Kelly Clarkson Gets Real About Her Depression With Demi Lovato
Kelly Clarkson talked to Demi Lovato on The Kelly Clarkson Show and opened up about her depression, praising Lovato for always being so open about her own mental health
On June 24, Kelly Clarkson (remotely) invited singer Demi Lovato on to her talkshow, The Kelly Clarkson Show, to have an honest and vulnerable conversation about mental health. During the segment, Clarkson discusses her own experiences with depression and thanks Lovato for her openness around the subject.
“I love how open you are about mental health, because I have similar issues, and I’ve suffered from depression,” Clarkson says in the first few seconds of the video. She added, “I think a lot of people, especially in the creative world … [are] kind of trained to just keep going and ‘you can handle it,’ especially as a woman it’s like, ‘don’t let them see you sweat.'”
The reason why Clarkson brings up Lovato’s candidness around her mental health issues, is that it’s important for fans to know they’re not the only ones who are going through similar experiences. When a mega star like Lovato shares that she, too, has “ups and downs” with her depression and bipolar disorder, she shows people all over the world that they’re not alone, and that it’s okay to feel vulnerable and to seek help. Back in February, Lovato discussed her mental health journey on Ashley Graham’s podcast, Pretty Big Deal. “Woke up feeling not super confident even tho my PBD episode just came out. Let this be a reminder to anyone struggling out there — this life is a journey with tons of ups and downs but you can’t give up,” Lovato told her fans on social media. During the show, she emphasized the importance of self-care and honoring boundaries for yourself.
On the recent The Kelly Clarkson Show clip, Clarkson validates Lovato’s encouraging messaging around taking care of one’s mental health (and not being ashamed of it). Lovato gushes to Clarkson that she always looked up to her, saying, “I wouldn’t be the artist or even the person I am, with being so outspoken and vulnerable and fearless if I hadn’t had you to look up to. You are fearless and courageous and real as fuck… When I was younger I always thought to myself, ‘If I ever make it, I want to be like her, because she’s real and she’s genuine.'”
“The thing about it though, is even you’re saying like, you know, ‘you’re strong, you’re courageous’ and all those things. I’m not all the time. It takes work. Everybody looks at us. Like even when you overcome something, they’re like, ‘OK, she’s already overcome it.’ I’m like, ‘No, no that’s a daily effort in, like, trying to be positive,'” Clarkson replies, addressing the fact that her positivity isn’t just a button she’s able to switch on and off. Her depression isn’t just “over” after going to some “magical therapy session.” It’s constant work.
“It’s a daily thing that you work at and a daily thing that I work at,” Clarkson says, adding, “…it’s not always easy to have a spotlight on you and arrows being aimed at you especially when you are vulnerable and you give people more ammo for all the trolls out there.”
Although Kelly hasn’t always been so open about her mental health, she’s recently made it a topic of discussion on her show. On June 23, she and Chelsea Handler had a frank conversation about about how therapy has helped them cope with trauma. “I actually, 100 percent, know and go to therapy. You think you’re past it, and although you know the situation and think you figured it out, you just don’t realize how much PTSD comes into play when something triggers you like that.” Clarkson said in the recent The Kelly Clarkson Show segment.
We’re thankful that more and more celebs are speaking up about their mental health and the importance of therapy and self-care. The more we’re able to normalize this subject, the less isolated people who do grapple with the ups and downs of mental health issues feel.
