Actress and singer Selena Gomez is speaking out again about her mental health, detailing the “scariest” time in her life. About a year ago, she took a hiatus from public life, and a break from social media. People Magazine reported that October that she’d checked into a mental health facility for her “ongoing emotional issues.”
Gomez, 27, opened up about this time while receiving an award from Massachusetts’ McLean Hospital, which specializes in psychiatry, at their annual dinner on September 13. She was honored for furthering “the public’s understanding of psychiatric illness and mental health,” according to a McClean press release.
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“I think that we are better when we tell the truth and, so, this is my truth,” she said during the speech, which was shared by a fan account on Instagram. “Last year, I was suffering mentally and emotionally, and I wasn’t able to stay all that kept together. I wasn’t able to hold a smile or to keep things normal.”
“It felt like all of my pain and my anxiety washed over me all at once and it was one of the scariest moments of my life,” she continued, adding that she decided to seek help, getting an official diagnosis from her doctors. She said knowing for certain what was going on with her both “terrified” and made her feel relieved.
“Terrified, obviously, because the veil was lifted, but relieved that I finally had the knowledge of why I had suffered for so many years with depression and anxiety,” she said. She added that she decided to face her condition head on, educating herself about it as much as she could.
“After a year of a lot of intense work,” she said. “I am happier, I am healthier, and I am in control of my emotions and thoughts more than I’ve ever been.”
She said that telling her story wasn’t easy, but she wanted to be transparent and open to help others who’ve gone through something similar.
“For me, it feels right to share that I have personally felt the effects of both depression and anxiety — but it isn’t easy. I have feared being misunderstood and judged,” she said. “I know that I have been given experiences and people and opportunities that have made my life exceptionally beautiful and sweet — and yet I struggle with my own thoughts and feelings at times. But this doesn’t make me faulty. This does not make me weak. This does not make me less than. This makes me human. We need help, and we need each other.”