Over the years more and more celebrities have spoken up about their personal struggles with mental health and the impact on their fans has been amazing. Having anxiety and panic attacks has become so common that most people have experienced it at least once in their life. During those times it's really important to know that you are not alone.
At Bright Side we selected some of the most powerful stories of famous people who fought these battles and won. Their moving disclosures are evidence that no one is superhuman and sometimes we just need to give ourselves a break.
The sweet and talented actress that we love, Emma Stone, opened up during an interview about panic attacks she has struggled with in the past. Everything started when she was a child, long before her acting career. As she remembers, “The first time I had a panic attack, I was sitting in my friend’s house and I thought the house was burning down.”
She also recalls being fearful about everything, her mom being by her side, and that this long 3-year battle was over after extensive therapy.
Jennifer Lawrence might be considered the “happy child” of Hollywood, but she wasn’t always like that, quite the contrary actually. As she recalls, she was more of a “weirdo” and not the smart kind of weird. “I didn’t fit in. I’ve always just had this weird anxiety. I hated recess. I didn’t like field trips. Parties really stressed me out.” she adds.
Even though she had therapy and medication, what helped her the most was acting. “I finally found something people were telling me I was good at, which I had never heard, ever,” she stated.
Just before she turned thirty, Taylor Swift revealed some of the lessons she learned on her way to become a famous singer. The pop star had really low self-esteem, hating every curve of her body. Little by little she confessed that she had started to manage her anxiety, love herself, and never stop trying, even when she failed.
“Every day I try to remind myself of the good in the world and the love I witness,” she says. “I learned to block some of the noise,” the singer stated about the hateful comments and the rough criticism she gets online. Love helped her get out of this sentimental crisis.
The famous presenter and TV persona has often spoken publicly about her personal mental issues. During an interview, Oprah revealed that after she learned that her movie Beloved failed at the box office, a very tough period began for her. “And soooo began my long plunge into food and depression and suppressing all my feelings,” she said.
Later on, along with Prince Harry, they decided to team up to create a docuseries on Apple TV about everyone who suffers from mental illnesses in silent.
Years back, the famous and admirable writer of Harry Potter, J.K Rowling, gave a very open interview to Oprah Winfrey talking about her struggle to get out of depression. After her first “short and catastrophic,” as she describes it, marriage she tried to get on her feet as a single mother. “I had a very, very tiny baby, and then I went straight into poverty and depression,” she said.
Her writing, counseling, and afterward, the right man by her side, were the things that helped her rise up to the surface. J.K Rowling never stops showing her support to her fans. Once she wrote on Twitter to a fan who was suffering from depression, that “such a unique, valuable human being deserves happiness. Ask for help. Don’t fight alone. Big hug.”
Mariah Carey confessed during an exclusive interview that she suffers from bipolar disorder. “I didn’t want to believe it,” she says, “until recently I lived in denial and isolation and in constant fear that someone would expose me.” Her battle has been really harsh and she was even hospitalized for some time while having a mental breakdown.
As she reveals, what helped her the most, except for therapy, was surrounding herself with positive people and doing what she does best, making music.
The young actress has opened up in the past, and continues to do so, about her mental health issues. Amanda Seyfried spoke up in Dr. Berlins’ Informed Pregnancy podcast about her decision to not stop her antidepressant treatment during her pregnancy. She said that she was diagnosed with OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) and anxiety when she was 19-years-old, so it has always been tough for her to not be scared about things that don’t happen according to plan.
“I was afraid I was going to lose control of my body. It was one of the best moments of my life when I was diagnosed” because, as she says, she could now feel free. “I function really well now!” she said.
The talented creator and actor in the series Girls never tried to hide her personal battles with mental health. On her Instagram page, she once wrote that exercise was one of the main helpers during her battle with OCD, anxiety, and depression. She also invites her fans to do the same because even if “it’s mad annoying when people tell you to exercise,” it’s not about creating the perfect body, it’s all about the brain.
During an interview, she confesses that she has been in therapy since the age of 7, something that helped her a lot growing up with the body-shaming and bullying she received. She specifically stated, “people called me fat and hideous, and I lived. And now, I keep living.”
The famous pop singer has never hid her social anxiety and discomfort about being in public. In the early stages of her career, she even tweeted, “I have a major anxiety disorder and [ I ] am trying to look after my psyche. I will sign things that you... give to me, but I can’t hang.”
During an interview, she refused to have her photo taken for a piece and appeared on the cover of Billboard Magazine with a bag over her head. She has also been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and has been battling with several addictions for many years now.
Miley Cyrus might look like a super happy and energetic woman, but things have been tough for her, she admits. “I would have anxiety attacks. I’d get hot flashes, feel like I was about to pass out or throw up.” she confessed in an interview.
As she said to the journalist, her dream is bigger than showing a perfect body or selling the perfect lipstick, “My dream is to save the world,” she stated.
Demi Lovato is one of the most admirable and honest celebrities. She’s always spoken the truth about her personal struggle with an eating disorder, anxiety, and depression in order to help other people find peace like she did. During an interview, she shared that what hurts her the most is the mental illness stigma. “There’s a lack of compassion for people who have mental illnesses and there’s a lot of judgment.”
Exercising helped her deal with her anxiety, also painting, writing music, and meditation were part of her way to heal herself. She even launched a project about this matter with the title “Be Vocal,” where people are invited to speak up about their disorders in order to get help and help other people.
Kristen Stewart is mostly known for the movie series Twilight. The young actress has played in other movies, and been featured in clips and ads ever since. What most people might not know is that she suffered from severe panic attacks during her life on set.
“I went through so much stress and periods of strife. I would have panic attacks... I literally always had a stomach ache.” she said. “I obviously hope everything going on right now will work out...” she stated in an interview.
Khloe Kardashian has also been struggling with anxiety. What helped her the most, as she claims in one of her many interviews, was the gym. “When I’m fidgety and I just feel like everything is closing in, I go to the gym,” she said.
The famous TV persona invites people to build an exercise routine in order to build up endorphins that will bring happiness back. “I promise you, the gym has taken away so much of my stress. It has helped calm me down,” she added.
We have loved and admired Catherine Zeta-Jones over the years for her movies, but few might be aware of her everyday battle with her bipolar disorder. “It’s not easy... but with my bipolar becoming public, I hope fellow sufferers will know it’s completely controllable,” the actress said.
She also talked about the stigma attached to mental health problems and invited people to open up about their issues and seek help and treatment.
Sophie Turner, our beloved Sansa Stark from Game of Thrones, gave a truly emotional interview to Dr. Phil about the state of her mental health. The talented actress revealed that both she and her immediate family have suffered from depression for about 5 or 6 years now. “I began struggling with depression when I was about 17,” she shared.
Her partner in life, Joe Jonas, has helped her a lot in her battle and as she so sweetly described: “When someone tells you they love you every day... I think it makes you love yourself a bit more.”
Struggling with depression or anxiety is tough. Have you or your loved ones ever experienced mental health issues? What have you done to make yourselves or people around you feel better? Share your stories in the comments, we’d love to hear your voices.
I listened to some of Sia's songs, most of them are really depressive and I felt that there is something wrong with her. Then I googled a bit and saw that she tries to hide her face. Now I see where it all comes from.
Though, her voice is truly amazing
