Celebrities speak out about the shame and stigma surrounding mental health issues
On last week's episode of our experts discussed feelings of shame surrounding mental health, why they happen and how everyone can help stop them.
Even celebrities aren't immune to these feelings, but thankfully they're opening up to try and stop the stigma of mental health issues, whether that be depression, anxiety, eating disorders or any number of other afflictions.
Here are just a few of the famous faces who are getting vocal about shame - and why it shouldn't be a thing.
Olly Alexander
Olly Alexander from Years & Years on his mental health journey
Olly talks openly about his mental health experiences.
Appearing on The Surgery back in January, Years & Years' Olly Alexander spoke out about feeling like he couldn't tell anyone about his bulimia and self-harming. “All throughout school I really struggled with mental health problems, loads of different things, and I never told anyone," he said. "Never told my mum. And I think, looking back, it began to eat away at me. I wish I had talked sooner.”
Now, Olly knows the importance of speaking up, after seeking help from a therapist. “Today and for the rest of my life I think I’ll be using the tools I’ve learnt from medical professionals, from what I’ve learnt from therapy, from what I’ve learnt from friends and talking about things.”
Kristen Bell
In an interview with The Off Camera Show, Veronica Mars star Kristen spoke out about her anxiety and depression, and how nobody should feel shame over taking medication to control their mental health.
“I got on a prescription when I was really young and I still take it today and I have no shame in that because my mom had said to me, 'If you start to feel this way, talk to your doctor, talk to a psychologist, see how you want to help yourself,'" she said.
"If you do decide to go on a prescription to help yourself, understand that the world wants to shame you for that, but in the medical community, you would never deny a diabetic his insulin.”
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson
"Greg's about to cry!" - Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson & Kevin Hart meet ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Radio 1's Greg James
Greg met Kevin Hart and his teenage hero Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson.
Appearing on an episode of Oprah’s Master Class, Dwayne – who suffered from depression in his early 20s – emphasised the importance of not hiding or being ashamed of mental health issues.
"I found that, with depression, one of the most important things you could realise is that you're not alone,” he said. “You're not the first to go through it; you're not going to be the last to go through it… I wish I had someone at that time who could just pull me aside and [say], 'Hey, it's gonna be okay. It'll be okay.' So I wish I knew that.”
Kerry Washington
Speaking to Essence magazine in 2009, the Scandal star talked about her unhealthy relationship with food and compulsive exercising.
“I used food as a way to cope - it was my best friend,” she said. "I'd eat anything and everything, sometimes until I passed out.
“But then, because I had this personality that was driven toward perfectionism, I would tell people I was at the library, but instead go to the gym and exercise for hours and hours and hours. Keeping my behaviour a secret was painful and isolating. There was a lot of guilt and a lot of shame."
Kerry went to therapy, after being approached by her dance teacher about her eating disorder, and continues to see a therapist – as well as a nutritionist – to help her communicate her feelings instead of using food as a crutch.
J.K. Rowling
The Harry Potter author has been open about her battle with depression, and told Adeel Amini from Edinburgh University’s student magazine, “I have never been remotely ashamed of having been depressed. Never. What’s to be ashamed of? I went through a really rough time and I am quite proud that I got out of that.”
Chrissy Teigen
Lip Sync Battle co-host Chrissy penned an essay for Glamour magazine in February 2017, where she opened up about the postpartum depression she had silently been suffering from since the birth of her daughter, Luna.
Her reason for not speaking up before? “I felt selfish, icky, and weird saying aloud that I’m struggling. Sometimes I still do.”
Her reason for speaking up now? “I want people to know it can happen to anybody and I don’t want people who have it to feel embarrassed or to feel alone.”