Breakfast & bravery MELISSA’S PRIVATE PAIN
‘I was sick of my brain giving me these worries all the time and needed a break from it’
Cool and calm, Melissa Stokes is often the face presenting the news to hundreds of thousands of people across New Zealand. But over the past year, when the cameras stopped rolling, the TVNZ star has faced some of the biggest hurdles in her life – including battling anxiety, helping her eldest son with his ADHD and being there for her mother who has lung cancer.
“When Covid first hit in 2020, I’d only been the weekend newsreader for a year before I had to move to the Breakfast show, as we broke into teams,” recalls Melissa, who turns 43 next month.
“I don’t think I handle change very well, so that made me quite panicked
