Celebrities with Depression Series – Lady Gaga

I think it’s really important to highlight stories of celebrities with depression, because it opens up the discussion for the rest of us. Depression can affect anyone, regardless of how famous or successful they are in their career or finances. I am so impressed with Lady Gaga and her openness with sharing her issues with depression and mental health. She is making a big difference in helping to remove the stigma of mental health. And, she is a great example of someone who takes proactive steps on a regular basis to overcome her depression and anxiety.

In this article, I will be highlighting two videos of Lady Gaga discussing her mental health, including depression and anxiety.

The first one, “Celebrities with Depression – (Short Video) Lady Gaga Shares from the Heart”, is brief but powerful. The second one is “Celebrities with Depression – Lady Gaga Talks Mental Health, Meditation” and it’s a bit longer. But is includes breathing exercises and guided meditation.

Celebrities with Depression – (Short Video) Lady Gaga Shares from the Heart

In the video above, “Celebrities with Depression – (Short Video) Lady Gaga Shares from the Heart, she opens up about a range of mental health topics, including the importance of accepting yourself and some strategies she has used to cope with and overcome depression.

The Importance of Accepting Yourself

In the beginning of this video, Lady Gaga talks about how she created this character of someone who was stronger than her to overcome depression. However, as she grew more famous and successful, that was not enough. As she says, it wasn’t enough to fix how she was genetically made. So, depression can affect anyone, regardless of their level of “success”.

She opens up about her mental illness and the need for therapy and medication, which is so wonderful and encouraging to hear. Mental illness is nothing to hide or to be ashamed about.

This is my favorite quote from the video: “No matter how many people accept you to your face, the person that really needs to accept you is you.” Perfect. My life changed so dramatically once I realized that I needed to accept myself, and the accepting myself was enough. We won’t need the acceptance and validation of others in an excessive and unhealthy way if we have a healthy acceptance and love for ourselves!

Some Strategies Lady Gaga Has Used to Overcome and Cope With Depression and Anxiety

She briefly mentions some things she tried to cope with mental illness. She asks “why do I have to dig into all of these different areas just to figure out how to function?” She explored ayurvedic medicine, mindfulness, meditation and mantras, acupuncture, cupping, prayer, and creative expression. However, she says that learning how to say no to the things she doesn’t want to do was the most helpful for her. We don’t have to do or be what we don’t want to do or be. Be yourself and organize your life accordingly. I will discuss some of these in more detail as we explore the next video.

Celebrities with Depression – Lady Gaga Talks Mental Health, Meditation

In the video above, “Celebrities with Depression – Lady Gaga Talks Mental Health, Meditation”, she makes a lot of excellent points that I want to highlight. First, she talks about the importance of how you talk to yourself. Next, she discusses the idea of making sure you are not too dependent on anything for your happiness. This can include a host of things, such as drugs, sex, too much food, too little food, alcohol, unhealthy people, risky choices, etc. Also, she discusses her need to talk to a therapist and be comforted by others when she is struggling. She also discusses breathing exercises to help with stress and panic, and she actually does a 20-minute group meditation.

Mirror Work – The Importance of Positive Self-Talk

Lady Gaga mentions how important it was for her to watch how she talks to herself. I call this self-love. It’s really important to be your own best friend and your own advocate and chief encourager. This has been critical in my own journey of healing, as I talk about in my Emotional Freedom Techniques post. She recommends a specific book, called Mirror Work: 21 Days to Heal Your Life, that has helped her in her journey to emotional freedom.

Don’t Rely too Much on Outside Things for Your Happiness

Lady Gaga mentions that it is very important to monitor ourselves to make sure we are not relying too much on anything outside of ourselves for our happiness. Of course, this is where addictions can come into play.

Get Help When You are Struggling

Lady Gaga expresses her need to talk with a therapist or a friend when she is struggling. I am so glad she said this. There is no shame whatsoever in finding a good therapist and/or a friend to help you when you are depressed or struggling. This does not mean that you are weak or less than. Take care of yourself first.

Breathing Exercises for Panic or Stress Relief

At 8:43, Lady Gaga demonstrates some breathing exercises that can be helpful. The idea is to breathe in deeply through one nostril at a time by using your thumb and index finger to alternate nostrils. Inhale for a count of six seconds through one nostril. Then, cover both nostrils and hold your breathe for six seconds. Then, breathe out for six seconds through the other nostril. Repeat are many times as you like.

Lady Gaga’s 20 Minute Group Meditation

At 10:21, she begins the discussion of the group meditation. She uses various mantras. For this meditation she uses “I am safe. I am calm.” She does mention other mantras that she uses, including “I am in my body.” But really, you can develop and use whatever mantras or silence you want. Try the format she demonstrates here and customize it as your own. If you have a hard time being still or want to use technology to help you take your meditation further, I would recommend either: reading my article on Comparing the Best Brainwave Entrainment Programs or you can get a sample meditation for free to see how technology can help with meditation.

She likes to lay down and think about how we can calm the whole world down by calming ourselves as she gets started. But, I suggest finding whatever position you find most comfortable for your meditation. She also talks about taking deep breaths as she gets started. This is a great way to start a meditation. Breathe slowly and deeply.

Conclusion

As you can see, Lady Gaga is a very caring and open person who has decided to openly share her struggles, as well as solutions, for her depression and other mental health concerns. I also share the same vision to be able to help others and be open with my struggles and solutions. If you want to read more about additional ways to find peace and help with anxiety and depression, I invite you to check out the my article on How to Find Inner Peace and Happiness, this article on the health benefits of Turmeric Curcumin, and this article that addresses the benefits of turmeric for depression and anxiety.