The Only Murders in the Building star has been more open about her mental health in recent years.
Her documentary Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me was released November 4th 2022 on Apple TV. It explores her journey and recovery with various struggles with depression, anxiety, and a bipolar diagnosis. The footage begins by moving around to different times, including 2016 and 2019, when the star was on tour, and hating every minute. Gomez struggled with the pressures of shedding her image as a child star for Disney while beginning a career as a solo artist, says the Times.
After a Lupus diagnosis in 2014, Gomez was faced with constant joint pain and exhaustion as a result of the autoimmune disease, writes E News. Her particular diagnosis was “lupus myositis rheumatoid overlap” which causes inflammation in her joints and muscles. The treatment is extensive, and “really hard on your system,” Selena revealed.
After the cancellation of her world tour, Selena entered a psychiatric care facility for treatment for depression and anxiety attacks following the Lupus diagnosis. Her assistant reveals in Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me that the artist struggled with suicidal thoughts.
“The truth is I’ve never felt good enough,” Selena admitted. “Even when I’m on stage in front of a crowd, I’ll always find the one person who doesn’t like me and I believe them, I want to believe in myself.” She mentions worrying that she was disappointing her fans by not living up to their expectations, something she later realized was a distorted mindset.
The former Disney star gave an emotional and deeply personal speech while accepting the 2019 McLean Award at the hospital’s Annual Dinner. The singer revealed that “being honest that night helped,” leading her to write “Lose You to Love Me,” which she completed in just 45 minutes with songwriters Julia Michaels and Justin Tranter, says E News.
“It’s about more than just a lost love,” Selena said of the hit song. “It’s me learning to choose myself, to choose life….”
In May 2022, Selena met with President Joe Biden to discuss the creation of a mental health curriculum. The President told Gomez, “People look at you and say, look at this talented person. And she’s telling me she had a problem? Oh well, I guess that it’s okay — okay to ask for help.”
A White House official described the conversation on the patio of the Oval Office as “candid and intimate,” according to CNN.
“When you’re struggling with your mental health, the essential part is knowing what to do and recognizing that,” Selena explained. “It’s something that I’m not ashamed of.”
Sources:
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/02/movies/selena-gomez-my-mind-and-me-review.html
https://www.eonline.com/news/1353160/selena-gomez-says-she-spent-years-contemplating-suicide
https://edition.cnn.com/2022/05/26/politics/selena-gomez-mental-health-white-house/index.html
