Dr Alex, 34, said, chuckling.

He is not afraid to recount the episodes that led him to stop drinking, take control of his diet and seek therapy and medication.

In the book, he explores what society's view of normality is and how it can stand in the way of true wellness and happiness.

His own diagnoses — he’s also undergoing assessments for autism — have brought him some peace and answered questions as to why he struggled from childhood: the facial tics he had at 11, his inability to focus, the obsessions, social anxiety and rejection sensitivity.

The Welsh doctor and broadcaster, who was on Love Island in 2018, has appeared on shows including Good Morning Britain and Loose Women to speak about mental health.

Until last year, when the government dropped the role, he was also the UK Youth Mental Health Ambassador.

He was diagnosed with ADHD in 2022 and with OCD last year. And he confesses 2024 was one of the loneliest years of his life, having never come to terms with his post-Love Island existence, focusing on the challenges of the pandemic, and the grief he experienced when his 19-year-old brother Llyr died by suicide.