Natalie Bassingthwaighte details her mental health battle, describing her’six weeks of hell’ and fears she passed on her issues to her daughter.
Natalie Bassingthwaighte has opened up about her struggle with depression.
In a recent interview with Stellar, the pop star and actress revealed that she abruptly stopped taking antidepressants without seeking medical advice and ended up in ‘hell’ as a result.
‘I did not receive adequate assistance. I did not gradually wean myself off of it as you should. ‘Note to people: never attempt this because it is ineffective,’ the 45-year-old said.
‘It’s as if you’re trapped in a vortex. I was unable to rise from my bed. I was terrified of speaking to anyone or of being seen.’ I couldn’t even string a sentence together. It was approximately six weeks of hell,’ she continued.
Natalie continued by expressing concern that her 10-year-old daughter Harper has inherited her anxiety struggles.
‘When I see my daughter experiencing anxiety, I think to myself, ‘Damn, that better not be from me.’
‘However, it will undoubtedly come from me and my ancestors,’ she stated.
‘It gives me a better understanding of how to support her and equip her’.
Natalie added that she is improving and ‘feels incredible’ these days, but still experiences ‘highs and lows’.
‘It simply does not stop, and it does not stop simply because you take a tablet… Years ago, I was afraid to discuss it. ‘I am not at all now,’ she stated.
‘I assumed no one would hire me and that everyone would judge me. But now I’m thinking, you know what, I’m a very hard worker, I’m a nice person, and this is one of the things I work on constantly. That is acceptable to me.’
The former Neighbours star relocated to Byron Bay last year in search of a more relaxed lifestyle away from her hectic life in Melbourne.
In March, she told WHO magazine that she had an overwhelming sense that her family needed to relocate there.
‘Four years ago, I attended a retreat up here and had this overwhelming sense that we needed to relocate. We did it six months before Covid-19 struck,’ she explained.
Natalie is married to Cameron McGlinchey, a bandmate from Rogue Traders, and they have two children together: Harper, 10, and Hendrix, seven.
