She, at first, has hidden this information from her parents and family so as not to worry them given that they live in Bengaluru while she lives in Mumbai.

Over a period of time, it got worse. When my parents visited, I would put up a brave front because they were worried about me living alone and working long hours.Then, once, while talking to my mother (Ujjala Padukone), I broke down. She realised the problem, and got in touch with a psychologist friend, Anna Chandy, to get to the root of the cause.

As the realization dawned on her, she finally came to terms with the fact that she might need help and reached out to expert professionals through her family. Dr Shyam Bhatt is a well-known name and even has his own popular radio show where people call and talk about their problems, and he goes through a basic counseling session on air.

Finally, I had a word with Anna aunty. She flew to Mumbai from Bengaluru, and I talked my heart out to her. She concluded that I was suffering from anxiety and depression.When she  suggested I take medication, I was resistant. I thought talking was enough. Later, I met another psychologist, Dr Shyam Bhatt, in Bengaluru for a second opinion.

Even with therapy and medication, depression is not something that disappears quickly. It is a process of healing and an intimately personal journey which takes a lot of courage to get past.

There were days when I would feel okay, but at times, within a day, there was a roller-coaster of feelings. Finally, I accepted my condition. The counselling helped, but only to an extent. Then, I took medication, and today I am much better.

Not just her own personal battle, but a tragic incident close to her heart shook her up enough to take up the cause of mental health awareness.

But, when I returned to Mumbai, I heard about a friend committing suicide due to anxiety and depression. It was a huge blow.­My personal experience as well as my friend’s death urged me to take up this issue, which isn’t usually talked about. There is shame and stigma attached to talking about depression. In fact, one in every four people suffer from anxiety and depression.

In India, it is still a shame to talk about mental illness. Mental illness is very crassly associated only with insanity. But in today’s urban milieu where people move to big cities to make a career and end up living alone or with little human interaction, loneliness, depression, anxiety attacks and other issues are fairly common. Most of these can be treated by counselling and therapy, while more severe cases might need the aid of medication too. It is laudable that an actress of her standing and fan following chose to give voice to this phase of her life, making the need for mental health awareness an easily acceptable discussion topic.

Deepika had tweeted at the end of 2014 about mental health – but nobody knew the full story then.

When you look at a person,any person,everyone has a story.Everyone has gone through something that has changed their life.

— Deepika Padukone (@deepikapadukone) December 31, 2014

Anxiety,Depression and Panic Attacks are not signs of weakness.They are signs of trying to remain strong for way too long. — Deepika Padukone (@deepikapadukone) December 31, 2014

I dedicate this year to supporting Mental Health Awareness.

— Deepika Padukone (@deepikapadukone) December 31, 2014

#youarenotalone — Deepika Padukone (@deepikapadukone) December 31, 2014

The Internet came alive in support of Deepika’s revelations, with many celebrities and well-known personalities lauding her.

Bravo! Deepika Padukone: Mental health is our society’s worst kept secret. Thank you for bringing Depression out of the closet.

— Shobhaa De (@DeShobhaa) January 15, 2015

If you needed to love @deepikapadukone more, read this. And thank you for speaking publicly about this… http://t.co/nAVxWMndSj — Rohan Sippy (@rohansippy) January 15, 2015

Bollywood superstar @deepikapadukone turns to mental health advocacy after battling depression http://t.co/dGsuGHzgoM

— Arianna Huffington (@ariannahuff) January 15, 2015

Good on Deepika for speaking out about suffering from depression & anxiety. A lot of people wouldn’t http://t.co/VpdLACxIFk (via @gradwolf) — Sahil Rizwan (@SahilRiz) January 15, 2015

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