Irish novelist Louise O’Neill has put pen to paper as she details the brutal aftermath of her breakup in a tell-all memoir, revealing how the stress of her split was so severe it caused her to crack a tooth and left her on beta blockers.

The Clonakilty author, 41, was left reeling in January 2023 when she claimed her partner of five years ended things, refusing her pleas for couples counselling.

The pair had bought a home together in Wicklow and shared a dog, Cooper, but despite her pleas, Louise says she was unable to persuade her then partner to change his mind.

Months after the breakup, an anonymous Instagram message landed in her inbox containing screenshots alleging her boyfriend had been unfaithful during their relationship. When confronted, her ex insisted they were faked, and she had no way of verifying them.

‘I was so shocked that I cracked a tooth in half,’ she admitted, per the Irish Times. ‘I couldn’t sleep. I was having multiple panic attacks a day. My cortisol was so high… my doctor put me on beta blockers because of the heart palpitations.’ Louise says she was left questioning ‘what if I’m broken and my body is broken,’ and took time off work fearing a ‘nervous breakdown.’

Devastated, Louise went abroad for eight months, jetting between Thailand, Paris, New York and London. She tried an ‘ecstatic dance’ retreat in Koh Samui, hypnotherapy, a shamanic ritual and even a graveyard visit with a psychic, all in a desperate bid to move on.

Eventually she turned to the apps, racking up more than 100 dates across five countries, including a staggering 38 in 30 days in New York. She rubbed shoulders with men who owned private jets and flew into Cork just to see her, even joining exclusive celebrity dating app Raya, though she remained sober throughout, being a non-drinker.

The star also revealed she splashed out on Invisalign braces, microblading, gel nails, facials and a ‘lip flip’ in a bid to ‘reclaim’ herself post-split, while a gruelling IVF consultation warned her fertility window was closing, with a doctor telling her ‘urgency is key’.

As the book draws to a close, Louise reveals she’s found love again with a mystery man known only as ‘Leo’, though she’s staying tight-lipped on whether they’re still together. ‘I will neither confirm nor deny,’ she smiled, ‘to protect him’.

Despite the chaos, Louise insists the memoir isn’t a ‘revenge’ tale, saying she wrote it from ‘acceptance rather than anger’ and hopes it will bring hope to anyone who feels ‘stuck’.

A Bigger Life by Louise O’Neill is set to hit shelves on September 24.