A woman who had a nervous breakdown has reportedly been locked in a cage for the last five years by her family.

Bebe, 29, was living with family and working in a local shop before she was diagnosed with psychotic depression in 2014 in the Philippines.

She began having hallucinations and was admitted to a psychiatry unit at a hospital in Negros Occidental province.

The woman, who has a chiselled jaw, strong cheekbones, long black hair and slim body, gradually improved after a year of treatment.

Doctors were optimistic about her condition and even allowed her to return to her family.

However, when her father became sick on 2015, the family could no longer afford her medical bills.

The woman – who friends say dreamed off being a model – was discharged from the facility and went home with her siblings taking care of her.

She was also forced to stop taking medicine so her depressive episodes and hallucinations returned.

Her concerned family friend, Glyzel Bullos, said there were instances when Bebe would become violent so he family resorted to locking her up for her own safety.

Glyzel is now appealing for help for her troubled friend.

She said: "Sometimes Bebe would throw things at neighbours, or wander outside the house and start riding the bus.

"There was one time her family was looking for her and found her a week later in Cebu province when the police contacted them."

To prevent her from wandering alone, her family built a small cage for her inside the house.

The family also dress her in rags – because she has destroyed so many of her clothes. They talk to her and pass food through the bars of her cell.

Glyzel added: "She munches on her dress until they are tattered, so they dress her in sacks because she doesn’t like eating them.

"They are locking her up so she won’t hurt herself, and not because they don’t love her."

The concerned friend is also appealing to good Samaritans so they can send Bebe back to the hospital for treatment.

She said: "Medical services are expensive, especially a private mental institution.

"I hope there are people who could help us bring Bebe back to her past self."