“Today, I Accept And Love Myself In Ways I Never Did Before”, Shaheen Bhatt Opens Up About Her Struggle With Depression On Social Media
Niharika has a passion for all things art, music, and travel and has over 4 years of experience in writing for social media. During her spare time, she likes experimenting in the kitchen, playing vide... read full bio
It is no secret that mental illness is as common as physical ailments. According to a news report, a whopping 200 million Indians struggle with the condition. Considering the fact that it is a hidden illness, even someone’s loved ones would have no idea they are struggling with it (1). In 2016, Shaheen Bhatt, daughter of film-maker Mahesh Bhatt and part of the prestigious Bhatt family opened up about how she’s been suffering from depression since she was twelve years old! The young writer had released a book, Never Been Un(Happier), which detailed her struggles with the illness. A few days ago, Shaheen was featured in an emotional post by popular social media blog, Humans of Bombay. Read on to know what she had to say.
A 12-Year-Old Girl Who Felt Lost
In the post, Shaheen spoke candidly about how when she was twelve years of age, she just woke up one day feeling “empty and confused”. The writer described herself as lost. She spoke about how even brushing her teeth felt like a mundane task and how she felt fatigued all the time. She would spend all her time staring vacantly outside her window hoping to find answers for why she felt the way she felt. She added that nobody around her spoke about mental health or mental health issues.
While she talked about how she initially thought her issues were because she was a teenager, she mentioned how certain things triggered her anxiety to get worse. She spoke about the discrimination she faced when she was asked to step out of a photoshoot with her sisters, Alia and Pooja. According to Shaheen, she was discriminated against for being darker and more overweight than her sisters. Weight has been a constant source of mockery for the young writer and she spoke about how she was bullied by her schoolmates for being overweight. The whole thing made her feel like she wasn’t good enough.
Shaheen mentioned that she spent around 6 years suffering in silence as she was too afraid to go seek therapy. She was afraid people would brand her as crazy and see it as a problem that she could fix. This was when she picked up journaling. The talented writer took to writing in a journal as a way to pen her thoughts. She spoke about how putting pen to paper would help her heal and she considered it self-care. Unfortunately, it didn’t work for long and the writer started feeling suicidal. Thankfully, it was a wake-up call for Shaheen and she started seeking therapy for her condition.
This is when she finally decided to share her condition with her family and let them in. Shaheen was lucky enough to have an extremely supportive family and she spoke about how her younger sister, Alia Bhatt felt extremely guilty for not seeing the signs. Shaheen expressed that she wishes she had opened up to Alia about her condition earlier. Alia has even cried publicly over the fact that she couldn’t be there for her sister during one of the worst phases of her life.
A Difficult Journey
Shaheen came out with her story publicly in the year 2016. She spoke about how she was flooded with messages of support and how people struggling through the same condition came forward and talked to her about it. After seeing the vast encouragement and support, Shaheen decided to do her favorite thing once again and write about it. This time, to document her journey with the illness that had plagued her for most of her life. “So I shared myself in the biggest way I could & wrote a book about my journey with depression–all in the hope that I could help even one person feel less alone,” Shaheen said.
Good Days And Bad Days
If Shaheen’s experience with the condition has taught her anything, it’s to accept and love herself in ways she never did before. Shaheen says she doesn’t just wait for bad days to come along to indulge in self-care or prioritize her mental health. She believes she deserves to be loved and cared for on both the good days and the bad ones. In a funny analogy, the talented young woman likened depression to the weather stating, “it’s kind of like the weather; when it’s raining, you don’t yell at the skies to stop!”. Shaheen said she waits for these days to pass over and spends it in the company of her two adorable cats. Above all, she has faith that even the rough days will pass.
It’s incredible to see so many people who are a part of or affiliated with the entertainment industry speak so candidly about issues they are undergoing. We salute Shaheen for having the courage to speak out and not keep silent. For anybody out there who might be facing symptoms of depression or having suicidal thoughts, click here for help.
