We are all different and no one’s journey in life is the same. But sometimes reading about other people’s experiences can help us. It shows that we are not alone and that things can and do get better.
Anyone can experience mental health difficulties and this includes celebrities! Check out some of their stories below…
Davina McCall
Davina says: “Talking about mental health problems should be as easy as talking about physical health problems - you wouldn't be ashamed or scared to tell someone you were ill would you? Being open about mental health goes a long way to breaking down the stigma. It's time to talk, it's Time to Change.”
J.K. Rowling
One of the most famous writers in the world shows that mental health problems do not have to stop you from doing things in your life. J.K. Rowling used writing to help with her depression and through this found world fame!
John Green
Famous for writing ‘The Fault in Our Stars’, John Green has spoken openly in the media about his struggles with anxiety and OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) and the treatment he has received for this. Showing his fans that they are not alone.
…And there’s more
See a list of celebrity mental health supporters at: www.time-to-change.org.uk/news-media/celebrity-supporters
Leanne’s story
Leanne is a young person from Derbyshire who has been supported by our CAMHS team. Here, she explains why it’s so important to talk about mental health.
Mental health is nothing to be ashamed of. Just like physical health, it is something we all have and sometimes in our life we struggle with it, some more than others.
It was hard as a young person with poor mental health, especially at school; I felt very misunderstood. My peers struggled to understand my behaviour and why for example I found speaking in front of the class a hard thing to do. Until more recent years, anxiety had such a tight grip on my life, I found going out to meet friends hard, getting buses near-on impossible and making decisions was a task I dreaded. Anxiety impacted my life so much that I wasn’t the person I dreamed to be. Inside, I was a whole different me.
People said all kinds of unhelpful things like ‘you need to get over this.’ Sometimes I felt they thought I wanted to be the way I was. I couldn’t see things being any other way or changing. I felt so trapped in a world I didn’t want to be in, that I didn’t go as far as planning for tomorrow, I didn’t see much point. My family and friends struggled to understand me and I struggled to help myself.
I now see that I so badly needed care, support, time and love and I did receive these things, in the form of an amazing teacher, counselling, therapy and brilliant friendships. It was the people who gave me these things that really helped me to turn my life around. They didn’t just help me change my life, they saved me from myself.
I now am open about my experiences, in the hope that for other people this will give them the small nudge to be open about their own, to realise that sometimes, it’s ok not to be ok and to seek help if this is necessary. Seeking help is everything but weakness, it takes courage to stand and look at yourself.
