Everyone faces a variety of challenges in life, and sometimes those issues that we face can seem very overwhelming. That’s why many people chose to go to therapy to help them cope with stressful situations. Therapy can be an important outlet for many people, celebrities included. Here are eight celebrities that have opened up about receiving therapy, and how it’s impacted their lives.
1. Demi Lovato
Actress and singer Demi Lovato has always been open about her struggles with bipolar disorder.
In an interview, Lovato spoke about the importance of therapy in her recovery, saying, “…having people who are professionals as well and not relying on just one person is another key to maintaining a healthy recovery. I talk to my therapist. I’m actually in AA, so I reach out to my sponsor. I talk to the people around me, like the people on my team. I vocalize a lot of what I need and they’re very understanding. I’m very grateful for that.”
It’s clear that having a professional support system in her life has been extremely beneficial to Demi’s mental health. Surrounding yourself with positive people in your own life is a good way to build a support system that will be there for you in a time of need.
2. Jon Hamm
Actor Jon Hamm revealed that in college he struggled with depression, so he sought out therapy to help him.
Speaking in support of therapy, Hamm said, “I did do therapy and antidepressants for a brief period, which helped me. Which is what therapy does: it gives you another perspective when you are so lost in your own spiral…It helps.”
A lot of people view therapy as negative, but there’s nothing wrong with seeking out help from a professional.
3. Brooke Shields
After Tom Cruise criticized Shields for her use of the antidepressant drug, Paxil, Shields penned a powerful essay about how antidepressants, in combination with therapy, saved her life.
“I couldn’t believe it when my doctor told me that I was suffering from postpartum depression and gave me a prescription for the antidepressant Paxil. I wasn’t thrilled to be taking drugs. In fact, I prematurely stopped taking them and had a relapse that almost led me to drive my car into a wall with Rowan in the backseat. But the drugs, along with weekly therapy sessions, are what saved me — and my family,” she said in the essay.
4. Kerry Washington
In an interview with Essence, Washington recounted her experiences in college struggling with an eating disorder. Eventually, she sought help after her dance teacher expressed concern at Washington’s behavior.
This inspired Washington to start therapy and to change her life. “I definitely don’t struggle the way I used to,” she said. “Therapy helped me realize that maybe it’s okay for me to communicate my feelings. Instead of literally stuffing them down with food, maybe it’s okay for me to express myself.”
5. J.K. Rowling
Rowling admits that she has sought therapy two different times in her life. The first was when she hit “rock bottom” while working on the first Harry Potter novel, and the second was to cope with the sudden changes her life was experiencing.
On the experience, Rowling said, “I’m a big fan of it, it helped me a lot.”
6. Lena Dunham
Actress Lena Dunham has expressed her love of therapy and how beneficial it has been to her life.
In an interview, Dunham said, “…We all have some underlying drive and anxiety that’s pushing us forward at all times…Having a therapist has taught me to be less cruel to myself. It’s not like therapy has made me the world’s sanest person; it just made me slightly less insane.”
7. Halle Berry
Actress Halle Berry revealed that she has been in and out of therapy since she was 10 years old.
“My father was an alcoholic and a very abusive one, and my mother knew the value of providing me with the outlet of an unbiased person to talk to, so I’ve done that all my life when times get stressful. It really helps me deal with stuff.”
Berry says that therapy sessions help her avoid taking out her issues on the people that she loves.
8. Jennifer Garner
After her divorce, Jennifer Garner began to go to therapy to help her cope. “It’s easy when you’re hurt and angry to just say, ‘Oh, it’s them,'” she says. “But I had to come into my own…So I went to work on it. I started therapy.”
Garner says that she still goes to therapy to help her balance some of her responsibilities.