We may think that famous people lead perfect lives, but the reality couldn’t be further from the truth.
They have the same problems as all of us despite the fame and fortunes Hollywood has to offer. Despite suffering from a mental illness, these seven celebs are on top of the world and have no intention of getting out of showbiz.
Emma Stone
Emma Stone is one of the most famous faces in Hollywood, but it hasn’t always been smooth sailing for her.
The Hollywood A-lister – who came to fame in Superbad – revealed to the Wall Street Journal how she suffered with childhood panic attacks which she struggled with for over three years.
She said:
It was really bad. The first time I had a panic attack I was sitting in my friend’s house, and I thought the house was burning down. I called my mom and she brought me home, and for the next three years it just would not stop. I would go to the nurse at lunch most days and just wring my hands.
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson
He’s starred in one of the biggest box office hits of the year – Furious 7 – however, Hollywood favourite Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson admitted to having gone through quite the low period.
In a frank interview with Oprah Winfrey earlier this year, the wrestler-turned actor talked about it past experiences with depression, saying: “I found that with depression one of the most important things you could realize is that you’re not alone.”
This stemmed from being passed over by the NFL and then cut from his team – the Calgary Stampeders – in the Canadian Football League at the age of 23.
The Rock added: “I wish I had someone at that time who could just pull me aside and [say], “Hey, it’s going to be okay. It’s going to be okay.”
Cara Delevingne
Earlier this year, the modelling superstar opened up about her prolonged fight with depression at the 2015 Women in the World Summit.
The model-turned-actress said that she had felt “completely suicidal and alone” and wanted “the world to swallow me up” during her school years, but spoke of how yoga and writing helped her beat it.
She went on to share what helped her in her recovery:
It’s about finding people around you who have your best interests at heart. I had a lot of people around me who were just after what I gave them…not looking after me. So it’s about finding people who care about you, and support you. And I’ve now been able to become a support for other people, as well.
Britney Spears
In the 90’s, Britney Spears was one of the biggest pop stars on the planet after series of chart-topping hits, she revealed all in an E! documentary I Am Britney Jean about how different her stage act is to the real her.
She’s had a mix of social anxiety, intense shyness, nerves, self-flagellation and worry and after a very public meltdown in 2007 – where she famously shaved her head and was eventually diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Speaking about her career as a teenager and her subsequent crash she said:
There was a time when I couldn’t leave the house without about 20 cars following me. It was a very difficult time for me…I felt really alienated. They [the paparazzi] kind of eased up after I didn’t come out of the house for like two years. I turned into this different person, seriously.
Robert Pattinson
In an interview in 2013 with Australia’s Sunday Style magazine, Twilight star Robert Pattinson admitted that he has an ongoing battle with anxiety, depression and body dysmorphia- especially before red carpet events.
He explained how once he was at the event, his nerves calmed down a bit. He said: “Up until that moment I’m a nut case. Body dysmorphia, overall tremendous anxiety.”
Stephen Fry
One of Britain’s best-loved actors and comedians, Stephen Fry has battled with depression and bipolar disorder most of his life.
Fry was first referred to a psychiatrist at school and by the time he was 17, he was suicidal. However, he had to wait until he was 37 before he was finally diagnosed with bipolar disorder and had spent years drinking vodka and taking cocaine to numb the internal anguish of his depression.
The 58-year-old has attempted suicide on a number of occasions, most recently in 2012, when he had to be brought back to the UK to be “looked after” last year after attempting suicide while filming abroad. He spoke of how he took a cocktail of medication and pills, as was found unconscious by his producer.
He said:
I am the victim of my own moods, more than most people are perhaps, in as much as I have a condition which requires me to take medication so that I don’t get either too hyper or too depressed to the point of suicide.
Stephen has been a tireless campaigner, supporter and advocate for everyone experiencing mental health problems. His 2006 documentary The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive detailed his own experience of bipolar disorder as well as speaking to many others who shared his diagnosis.
Miley Cyrus
Outlandish pop star Miley Cyrus revealed earlier this year in an interview with Marie Claire about her Disney and Hannah Montana days and how the whole experience left her with severe body dysmorphia.
She suffered severe anxiety attacks she suffered as a young child star and how she experienced hot flushes that made her feel like she was going to throw up.
The singer explained how she’s trying to be more comfortable in her own skin, and though her recent behaviour is often considered controversial she spoke of how the pressure of trying to be someone else had a hugely negative impact on her life when she was younger.
She said:
I was made to look like someone that I wasn’t, which probably caused some body dysmorphia because I had been made pretty every day for so long, and then when I wasn’t on that show it was like, ‘Who the fuck am I?’
