'Devastated' Grey's Anatomy star Camilla Luddington bravely opened up on unexpected health diagnosis

This weekend marks the first birthday that Grey's Anatomy star Camilla Luddington is celebrating after being dealt a brutal blow to her health earlier this year.

Back in September, she broke the news in an emotional statement, confessing the diagnosis had left her feeling 'very lonely'.

For those in need of a little reminder, Luddington is globally-famed for her role as Dr Josephine 'Jo' Wilson in the hit medical drama Grey's Anatomy, in which she was cast in 2012.

She went on to become of the series' longest-standing characters and unlike many of her huge-name colleagues - several of whom got their 'big break' after landing a role in the show, she remains in the line-up to this day.

The fame she accumulated through the role has also afforded her the opportunity to launch a popular podcast with her Grey's co-star Jessica Capshaw, who plays Arizona Robins.

It was on this show that she opened up about her health diagnosis, revealing it to be something she'd resisted talking about in public before - particularly 'in detail'.

She confessed: "It felt very lonely when I first realised I had it so we're going to talk about it."

It was then that she recalled the period prior to her diagnosis, during which she claimed to be experiencing issues with her hearing.

"Two-ish—three—maybe two-ish years ago I was watching Ghost Busters and there are a lot of silent parts in it and I turned to [husband] Matt [Allen] and I said, 'Is, is the TV buzzing?'.

"I was very confused and he was like 'No,' and I'm like, 'Do you hear that ringing in your ear?' and he was like 'No I don't'."

It was then that Camilla - whose 41st birthday is on 15 December - finally revealed what she'd been diagnosed with: "And, long story short, I realised I had something called tinnitus, which is (and I still have it to this day) which is a constant noise."

Camilla continued: "Actually I don't have it - you can have it in one ear or the other ear - I only have it in my right ear. Um, I have it right now, I can always hear it, and it was very distressing to me because I realised after a few days, 'Oh I still hear this constantly, I'm not sure if this is something that is going to go away.'"

What is tinnitus?

According to the NHS, tinnitus describes when a patient suffers with hearing noises that do not come from an outside source. While the health agency reassures the condition is 'not usually a sign of anything serious', it can be extremely frustrating for the patient.

Tinnitus can present itself in several different ways, including in the forms of ringing, buzzing, whooshing, humming, hissing, throbbing, music or singing.

How is Camilla coping with her tinnitus?

Asked how life has been since receiving her diagnosis, Camilla claimed that she has found the news hard to swallow.

"I have to say that I was really devastated over it," she admitted. "I heard it very loudly, a lot, I found it very hard to parent, I was so self-conscious, I felt like I was going a little crazy and I ended up doing a hearing test and finding out I also had some hearing loss.

"Apparently I have the hearing of someone who is more, like, 60 years old, and I found that news very distressing and I was told tinnitus was some kind of hearing loss."

Camilla went on to explain: "Right now, right now I don't need a hearing aid, although I'm sure I'll need one at some point, maybe in my 40s, and I'm going to rock that by the way everyone."

How have fans responded to Camilla's admission?

In the comments below the podcast's Instagram upload, one fan gushed: "Beautiful topic, beautiful spoken, beautiful inspiring for so many others. Love the fact how you every time got such important, supportive episodes"

Another went on: "You both are amazing by talking about such a whole important topic. It will help so many to speak for themselves as well".