On Wednesday, Michelle Williams of Destiny’s Child sat down with the ladies of “The Talk,” to discuss mental health. Williams opened up about her experiences with depression, the inability to identify the disorder and how she coped with it at a young age.
“I didn’t know until I was in my 30s what was going on,” Williams said, revealing that she had been suffering since between the ages of 13 and 15. “So many people are walking around acting like they’ve got it all together and they’re suffering. For years, I’m in one of the top-selling female groups of all time, suffering with depression.”
As the discussion continued, Williams revealed that she disclosed her feelings to the group’s manager, Matthew Knowles. However, she believed that he didn’t understand how to deal with what she was going through, as she thought her sadness was as a result of “growing pains” or “turning into a woman.”
“Bless his heart, he was like, ‘Ya’ll just signed a multi-million dollar deal, you’re about to go on tour, what do you have to be depressed about?” Williams recalled, adding that she didn’t think he meant any harm by his approach. “I think he wanted me to be grateful, which I was, but I was still sad.”
The hosts inquired about the severity of her condition, to which she revealed that at one point she was suicidal. “I was to that place where it got so dark and heavy, because sometimes you feel like, I’m the provider, I take care of people, I’m not supposed to be feeling this way,” she said. “I wanted out.”
However, as she continues to share her story, she also wants to bring awareness to the severity of the disorder. She wants to normalize the discussion about mental health and eliminate the stigma around depression.
