Rebekah Vardy ‘felt suicidal’ due to abuse following Coleen Rooney post, court documents claim

The 38-year-old has ‘suffered extreme distress’, files say

Rebekah Vardy felt “suicidal” after receiving a deluge of abuse sparked by Coleen Rooney’s post on media leaks, according to documents filed to the High Court.

The 38-year-old has launched libel proceedings against Ms Rooney, who claimed Ms Vardy’s Instagram account was leaking stories about her to the press.

Ms Rooney, Wayne Rooney’s wife, made news around the world when she made the accusation on social media last year. Ms Vardy, who is married to footballer Jamie Vardy, has denied any wrongdoing.

Ms Rooney claimed she had used a process of elimination to determine the Instagram account was leaking information about her private posts to The Sun.

Papers filed to the High Court by Ms Vardy’s legal team in advance of the case said she was pregnant and the time and became worried she would lose her baby because of the stress.

She “has suffered extreme distress, hurt, anxiety and embarrassment as a result of the publication of the post and the events which followed”, the court papers said.

“The abuse that followed the post made the claimant feel suicidal. She suffered from severe panic attacks and anxiety which manifested in being scared to leave her house,” they added.

The papers said Ms Vardy suffered from “severe insomnia” and went to the hospital three times while pregnant due to “anxiety attacks as a result of the post and the repercussions from it”, and that the 38-year-old “continues to suffer severe and extreme hostility and abuse” due to Ms Rooney’s post.

They claimed Ms Vardy was subject to “highly distressing publications on Twitter” which alleged she was the new suspect in Madeleine McCann’s disappearance after police said one had been identified in June.

The papers said Ms Vardy continues to suffer “mental anguish” and “anxiety” and thought 34-year-old Ms Rooney “published the post in a calculated and deliberate manner that was designed to cause very serious harm and enormous distress”.

The documents also said Ms Vardy believes she was “made a scapegoat” by Ms Rooney “for past ‘leaked’ stories that have been published about the defendant and her husband, in particular about their marriage, which have in fact come from the defendant’s friends, at times even with the defendant’s approval”.

If you are experiencing feelings of distress and isolation, or are struggling to cope, The Samaritans offers support; you can speak to someone for free over the phone, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.

For services local to you, the national mental health database – Hub of Hope – allows you to enter your postcode to search for organisations and charities who offer mental health advice and support in your area.

Additional reporting by Press Association