A National Lottery winner said that while her life-changing prize has brought new opportunities, it has also led to a prolonged struggle in her personal life
A woman who won a staggering £8,471,383 on the National Lottery, has spoken about the unexpected downside of her life-changing win. Karen Child, from Derbyshire, was working at Tesco and living in a council house with her two children when she decided to try her luck on the lottery in 2007.
In what became a life-altering moment, she bought a single lucky dip ticket on her way home from booking her wedding day.
“That evening, I matched the first three numbers. I was thrilled, thinking I’d won £10,” she recalled. “Then another number came up and another. By the sixth, I was screaming and shouting.”
Realising all her numbers had appeared on screen, she waited for official confirmation from the National Lottery, which later confirmed she had won more than £8 million.
“I couldn’t stop shaking. I expected someone to say there had been a mistake,” she said, according to Best Magazine.
With her winnings, Karen and her then-fiancé went on to marry and traded a staycation honeymoon for a luxury trip to Mauritius, though the relationship eventually broke down.
The lottery winner, who has since had another child, said she has now been single for 13 years and has found it difficult to rebuild her love life due to trust issues. “The hardest part of winning has been trust,” she admitted.
“I struggle to trust new people. Now, I wait before telling anyone about my win. If nothing changes, they’re a friend for life.”
Karen has also used part of her winnings to buy a new home and provide greater security and opportunities for her three children.
Giving back to her community, she has sponsored local sports teams and founded her own charity, The Child Foundation, which supports children and families in need of specialist care.
Meanwhile, Margaret Loughrey’s €250 million EuroMillions jackpot win (around £215 million) is said to have “destroyed” her life, according to her brother, Paul.
Nicknamed “Maggie Millions” after her 2013 victory, the Northern Ireland woman reportedly struggled to cope with her sudden wealth and the dramatic changes it brought to her life.
At the time, Paul said she was already dealing with long-standing mental health challenges following the death of her father.
“I was the first to be told. We were close right up until the money. But from that day I knew. I told the rest of the family this is not going to be good for Margaret,” he told Dublin Live.
He also claimed she became increasingly distant from her relatives, eventually cutting ties and “didn’t want to know” them, although she did give each of her siblings and close friends £1 million.
Margaret died eight years after her win.
