Selena Gomez on coping with bipolar disorder: “The more you learn about it, the less you’re going to be afraid”
Selena Gomez has opened up about living with bipolar disorder, saying that she has to take it “day by day”.
Speaking in a new preview of her upcoming documentary My Mind & Me, the pop singer shared how she has learned to live with her diagnosis.
“When I first got out, I didn’t know how I’d cope with my diagnosis,” Gomez said.
“What if it happened again? What if the next time, I couldn’t come back? I needed to keep learning about it. I needed to take it day by day.”
@vanityfair In her confessional documentary, ‘My Mind & Me,’ #SelenaGomez gives viewers an unflinching look at her mental health journey.
She continued: “When I was a kid I was terrified of thunderstorms. I grew up in Texas and I was so scared that lightning and thunder would mean a tornado was coming.
“But my mum gave me these books for kids that explained storms and lightning and thunder and basically said, ‘The more you learn about it, the less you’re going to be afraid of it.’ And it really helped.”
The Apple TV+ film, out November 3, will chart the singer and actress’ rise to fame, including her battles with Lupus and anxiety and depression.
Every breath, a breakthrough. In honor of #WorldMentalHealthDay I wanted to share the trailer for my documentary Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me. November 4 on @AppleTVPlus https://t.co/h8bkDd9mmV pic.twitter.com/2D4HixbCjL
— Selena Gomez (@selenagomez) October 10, 2022
The first trailer was released to coincide with World Mental Health Day earlier this month.
“Just be who you are Selena,” Gomez says in the trailer. “No cares about what you’re doing. It’s about who I am, being okay with where I am. I am grateful to be alive.”
The singer has spoken openly about her health struggles in recent years, including receiving a “life-saving” kidney transplant from friend and Grown-ish star Francia Raisa in 2017.
She also opened up about her struggles with depression and anxiety with Harpers Bazaar in 2018.
“I’ve had a lot of issues with depression and anxiety, and I’ve been very vocal about it, but it’s not something I feel I’ll ever overcome,” she said.
“There won’t be a day when I’m like, ‘Here I am in a pretty dress — I won!’ I think it’s a battle I’m gonna have to face for the rest of my life, and I’m okay with that because I know that I’m choosing myself over anything else. I’m starting my year off with that thought. ”
FOR HELP AND ADVICE ON MENTAL HEALTH:
- ‘Am I depressed?’ Help and advice on mental health and what to do next
- YOUNG MINDS – The voice for young people’s health and wellbeing
- CALM – The Campaign Against Living Miserably for young men
- Time To Change – Let’s end mental health discrimination
- The Samaritans – Confidential support 24 hours a day
The post Selena Gomez on coping with bipolar disorder: “The more you learn about it, the less you’re going to be afraid” appeared first on NME.
Hollie Geraghty
NME