ESPN Reporter Britt McHenry Opens Up About the Viral Video That Changed Her Life

ESPN's Britt McHenry revisits her viral video and how she was emotionally and physically affected by the incident.

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Last year, ESPN reporter Britt McHenry's life changed when a video surfaced of her cursing and berating a towing company employee. McHenry was suspended for one week by ESPN, but the real damage was done in the weeks and months following the incident. In a piece for Marie Claire, the ESPN reporter recalls the threats she received online, the tabloids that came after her parents, and the health scare caused by the ordeal.

As the threats came pouring in after the video went viral, McHenry filed a police report for her protection and ESPN hired a security detail to take her from one place to another. But she wasn't the only one forced to deal with this situation. One day, McHenry received a phone call from her mother claiming that tabloids visited her parents' Florida home. After issuing an apology on Twitter, the ESPN reporter stayed off social media to avoid what she calls "the tornado of vulgar and sexist insults online."  

A few months later, McHenry started having blurriness in her right eye. After visiting a retinal specialist, she was diagnosed with Central Serous Retinopathy, which is often the result of stress. McHenry says she receives injections in her eye to "regain my vision and prevent further damage." She is now focused on making "something positive" out of her situation by speaking in high schools "about how to be mindful of your words, how to be self-aware."

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