5 Celebrities With Depression

Being a depression sufferer myself, I find it interesting and inspiring to see people deal with their chronic depression. I love seeing what people can do with their lives, despite the agonizing pain they have had to cope with. While we probably all know about Heath Ledger and Kurt Cobain, there are plenty of surprising celebrities with depression, like Harrison Ford. A few others you may not have know about include the five stars below.

Jim Carrey


In an interview during 60 Minutes, Mr. Carrey revealed that the inspiration behind his funny-man antics was “desperation.” Like many famous comics, Carrey channeled his emotional pain and scarring into humor. The laughter and attention brought from audiences helps ease the depression comedians feel and soothes their pain.

Carrey's attention getting antics started when he tried to entertain his sick mother. To get her spirits up, he'd do anything from impressions to rolling down the stairs. When he was young, he grasped on to an optimistic dream of making it big. In 1987, he wrote himself a check for ten million dollars "for acting services rendered." As it turns out, the check was a massive underestimate of what he ended up making when he cashed the check 1995. As financial worries lessened, so did his depression symptoms. He has since learned to better cope with his sadness and he says the valleys and peaks have gradually smoothed out a bit. While he used to take Prozac to help stabilize his mood, he now focuses on treatment through spirituality and clean living.

Sources: one, two & three Photo by IBWK [Flickr]

Rodney Dangerfield


"If a really good comedian isn't depressed," says Bob Saget, "something's wrong." Rodney Dangerfield is no exception to this rule. Around the end of his life, he attended regular therapy sessions with his psychiatrist and took around 137 prescription drugs a day, including anti-depressants and Valium.
Rodney’s father abandoned the family when he was a child and he was instead raised by a cold-hearted mother.
He found an outlet in writing jokes, and even remembers the first one. At age 4, Dangerfield finished dinner and whined, "I'm still hungry."
"You've had sufficient," replied his mom.
"But," said Rodney, "I didn't even have any fish."

He has had wild mood swings throughout his career and tried to escape the pain and suffering in every way imaginable, including prostitutes and drugs. His wife helped pull him through to the end, but he still experienced these problems until the end of his days.

Source Photo by Breakfast For Dinner [Flickr]

J.K. Rowling


J.K. Rowling will be the first to tell you about the hardships of being a single parent. In fact, in her darkest hour, she strongly contemplated suicide while suffering from a massive bout of depression. She missed her ex-husband and worried about finances, that’s when the dark thoughts started coming out. Fortunately, her daughter was there to inspire her to seek treatment:
“Mid-twenties life circumstances were poor and I really plummeted,” said Rowling. “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, this can’t be right, she cannot grow up with me in this state.”

Rowling opted too treat her depression with cognitive therapy rather than anti-depressants. This type of therapy seeks to cure the emotional problem, rather than treating it. The therapy involves a series of counseling sessions providing the sufferer with the mental tools to cope with their emotions. Rowling has been very forthright about her disorder in the hope she can help remove the stigma associated with mental illnesses.

Source

Owen Wilson


Many people already know about Owen Wilson's depression. After all, his attempted suicide took over all the tabloid headlines at their local grocery stores two years ago. But, you may still be wondering why.
The fact is, like millions of other Americans, Wilson is clinically depressed and will be throughout his lifetime. He has been battling depression by taking anti-depressants for years, however, breaking up with Kate Hudson pushed him beyond the effects of his medication and made him feel hopeless. While it has been debated whether Wilson was taking cocaine or heroin around this time, the fact is that either way, a major life change can dramatically endanger a depression sufferer.

Sources: one & two Photo by Smellmoregloves' [Flickr]

Brooke Shields


Mrs. Shields is a perfect example of how beauty does not equal happiness. While not a lifelong depression sufferer, she has been very vocal about her experience with postpartum depression, an illness experienced by 13% of pregnant women and new mothers. Her book “Down Came The Rain” describes her experiences in detail.

Like many postpartum depression sufferers, she experienced a detachment from her baby daughter and self-destructive thoughts. At her lowest point, Brooke says she wanted to jump out of a window and throw the baby against a wall. Brooke began taking Paxil to cope with her emotions and eventually recovered. She now has a very close relationship with her daughter.

After being criticized by Tom Cruise for her use of anti-depressants, Brooke published an essay in the “New York Times” detailing the need for global recognition of postpartum depression and the use of anti-depressants for treatment.

Source Photo by WatchWithKristin [Flickr]

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I just want to say that Bob Saget was a genius saying that quote. You don't know funny until you've experience the things that make it funny in the first place. People aren't necessarily born funny, it's the things they've experienced that make it that way. Made me think something else too, sometimes the people that seem the happiest are usually the most depressed. Usually. I used to be that way. Now I've just plummeted and I only put on a mask because I hate it when people ask.
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The idea that depression and other mental health conditions are caused by an imbalance of chemicals in the brain is so deeply ingrained in our psyche that it seems almost sacrilegious to question it. However there is one large problem with this theory: there is absolutely no scientific evidence to support it. Recent reviews of the research have demonstrated NO LINK between depression, or any other mental disorder and an imbalance of chemicals in the brain. We are being sold a bill of goods. There needs to be a new direction taken in the research and treament of depression and mental illnesses. What we have available now is no better than a placebo.
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@twosie

Did you ever heard about homeopathic or herbal remedies.just google in the net to find more info.
also you can find a good herbelist/homeopath for helf.
the good thing is no side effects,but it doesn't works for everybody.good luck and all the best to you!
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After my mother (reportedly) commited suicide when I was two weeks old, my birth father sent me to live with his sister, her husband, and their kids. A year later, my birth father died in a plane crash. Being raised with this knowledge, by an abusive aunt and a loveless home, I suffered severe depression growing up. I thought of suicide often, and even moreso after learning 10 years ago, that my birth father had actually murdered my mother. I've spiralled downward ever since. I've gone through many jobs, gained weight, and don't ever want to leave the house. Fortunately my husband of 26 years has stayed by my side, but is worried about me. I tried taking a Zoloft once through my doctor, but felt I was on an acid trip so I stopped. What medications are out there that won't alter me much, or make me gain any more weight? I need help.
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Everyone,
My childhood was a horror movie and half of my adult life I didn't know that this thing I would do was from depression and anxiety. I was molested for ten years and had a drunk mother. My feeling of death sadness and wanting to avoid people was a everyday drug. I would feel that it wasn't normal if wasn't able to cry and feel sorry for me being alive. After dealing with never being able to have a baby that the dirty little medical condition came out at work home everywhere and there was no more hiding it. There was help for me and talking it out and taking meds can and will help. Please don't until your are not in control. God Bless
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