According to recent statistics unveiled by a leading fitness and wellness organisation, one in four people are affected by a mental health problem each year, one in ten people in the UK are likely to be experiencing an anxiety disorder and one in six people will be diagnosed with depression at some point in their lives.
Monday 13 May – Sunday 19 May 2019 marks Mental Health Awareness Week in the UK. Here at CelebMix, we are helping to raise mental health awareness. One celebrity in particular who has been incredibly open regarding speaking about her mental health, in particular her struggle with depression and anxiety, is Frankie Bridge, former member of S Club Juniors and The Saturdays.
When speaking in a recent interview on ‘Lorraine’ in February 2019, Frankie openly spoke about how she felt a responsibility to be open and honest on social media. Her honesty in posts shared regarding mental health struggles on her official Instagram account is admirable and something which she doesn’t hide from. In a recent post, she explained to her numerous followers that she was having ‘a very unproductive day,’ feeling unable to do anything.
Speaking about her initial mental health difficulties, Frankie explained that when she was younger and in S Club Juniors, she was described as ‘a worrier,’ due to the lack of awareness around mental health. She also explained that this was ignited again in girl band The Saturdays, who went on to achieve immense success. She explained that being in the public eye led to her feeling that there was a certain expectation and pressure put on her.
“That’s what made it worse – I felt so guilty that I still didn’t feel happy in a situation where I knew I should be. That’s what turned the whole thing on its head because I was like: ‘something’s not right here, I need to do something about it.”‘
In the interview, she also spoke about social media and the positive impact it has had on helping her. In such a social media driven society, she said that talking about what she is going through helps not only her followers, but also her.
Explaining how she kept her condition such a secret, Frankie has encouraged people to speak about how they are feeling to someone – whether it’s a close friend, family member, teacher or someone else.
You can watch the full interview below:
However, it’s not just in recent years that Frankie has spoken about her mental health. In 2011, around the time of the release of The Saturdays’ album ‘On Your Radar’ and an upcoming arena tour around the UK & Ireland, Frankie spent some time in hospital, which she has also openly talked about,. Additionally, in reality show ‘Chasing The Saturdays,’ her mental health encounters were shown on camera, showing the realness of such difficulties.
Further, Frankie is an ambassador for the charity Mind and her partnership with the charity involves her ensuring nobody faces a mental health problem on their own. She has also been advocating for various events, including Time To Talk Day and the Mind Media Awards. You can visit Mind’s official website here.
In early 2020, she will be releasing a book about mental health, set to be about ‘finding freedom in speaking out and asking for help.’
“I hope my book will showcase the importance of being open in a shut off world, the need to talk about the good days as well as the bad days, so we can all start to have open and honest conversations about how we really are, not how we think we should be.”
‘Open’ can be pre-ordered from Amazon by clicking here.
CelebMix would like to take the opportunity to thank Frankie Bridge for speaking out about her mental health – we find it incredibly encouraging and she has no doubt helped many people! We’re looking forward to reading her book.
“Don’t be ashamed of your story – it will inspire others.” – Unknown.