Paramore's Hayley Williams has shared details of her struggles with mental health issues, and encouraged others concerned about their wellness to reach out to supportive organisations.
In. a social media post shared on World Mental Health Day, October 10, by Good Dye Young, the hair dye company she co-founded, Williams admits that, in the past, she was “very ignorant about mental illness and how all-consuming it can be”.
The singer reveals that, having struggled with mental and physical health issues, including fatigue, for a number of years, she was diagnosed in 2018 with “depression and a specific kind of PTSD”, and acknowledges that she hadn't previously understood how mental illness could “affect your physical wellbeing, too.”
She continues: “I didn’t appreciate how interconnected my mind and body really were. This kind of fatigue is becoming more and more common, by the way. It can seem pretty impossible to thrive, holistically, in the modern world.”
Williams goes on to say that, had she not had access to “mental health professionals and functional doctors”, she would have remained ignorant of the diagnosis she received, and would have “continued to struggle on my own.”
“I hate thinking about how many people are stuck without answers or any tangible help,” she writes. “Obviously there are little things we can do in the day to day to cheer ourselves up or give ourselves space to really express how we feel and who we are. Small wins do help. I’ve always turned to music, dying/changing my hair, some form of community… but sometimes you just need more support than these things can give.”
The musician concludes her message by directing her followers to social media pages for Inclusive Therapists, Therapy for Black Girls, and the Trevor Project, organisations she says are “doing incredible work to make a path to mental wellness more equitable and efficient,” encouraging those with their own struggles to reach out for help and support.
