Yazmin Oukhellou tried to wake Jake McClean after the horror car crash that killed him but knew "in my gut" he had gone.
The TOWIE star, 28, explains how "there’s not a day where I don’t think about the crash" as she shares how cruel trolls have accused her of getting over the death of her on-off boyfriend in July.
Yazmin admits she is torn apart with grief for the late businessman - who previously dated Lauren Goodger - and was recently diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following the tragic accident in Turkey.
Jake, 33, was pronounced dead at the scene when his and Yazmin's Mercedes car overturned after plunging 30ft into a ditch in the holiday resort of Bodrum at 4.30am in the morning on Sunday July 3. Yazmin was sleeping at the time the car veered off the cliff - something doctors say could have possibly saved her life.
"I tried to wake Jake up, but he wasn’t waking. I tried to beep the horn with my foot, but I couldn’t reach it. We were in the middle of nowhere and so screaming for help wasn’t any good," Yazmin says in a new interview.
"I knew I had to get out of the car and somehow I found the strength to free my arm by lifting it with my left hand, moving my right arm up and dropping it back down for what felt like forever until I snapped it free."
Yazmin arrived back in the UK shortly after the tragic accident in July this year, being discharged from hospital after undergoing surgery due to her arm being seriously injured, but was not present at Jake's funeral in August, amid rumours the late businessman's family had banned his on-off girlfriend from the farewell.
Speaking with The Sun, the reality TV star goes on to explain how she spotted a man walking his dog by torchlight after getting free from the car. He called for an ambulance as Yazmin rushed back to Jake's side.
"I knew in my gut he’d gone," she tells the publication as she fights back tears.
Earlier this year, Yazmin explained how she and Jake were "off" when she visited Turkey but had planned to reconcile and described Jake as "only person I have ever felt a love like that for", as she admitted the ordeal will be a "very, very difficult" thing for her to process.
"This will stay with me for life. But for me, I loved him so hard and that’s why I travelled across the world to be with him," she told The Sun shortly after returning home in July.
At the start of this month, the reality TV star shared footage from her time spent in hospital as she marked World Mental Health Day on Monday October 10.
She explained how she's had some 'really awful days' since she was in the car crash that killed on-off boyfriend Jake earlier this year, but wants to share more on her 'worst days' in a bid to be more 'real' on social media rather than trying to put a brave face on.
*If you're struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email jo@samaritans.org or visit their site to find your local branch
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