Austrian kidnap woman tells of struggle to readjust

Austrian former kidnap victim Natascha Kampusch says she cannot yet face going out alone four months after escaping from her captor and sometimes finds being in large groups of people overwhelming.

Ms Kampusch, 18, was forced to live in a cell beneath a house garage from 1998 until her dramatic escape in August, which turned her into an international media sensation. Her captor, a 44-year-old man, committed suicide hours after she slipped away.

In an interview with Austria's ORF television, Miss Kampusch said she was finding it hard at times to adjust to her new, free life.

"I can't go out in public alone. That would be too risky," she said, looking relaxed and confident but blinking regularly.

She has said previously she keeps sunglasses and ear plugs ready to keep out light and noise. Her captor, Wolfgang Priklopil, kept her in a windowless cell beneath his garage.

Asked if people recognised her in the street, Ms Kampusch said: "Yes. Most of the time it is harmless. But now and then I get a brief fright if someone calls out 'hello', if me or the person I am with is recognised and it is a stranger."

"Sometimes it is really obtrusive for me. I don't like loud voices," she said.

"People have different body odours, they smoke, they wear perfume, they wear flashy, disturbing clothes, they have unpleasant eating habits, they are rude, unfriendly, undisciplined and so on, but that doesn't matter at all.

"I was always a social person and from the outset (of life) had no problems with social contact," she added.

Miss Kampusch wore her blonde hair down during the interview. In a previous television interview she wore a headscarf, which advisers told her to wear to give her greater options should she want to change how she looks to avoid media publicity.

Last month she made a televised appearance to aid handicapped children.

She is living on her own in a small rented apartment with access to psychological counselling to further her recovery from eight years of captivity, Austrian media say.