Rosie Viva, who is close friends with pop star Dua Lipa, has discussed the dramatic moment that led to her bipolar disorder diagnosis. The young British fashion model caused a mass evacuation in 2018 when she set off a fire alarm at Stansted Airport. Ms Viva, who was just 22 years old at the time, ended up in a psychiatric ward after the incident and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Ms Viva had recently gone through a stressful break-up and was meant to be flying to Croatia to meet her parents for a holiday.
She reveals that she had always felt her reactions to events seemed more “extreme” when compared to her friends.
Her friends grew concerned when the break-up left the model feeling “jubilant and energised”.
However, this quickly turned to psychosis for the young model.
She told the BBC: “My parents lost a son to leukaemia when he was seven years old and I’d started sharing online that I felt I was a reincarnation of him.”
In the hours before pressing the fire alarm at Stansted, Ms Viva had kissed a stranger in a cafe, shoplifted from shops and bought everyone breakfast in McDonald’s.
She phoned her mum at the airport, which “shattered the illusion”.
Ms Viva told the BBC: “I realised that it was real life and I had reached breaking point. I felt such a sense of panic.
“I jumped through the baggage drop-off. There was a fire alarm on the left-hand side and I just remember hitting that with my hand.
“All I remember is hearing alarms go off and seeing policemen running towards me.”
After the Stansted incident, an ambulance took the model to A&E where she spent the next 24 hours.
She was soon moved to a psychiatric ward and was sectioned under the Mental Health Act.
Ms Viva would stay as an inpatient for the next three months.
After being discharged from hospital, Ms Viva was provided three years of NHS out-patient support.
The 27-year-old has managed to live with her diagnosis while thriving as a model and working for big brands such as Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent.
She said: “I still am such a normal 27-year-old who thinks ‘how do I deal with this on top of everything else?’.
“It doesn’t get easier, it’s just your mindset towards it gets much kinder.”
She says she “thrives” when she eats well, drinks little alcohol and has a good sleep routine.
