I was a model but hit rock bottom after dodgy surgery & was so skint I lived on crisps…now I earn £100K a year from cats | The Sun
A FORMER model has been brought back from the depths of despair by the love of her cats.
Helena Abrahams, now 52, was driven to attempt suicide after botched back surgery left her penniless and bedbound.
But her love for her cats helped to pull her through and Helena is now head of a cat sitting business, which has 23 franchises and thousands of clients across the UK and turns over £100K a year.
Helena, from Bury, Greater Manchester, who has nine cats of her own, tells The Sun: “At my lowest, I was existing on Pringles, because I had no money for food. I even had to sell my jewellery.
“I was housebound and in so much pain that I took an overdose.
“Now, with a successful business, and a bright future, I have so much to be happy about.
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"I owe so much to my cats. I really want others to take heart from my story – no matter how low you feel, no matter what life throws at you, there is always hope.”
Helena had a successful career as a clothes model and TV extra throughout her 20s – appearing in ITV’s Band of Gold in the 90s – but aged 30, began to suffer with severe back pain.
She was diagnosed with degenerative disc disease, thought to have been triggered by intensive exercise she did throughout her childhood and teenage years.
In 2004 Helena underwent surgery privately to fuse her spine and also to insert a metal plate.
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9But the pain intensified after her op and some weeks after coming home from hospital, she collapsed.
Doctors were unable to help her and over the coming months, she found herself housebound, unable to get out of bed and in severe pain.
Helena says: “Obviously I had to give up modelling.
"Until then my whole career had been based on my looks and now, my body was completely butchered with scars.
“I had no money – every penny I had went on cat food – and I was existing on Pringles.
"I had some beautiful jewellery, a present from my parents, and I even had to sell that to pay my bills.
“My relationship ended, and I hit rock bottom. I didn’t see anyone, except for my dad, for months.
“I got to the point in my late 30s where I couldn’t cope. I wrote letters for my cats to make sure they went to good homes, and I took an overdose of my medication.”
Helena was thankfully discovered the following day, unconscious, and her life was saved.
In the years that followed she had therapy, along with 10 different surgeries on her back, to help ease her pain.
Her condition has improved so much that she can now walk and drive again.
She says: “My cats really pulled me through the recovery, so it was natural for me to want to give something back.”
Six years ago, unhappy with leaving her own cats in a cattery, Helena set up a cat sitting business, called Couture, which quickly took off.
It became so popular that 18 months ago, she decided to expand the business.
Helena now has an amazing 23 franchises across the UK and has over 500 clients herself, with an annual turnover of £100,000.
Helena says: “I really do care about cats, and how they are treated, and my clients can see that.
"I treat every cat as though it is my own. I love working with animals and they have really turned my life around.
“I am still in pain, and I will need further surgery in the future, but I have so much to celebrate now.
"I have learned to see my scars as part of my journey, part of who I am.
“For anyone who gets to that low point, please don’t despair. There is always hope."
Helena currently has nine cats, two of whom are severely disabled. One is a model, and one has her own daily blog.
Helena is also campaigning for ‘Gizmo’s Law’ in memory of her cat Gizmo, who was killed on the road in 2017 and cremated without her knowledge or consent.
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Gizmo’s Law will ensure that local authorities are compelled to scan the microchips of deceased cats and inform their owners.
- For help and support, contact the Samaritans on 116 123 or visit samaritans.org.
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