Love Island USA star Cormac Murphy has opened up on going to rehab after his stint on the hit show.
The Irishman, 27, was a celebrity nightclub promoter in New York hosting A-listers such as Cuba Gooding Junior, before landing a spot on the series.
Cormac, from Co Clare, told the Irish Mirror: “Love Island didn’t go as well as I hoped it would.
“The US version only went on for a month, I was in the villa for eight nights in total, I was a bombshell, I came in on the fifth day.
“I was going in with new Irish charm and my New York hustle but it just
didn’t work out.
“I got coupled up with a girl, it felt like I was in there for three or four weeks, people don’t realise when you’re on a reality show, it’s 24/7.
“When I was going to sleep I had the headphones on, it was constant, it messes with your head.
“I got flown out to Fiji and I was hidden away in a hotel for two weeks before I went on the show.
“In my job I was always socialising, so when I was locked up in the hotel before I went into the villa that messed with my head too.
“I felt drained and was not myself, my mental health wasn’t the best after
the show, I only spoke to close friends about this.
“I left New York to move away from the fast pace. After Love Island I went back into nightlife, I was partying a lot.”
After returning to Ireland, he got his life back on track.
Cormac said: “The first step is admitting you have a problem, so when I came home to Clare, I went into rehab for a month, the whole idea of coming home was to press the reset button.
“I feel great now, if you had asked me last year if in a year’s time I’d be living in Ennis, I would have laughed at you.
“But it’s been the best thing that’s ever happened to me, I’m back around my school friends, I have a new girlfriend too.”
Landing a modelling deal has helped keep him on the straight and narrow.
Cormac said: “I signed up with Derek from Assets a couple of months ago, it’s going great.”
Modelling boss Derek Daniels said: “He’s got a boy-next-door look, he was fresh from Love Island, he’ll do well.”
Cormac told how he went off booze for six months and was helped by the lack of distractions during lockdown.
He said: “I have the odd drink now for a social occasion.
“I went back to my old trade as a painter, I had to let my big ego go, my ultimate goal now is to have a healthy, balanced lifestyle.”
