Hollyoaks legend Stephanie Waring has opened up about missing the soap in a "vulnerable" new social media post.
The actor left her role as Cindy Cunningham last year amid a cast cull, and has since embarked on a career as a life coach.
Taking to her Instagram page today, however, Stephanie admitted that while she loves her new job, it "won't ever come close" to her "passion of being an actor".
"Someone asked me a question yesterday and it was, 'What work do you do?' And I thought, good point," she said in a video clip. "What work do I do? And the first thing that came to my head was I'm an actor. That's all I've known for the last 30 years."
The star explained that when she lost her job on Hollyoaks, she knew that she would be in a "place of vulnerability" as it "wasn't guaranteed" that she would walk straight into another acting job.
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"It's really hard out there, it's not easy," she continued. "And that's one of the reasons why I stayed in Hollyoaks for so long, because it was security and I was doing what I loved every single day. And I didn't even question it.
"So when I became vulnerable I thought what else can I do that would give me purpose and something that I was passionate about. And I've dealt with a lot of mental health in my life and when I decided to train as a life coach, I thought that this would help me in that respect. And it did, I was my first client."
Stephanie shared that the tools she has learned have helped her "become a better version" of herself and that she is "a work in progress".
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"I just wanted to jump on and just be a little bit vulnerable I suppose," she concluded. "I do have days where I'm sad and I miss it and I've realised that is what I do... I am 100% focused on [it], I'm passionate about [it], but it won't ever come close to my passion of being an actor.
"So when someone asks what is it that I do, I suppose I'm many things, and that's OK. I think it's OK to have as many strings to your bow as possible to be successful in this world, because it ain't easy. Anyway, sending lots of love."
Stephanie has since received a lot of support in the comments, with fellow Hollyoaks star Ross Adams (Scott Drinkwell) writing: "Proud of you," while Hollyoaks: In The City star Faye McKeever shared two red heart emojis.
Hollyoaks airs on Mondays-Wednesdays with its Channel 4 streaming premiere at 7am, then an E4 broadcast the same night at 7pm. Full episodes are also released on YouTube a week after their Channel 4 release.
Selected omnibus episodes are available via Prime Video.
