Katie Peterson
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Mental health is a very real thing, and just because you have fame and fortune, it does not mean that you’re immune. What it does mean is that you’re blessed to have a platform to help raise awareness for the often-polarizing topic. Such is the case for some of our favorite singers, actors, and even athletes who have been brave enough to share their struggles in hopes of helping their fans around the world who deal with the same things.
Here are 35 celebrities who have depression.
1. Selena Gomez
When Selena Gomez released her documentary on Apple TV, Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me, in 2002, fans got an inside look behind the scenes of the “The Heart Wants What It Wants” singer’s life. During which, we learned that the singer was struggling with anxiety and depression, even revealing that she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2020. While the decision wasn’t easy for her, she told The Mirror that she hoped talking about her battle would help someone else.
“I think someone actually asked me if I felt like I did too much. And I’m not going to lie; maybe there were a few moments that were scary to offer up. But at the same time, if you take anything away from this, I hope people understand my purpose here is supposed to be connection. I used myself as a sacrifice in order for people to have the hard conversations.”
Related: Selena Gomez Facts
2. Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga is arguably one of the most famous artists in the world, but that doesn’t mean everything is sunshine and rainbows for her. Before she made it big, she became one of the celebrities who have depression as the “Paparazzi” singer dealt with her mental health after she dropped out of college to pursue her music career.
“I was very depressed when I was 19. I would go back to my apartment every day, and I would just sit there, and it was lonely, and it was still,” Lady Gaga told Lifetime’s “The Conversation with Amanda de Cadenet.” “It was just my piano and myself. And I had a television that I would leave on all the time to feel like there was someone hanging out with me.”
Related: Lady Gaga Facts
3. Demi Lovato
Like Lady Gaga, this next entry on our celebrities who have depression list was diagnosed when she was just 19 years old. Nine years later, “Still Have Me” singer Demi Lovato revealed the depths of her struggle via X (formerly known as Twitter), which included fighting off suicidal thoughts.
“Today is World Suicide Prevention Day. Since a young age, I’ve dealt with suicidal thoughts and depression,” she said in the first message in 2020. “I’ve been very vocal in raising awareness of mental health because it is possible to see the light when you start the work on yourself. I’m living proof that you never have to give in to [suicidal] thoughts.”
Related: Demi Lovato’s Net Worth
4. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson
It was only recently that we realized that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson was one of the celebrities who have depression, as he opened up about his struggle on “The Pivot” podcast. During the interview, the former professional wrestler turned actor urged men to be true to themselves by being honest about their mental health struggles.
“I’ve worked hard over the years to gain the emotional tools to work through any mental pain that may come to test me,” he said as he described his growth from not knowing how to talk about his mental health to being able to lean on the support of friends later in life. “As men, we didn’t talk about it. We just kept our heads down and worked through it. Not healthy, but it’s all we knew. … If you’re going through your own version of mental wellness turning into mental hell-ness, the most important thing you can do is talk to somebody. Having the courage to talk to someone is your superpower.”
Related: 28 Celebrities Who Had Normal Jobs Before Fame
5. Brooke Shields
The likeliness for women to fall into depression is sadly increased once they give birth to a child. This next entry on our list of celebrities who have depression, Brooke Shields, is one such example.
The Blue Lagoon actress revealed her struggle with postpartum depression after the birth of her first child in her 2005 book “Down Came the Rain: My Journey Through Postpartum Depression.”
What made things even worse was when Mission Impossible actor Tom Cruise criticized her efforts to deal with her depression with the Paxil antidepressant. She clapped back, though, writing in an op-ed piece in the New York Times, “Comments like those made by Tom Cruise are a disservice to mothers everywhere. If any good can come of Mr. Cruise’s ridiculous rant, let’s hope that it gives much-needed attention to a serious disease.”
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6. Jim Carrey
Jim Carrey has been making audiences laugh for years as one of the most popular comedic actors of our generation, with flawless performances in Ace Ventura, Liar, Liar, and The Mask. That’s what made it all the more shocking when he opened up about his battle with depression for the first time in 2004.
He told CBS News, “There are peaks, there are valleys. But they’re all kind of carved and smoothed out, and it feels like a low level of despair you live in. Where you’re not getting any answers, but you’re living OK. And you can smile at the office. You know? But it’s a low level of despair. You know?”
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7. Kristen Bell
Kristen Bell, known for her roles in television shows like Veronica Mars and The Good Place and for movies like Disney’s Frozen, is one of the celebrities who have depression who seems to know exactly how to combat the struggle. She told CNBC Make It in 2021 that the key is not letting feelings fester for too long.
“I don’t wait for those things to find me,” Bell said. “I have a preoperative list to combat them because I know they’re coming.” She later added, as she got into more specific details about her struggle, “It’s important for me to be candid about this so people in a similar situation can realize that they are not worthless and that they do have something to offer.”
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8. Chrissy Teigen
Like Brooke Shields, Chrissy Teigen is another on our list of celebrities who have depression, who specifically struggled with postpartum depression after giving birth to her daughter Luna. The model and television personality first opened up about her struggle in 2017.
“It was a sad existence. There were no highs. It was a flatline of life for a few months,” she told Glamour magazine. “You hear those horrific stories of people not seeing their child as theirs, or wanting to hurt them, and I never felt that way. That’s why I put off getting it checked, as I hated myself, not my child.”
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9. J.K. Rowling
J.K. Rowling is the mastermind behind the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, making her a hero to many beloved fans across the world, yet before the world knew her name, she contemplated suicide as she battled depression. Her struggles came following her split from her first husband, Jorge Arantes, and living life as a single mom.
“Mid-twenties life circumstances were poor, and I really plummeted,” the novelist “The thing that made me go for help was probably my daughter. She was something that earthed me, grounded me, and I thought, this isn’t right. She cannot grow up with me in this state.” She further added, “I have never been remotely ashamed of having been depressed. Never. What’s to be ashamed of? I went through a really rough time, and I am quite proud that I got out of that.”
Related: How Did Alan Rickman Die?
10. Adele
Ten-time Grammy Award winner Adele has one of the earliest starts to her battle with depression compared to others on our celebrities who have depression list. The “Rolling in the Deep” singer revealed in 2016 that her depression began when she was just 10 years old.
“I have a very dark side. I’m very able to depression,” Adele said. “I can slip in and out of [depression] quite easily.”
Related: 20 Best Adele Songs
11. Jon Hamm
It was 2010 when actor Jon Hamm, known for films like Million Dollar Arm, Keeping Up with the Joneses, Mad Men, and Fletch, revealed his battle with chronic depression that hit after his parents both died.
Supportive friends thankfully helped him with his mental health struggle. “I was very fortunate to have really good friends in my life whose parents sort of rallied: ‘We’re gonna help this kid out because otherwise there’s going to be trouble…’” he revealed. “I was in bad shape. I knew I had to get back in school and back in some kind of structured environment and … continue.” He also said therapy and antidepressants also helped.
12. Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Paltrow had her own way of breaking out of her postpartum depression following the birth of her son, proving that different things work for different people.
“A doctor tried to put me on antidepressants, and I thought, if I need them, then yes, I’ll come back to it. … They are lifesavers for certain people for sure,” just not her, the Shakespeare in Love actress explained in 2018. “I thought, well, what if I went to therapy and I started exercising again, and I stopped drinking alcohol, and I just gave myself a period of regeneration and I slept more? I really broke out of it.”
13. Wayne Brady
Wayne Brady is one of the celebrities who have depression on our list who took a while to come to terms with the mental health disorder for many years, waiting until he was in his 40s to seek help after more than 10 years of struggle. The former Whose Line Is It Anyway? star said the suicide of Mrs. Doubtfire actor Robin Williams was what finally woke him up.
“Robin was someone that I respect greatly, was blessed to work with him. I was touched by him my entire life,” the Let’s Make a Deal host explained to People. “And when you see someone who had the mind of Robin Williams, and the kindness of Robin Williams, and the talent of Robin Williams say, ‘I cannot talk to anybody about what is going on with me because it’s too great,’… I knew that I didn’t want that for myself.”
14. Robin Williams
Speaking of Robin Williams, the world was shattered when the beloved actor and comedian took his own life in August 2014 due to his own struggles with depression. In 2021, his son opened up about the Jack actor’s struggle with mental health, noting it was made worse after he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
“There was just more anxiety and depression and just things he was experiencing and talking to me about that made me realize he was very uncomfortable,” his son Zak explained. “At least from my lens, what I found was someone who was having challenges performing his craft. And that was really irritating for him. When you’re a performer, it goes beyond pride in what you’re performing; it’s your livelihood.”
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15. Owen Wilson
Owen Wilson is one of the entries on our list of celebrities who have depression that almost let it get to the same sad fate as Robin Williams. Having developed an addiction to heroin and cocaine along with his struggle with depression, the Wedding Crashers actor reportedly attempted suicide in 2007. Thankfully, his brother stood by his side.
He said of the time that his brother, Andrew, “stayed in his house with him” and “rising with him each morning and writing up little schedules for each day so that life seemed at first manageable and then, at some point, a long time later, actually good,” Wilson explained. Fortunately, now, “I’ve been in sort of a lucky place of feeling appreciative of things.”
16. Miley Cyrus
With previous entries on our list of celebrities who have depression, it seems to be a pattern with a lot of our favorite child stars, and Miley Cyrus is yet one more. The former Hannah Montana star turned “Wrecking Ball” singer revealed her previous struggles with depression in 2014.
“I went through a time where I was really depressed. Like, I locked myself in my room, and my dad had to break my door down,” said the “Party in the U.S.A.” singer. “It was a lot to do with, like, I had really bad skin, and I felt really bullied because of that.” But then she found out how her struggles helped fans with theirs. “That gives me a big purpose, a reason to wake up in the morning.”
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17. Michael Phelps
Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps said it was the 2012 Olympics that led to the height of his ADHD and depression, even contemplating suicide. For him, therapy was what helped him improve his mental health struggles.
“I felt like I didn’t want to be alive anymore, and I felt, for me, that I was causing a lot of stress and issues for other people around me, so I thought the best thing for me to do was just leave.” But, with therapy, “I started feeling like a person. … I could love myself and like who I saw.”
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18. Ellen DeGeneres
Comedian and talk show host Ellen DeGeneres revealed that she is one of the celebrities who have depression when she sat down with Today’s Savannah Guthrie. In the interview, she noted that her struggle made it difficult at times to turn on a happy face for her popular daily talk show, which ended in 2022 after 19 seasons.
“What’s not easy is for me to turn it on when I feel sad inside,” DeGeneres explained. “That’s the depression. That’s where I’m in myself. I’m not good when I’m going through a bout of depression or anxiety or whatever. But, yeah, I can do this. But, like I said, I also have other emotions.”
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19. Brad Pitt
Many would agree that Brad Pitt is one of the sexiest men in Hollywood, with several notable roles that have led to his fame, but he revealed in 2012 that he had spent years battling “low-grade depression.”
“I always felt very alone in my life,” the Thelma & Louise actor revealed to GQ. “Alone growing up as a kid, alone even out here, and it’s really not till recently that I have had a greater embrace of my friends and family.” Later in life, however, “joy’s been a newer discovery. … It’s not until coming to terms with [his depression], trying to embrace all sides of self, the beauty and the ugly, that I’ve been able to catch those moments of joy.”
20. Prince Harry
Losing a beloved parent in an unexpected and tragic way is enough to send anyone down a dark mental health path. Such was the case of Prince Harry when his mother, Princess Diana, was killed in a car accident when he was a child.
In a recent conversation with Dr. Gabor Maté, the physician and author diagnosed him on the spot with attention deficit disorder (ADD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and depression, with much of it stemming from the tragic loss.
21. Meghan Markle
Speaking of Prince Harry, his wife, former American actress Meghan Markle, has also revealed her struggle with mental illness and depression, going into full detail in a sit-down interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2021.
During the interview, the Duchess of Sussex said that, while she was pregnant with the couple’s first child, suicide was a “frightening, constant thought” and that she “didn’t want to be alive anymore.” She later added, “If my experience can help someone else not feel the same way or to know that there’s hope, then it’s worth every second of whatever comes with it.”
22. Lili Reinhart
Lili Reinhart, best known for her starring role in the hit show Riverdale, revealed her status as one of the many celebrities who have depression in 2021 via Instagram stories, during which she said it’s been a battle for 11 years.
“Some days, I feel really defeated by my depression. It’s an exhausting battle that I’ve been fighting for 11 years, and some days, like today, it can feel intolerable,” she wrote. “This is a reminder to my fellow warriors that it’s OK to have days where you don’t want to fight anymore. You don’t need to justify your mental health to anyone.”
23. Jared Padalecki
Jared Padalecki was 25 years old, working on his hit show Supernatural when he was diagnosed with depression. The diagnosis came after he suffered an anxiety attack while on set.
He later told Variety in 2015, “A doctor came to set and talked to me for about 30 minutes or 45 minutes and said, ‘Jared, I think you’re clinically depressed.’” The Gilmore Girls star is one who turned his diagnosis into a platform, however, starting the “Always Keep Fighting” T-shirt campaign to raise awareness.
Of the campaign, he explained, “There’s still a large portion of the population who just want to say, ‘Buck up. Put on a happy face, and everything goes away.’ For some people, that works. … For those of us who aren’t so blessed, the message ‘Always Keep Fighting’ is for us.”
24. Ryan Reynolds
Ryan Reynolds, best known for his recurring role in the hit Deadpool films, revealed his depression in 2018.
“I tend to get pretty depressed, and I have some issues with anxiety and things like that,” he explained, noting he exercises every day to combat the symptoms. “Otherwise, I start to get a little bummed. For me, it is more psychological. Exercise is a means of expelling those demons.”
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25. Catherine Zeta-Jones
If there is anything we’ve learned from our list of celebrities who have depression, it is that there are many types of mental illness. In the case of actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, her battle is with manic depression. Her depression got so bad that she even spent five days in a mental health clinic following her husband’s battle with cancer. It also led to her diagnosis of bipolar disorder.
“I’m not the kind of person who likes to shout out my personal issues from the rooftops, but with my bipolar becoming public, I hope fellow sufferers will know it is completely controllable,” she told InStyle magazine. “I hope I can help remove any stigma attached to it and that those who don’t have it under control will seek help with all that is available to treat it.”
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26. Katy Perry
While fans around the world went wild over Katy Perry’s fifth album, Witness, what they didn’t realize is that behind the scenes, the “Never Worn White” singer was struggling with depression. Thankfully, her then-fiance, now husband, actor Orlando Bloom, helped her out of it.
“I became depressed, and I did not want to get out of bed. In the past, I had been able to overcome it, but this time, something happened that made me fall down too many flights of stairs. I really had to go on a mental health journey,” the “I Kissed a Girl” singer explained. “[Orlando] is an anchor who holds me down, and he’s very real. … I’ve never had a partner who was willing to go on an emotional and spiritual journey like Orlando.”
Related: Katy Perry’s Net Worth
27. Kirsten Dunst
For Bring It On actress Kirsten Dunst to overcome her depression, which hit in her 20s, she revealed that it took checking herself into a mental health rehabilitation facility in Utah.
“I feel like most people around 27, the [expletive] hits the fan. Whatever is working in your brain, you can’t live like that anymore mentally,” she explained. “I feel like I was angry. You don’t know that you are repressing all this anger. It wasn’t a conscious thing.” She added, “All I’ll say is that medication is a great thing and can really help you come out of something. I was afraid to take something, and so I sat in it for too long. I would recommend getting help when you need it.”
28. Bruce Springsteen
Esquire is the media outlet with whom “The Boss” Bruce Springsteen discussed his depression struggles in-depth following two emotional breakdowns in his life.
“I have come close enough to [mental illness] where I know I am not completely well myself,” he explained. “I’ve had to deal with a lot of it over the years, and I’m on a variety of medications that keep me on an even keel; otherwise, I can swing rather dramatically, and the wheels can come off a little bit.”
Related: Bruce Springsteen’s Net Worth
29. Ashley Judd
Ashley Judd, known for her role in the Natalie Portman film Where the Heart Is, entered a treatment facility in Texas to help her with her depression, she revealed to Glamour magazine in 2006.
“I needed help. I was in so much pain,” she explained, noting that now that she sought help, things have been so much better. “It’s so simple, really: I was unhappy, and now I’m happy. Now, even when I’m having a rough day, it’s better than my best day before treatment.”
30. Naomi Judd
While Ashley Judd was able to overcome her struggles with depression, heartbreakingly, her mother, famed country singer Naomi Judd, was not so lucky. Like Robin Williams, she ultimately lost her struggle, taking her own life in 2022.
Prior to her death, Judd wrote a book about her struggles, and as it turns out, she had contemplated suicide before. “I didn’t get off my couch for two years. I was so depressed that I couldn’t move,” the “Mama He’s Crazy” singer told Today in 2022, just months before her death. “I wouldn’t even brush my teeth. I wouldn’t get out of my PJs. My husband and my girlfriends and Ashley would come over, and I would just go upstairs and lock the door to my bedroom. … You become immobilized.”
As heartbroken as we are that it ended in her death, we hope she’s resting peacefully now.
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31. Ryan Phillippe
One Life to Live actor Ryan Phillippe said his 20s and 30s were his darkest times as his feelings of depression loomed over him. Thankfully, he eventually found healthy ways to cope.
“The ways that I’ve found to cope are healthier than when I was younger,” he said. Some of those coping mechanisms have included reading books about Easter philosophy, meditation, exercise, and talking about his depression with others.
32. Sheryl Crow
Beloved singer Sheryl Crow is one of the celebrities who have depression who refers to her fame as part of the reason.
She told ET ahead of the release of her documentary, Sheryl, in 2022, “There was a lot of pressure that went along with being an artist, entering my 40s and everybody on the radio being in their teens … then suddenly you’re not relevant anymore.”
She continued, noting the relevance to that of a fresh coat of paint, “Once you start seeing the cracks and experiencing what those cracks mean, it’s devastating. If you’re a sensitive person, it’s almost like you’ve been invited to the cool party, and then suddenly you’re not invited anymore, and it’s no fault of your own. It’s just a weird mindset.”
Related: Sheryl Crow’s Net Worth
33. Terry Bradshaw
Terry Bradshaw, a famed National Football League quarterback who is legendary among Pittsburgh Steelers fans in particular, was diagnosed with clinical depression in 1999. His diagnosis came following years of anxiety attacks, alcohol abuse, sleeplessness, and intense anger. Now, he said he’s been able to maintain his mental health with the help of therapy, medication, and, most importantly, faith.
“You know what, I’m not ashamed of who I am,” he has said. “It’s the way I was made. I just got some issues here, and I dealt with them. And I’m proud of it.”
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34. Buzz Aldrin
Buzz Aldrin is famed for being the second man to set foot on the Moon, but it was only a year after that he fell into a two-year battle with depression.
“When we got back from the Moon, none of us was prepared for the adulation that followed,” he later explained. “We were engineers, scientists, fighter pilots being feted like movie stars, and it was all too much for most of us – certainly for me.”
35. Tipper Gore
There’s nothing worse for a parent than seeing your child suffer. For Tipper Gore, wife of former vice president of the United States Al Gore, her experience led her into a deep depression after her 6-year-old son received severe injuries in a car accident in 1989. She was, however, able to seek treatment.
“It was definitely a clinical depression and one that I was going to have to have help to overcome,” she said in an interview with USA Today at the time. “You just can’t will your way out of that or pray your way out of that or pull yourself up by the bootstraps out of that – you really have to go and get help, and I did.”
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