IN BRIEF: In a series dedicated to disect the cause of depression, we look into true stories of celebrities who fought through and lived to tell the tale. In this post we recount the story of DEEPIKA PADUKONE.
A Successful Actor
Deepika Padukone, the our generation’s “Female Super star”, who’s shine is brighter than that of the gold. She is a role model to millions of women and her achievements are impeccable. She has fame, money, luxury cars, and a supportive family. How was it possible to get depressed? This not only boggled her fans, but also herself.
Struck By Depression
Depression sinks in and sometimes you realise and sometimes you just over look it. For Deepika it started in 2014, “It all started on February 15 last year. I’d won all my awards and all the appreciation for 2013 and everything had been accomplished. It was a great time. But I woke up one morning, just feeling empty. I woke up feeling directionless. I didn’t know where to go. I didn’t know what to do”.
Success and inner happiness are not mutual. Everyone has obstacles in life, even the most successful of people. Accomplishments in professional lives may not naturally transfer to personal lives. Nobody is an exception to this rule. However, success or failure in one aspect of life affects the other. Hence affecting day-to-day equilibrium.
“I kept crying. I think my mother sort of sensed that something was wrong. She asked me if it had something to do with my personal life. Is it your work? Has someone said something to you? And it was none of these reasons”. That’s actually everyone’s first reaction when we see someone crying but strangely sometimes we don’t know what is the reason behind something similar happened to Deepika, “I realised that something was wrong, I realised I was being different, I couldn’t pin point what the issue was”.
It Happens To All Of Us
This is common with scores of people, where we realise that there is something dark lurking underneath our consciousness. This renders us sad and dejected for reasons we cannot point to. When we make a sincere effort to find out the reason, and when we fail to, is the time to seek help.
Seeking professional help is considered to be highly sceptical in our society. Because we were told that only the most insane people seek professionals to deal with mental issues. A prime example is, in most languages in India, the word MENTAL is used as a slang to denote craziness or insanity. This attitude towards mental health is more than being stoic, it is a taboo. Such disposition makes it difficult for us to take the step forward and seek help.
Deepika also mentions how resistant she was, “It happened in different stages but I think my resistance was towards medication and it was my parents who said when you have a headache or when you have a fever you take a medicine so don’t think twice”.
How Did Deepika Padukone Recover
What made her came out of it was a step towards acceptance. Counselling and medications are a part of the solution, it is also the willingness to make a sincere effort to understand oneself and then work with a professional to deal with the issues methodically. Now that Deepika has sought help, and has a positive outlook at her worries, she has become an advocate of seeking help. This is what she has to say, “Realise that you are not alone, that we are in this together and most importantly that there is hope”.
What kept her motivated was her belief which she infuses it in professional and her personal life. She says, “I feel ups and downs are a part of one’s career, and this totally depends on how you take it. You can either be knocked down by the negative things. Or you can take it in a positive and learn from it”.
Deepika Talks About Her Depression
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQBNYRBpY7c
There Is HELP AVAILABLE
Deepika’s tussle with mental issues and how professional help taught her to deal with them tells us one thing, that there are experts who deal with the most complex issues in life, and are equipped to methodically analyse and solve them. You can reach out too.
