Sam Frost strips down: ‘I was completely out of my comfort zone’
Home and Away star Sam Frost had to face down her body confidence insecurities when she took on her latest TV challenge — dancing and stripping down for a good cause in The All New Monty: Guys & Gals show.
Confidential
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It was for a good cause but stripping naked for TV brought a raft of insecurities bubbling to the surface for Sam Frost.
The Home and Away actor is one of seven female celebrities who signed up for the 2020 season of The All New Monty: Guys & Gals to raise awareness for men’s and women’s cancers.
“It is amazing how many things that you’ve forgotten about bubble to the surface when you’re doing something new and being outside your comfort zone. It was a rollercoaster, to be honest,” Frost tells Insider.
The cast rehearsed for six weeks before stripping in front of almost 2000 people at the Enmore Theatre for the show televised on Channel 7 on Sunday.
That rollercoaster ranged from nerves to elation for Frost, who is much more comfortable playing Jasmine Delaney on Home and Away than being herself and getting her clothes off.
She is joined on the show by veteran entertainer Patti Newton, model and TV presenter Erin Holland, Russell Crowe’s former wife Danielle Spencer, Olympic gold medallist Leisel Jones, comedian Fiona O’Loughlin and reality star Ash Pollard.
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On the men’s side are former Test cricketer Michael Slater, actor Samuel Johnson, model Tom Derickx, Better Homes And Gardens presenter Adam Dovile, former Biggest Loser trainer Shannan Ponton, AFL commentator Wayne Carey and former Home And Away actor Orpheus Pledger.
“I think a lot of females will be able to relate, body confidence, insecurities, just classic stuff that I bottled up and chucked away thinking if I just ignored it, it would disappear,” Frost explains.
“And I’m not a dancer so I was completely out of my comfort zone. A lot of anxieties about self-worth came up. It was a whole bunch of things and I just felt like I stepped out of my comfort zone wanting to challenge myself and grow. But I felt like I was just drowning in insecurities for a while there.”
Frost, 31, has been open about her mental health struggles since launching into public life as a contestant on The Bachelor and then starring as The Bachelorette.
Last year, she launched a mental health platform, Believe by Sam Frost (believebysamfrost.com), in order to help others.
She has described the site as a “safe place where people can go to feel less alone”.
Part of her strategy to deal with stress is to see a psychologist regularly, a habit she followed throughout filming The All New Monty.
“When new things bubble up, like my body confidence issues, I speak to (the psychologist) about it. I saw this as part of my growth and I actually spoke to the other women about it,” Frost explains.
“I share my experiences and hope that they help others. And a lot of people reach out to me and tell me that they’ve felt like their life resonated with mine and it’s provided them with light and hope. And that’s all I can really do, but it is a really healing concept to me.
“It is nice for me to hear other people’s stories as well, to realise that I’m not alone either, and we’re all in this together. And yeah, absolutely, it’s healing … it’s therapeutic to get it all out there, it’s like you get it all off your chest and you share these experiences and you’re like, ‘Oh, I shouldn’t stay heavy anymore.’
“It was such an empowering feeling,” Frost said of the show’s finale.
“I felt liberated. I was on cloud nine, like I was running on adrenaline. I couldn’t stop laughing and smiling afterwards. It was a huge moment … it is something I’m so grateful I did.”
The experience has changed the way Frost looks at her body too.
“Obviously, we are doing this for breast cancer awareness so we are speaking to breast cancer survivors and women who have had huge, huge things to go through,” she says.
“Their bodies have been through this awful cancer and they’ve had to fight an awful disease. They’ve lost their hair, some have lost their boobs. Being around women like that, that are so strong and resilient and beautiful and brave, it makes you change the lens that you look at your body with. I look at my body now and I’m healthy and I’m so grateful for that.
“It certainly did change my perspective and now I just see how incredible our bodies are and what they’re able to do and they’re able to heal us. Our bodies are these incredible vessels.”
The All New Monty: Guys & Gals, Seven, Sunday, Sept 20 at 7pm. Home and Away, Monday to Thursday, 7pm