EastEnders star Natalie Cassidy’s daughter breaks arm again

The 43-year-old actress, best known for playing NHS nurse Sonia Fowler on the BBC soap, spoke candidly on her Life With Nat podcast about her daughter Joaine’s recent accident.

Joaine, nine, broke her arm in a fall at school, just eight weeks after having metalwork removed from the same arm following a previous injury.

Also appearing on the podcast, Natalie’s fiancé, EastEnders cameraman Marc Humphreys, said: “Just in the hottest week of the year, we’ve just had to spend two days in a hospital.”

Former EastEnders star Natalie Cassidy reveals she was close to having a ‘nervous breakdown’

Natalie said: “Joaine’s broken her arm again, everybody.

“Same arm, smashed to pieces.

“General anaesthetic, same operation.”

The incident happened on June 23, during what the family had hoped would be a relaxing week at home in the sunshine.

Natalie said she felt she was close to a “nervous breakdown” as she “really fell to pieces” after her daughter “slipped over in the hall before doing PE.”

She said: “I felt I was going to have a nervous breakdown, actually, on Tuesday.

“I’m being really honest with people here. I really fell to pieces.

“I was not in a good place. Just her little body, and the medication and the trauma of it all.”

Natalie explained Joaine’s full history of injuries and treatments to listeners.

She said: “A few years ago, she broke her arm, and it was a clean break.

“She then broke it again, and they put all the metal work in.

“And then eight weeks ago, she went under general anaesthetic, had it all out, and has done it again.”

Natalie and Marc thought that “some sort of deficiency” was causing Joaine’s frequent injuries.

But Natalie said: “She’s had full blood tests, and everything is in range.

“It’s absolutely perfect.

“The consultant actually said, ‘I do think it’s just really bad luck.’”

She praised hospital staff for their care, especially as they worked during a heatwave that saw temperatures hit 37.7°C.

She said: “The hospital was quite warm for the few days we were in there.

“The staff working in that… they’re not moaning, they’re laughing, they’re joking.

“Just wonderful, wonderful people. We were so well looked after again.

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“It’s like a little trip, now. It’s like being in a hotel!”

Marc said medical staff recognised Joaine from previous visits.

He said: “The anaesthetist knew her. They all know Joaine.

“The anaesthetist even said, ‘Oh, I’ve done the bandage on the bear again like I did last time.’”

Natalie added: “I went down to theatre.

“I said, ‘Hello, Barbara.’ I mean, who, in their right mind, knows the f****** people in the hospital?”

Ms Cassidy also praised Joaine for her resilience.

She said: “She’s had her medicine, she’s got her fan. She’s watching the telly, and she’s a bit fed up.

“But she gets on with it, really. She’s so brave.”

Natalie is also mum to Eliza, whom she shares with her ex-partner Adam Cottrell.

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