Selena Gomez reveals she has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder

'I was equal parts terrified and relieved'

Selena Gomez has opened up about being diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

Appearing on Miley Cyrus's Instagram Live chat show, Bright Minded, the 27-year-old spoke frankly about her mental health.

'Recently, I went to one of the best mental hospitals in America, McLean Hospital, and I discussed that, after years of going through a lot of different things, I realised that I was bipolar,' she said.

'I think people get scared of that. I’ve seen some of it even in my own family where I’m like, "what’s going on?" I’m from Texas [and] it’s just not known to talk about mental health. You got to seem cool.

'And then I see anger built up in children and teenagers or whatever, young adults, because they are wanting that so badly. I just feel like when I finally said what I was going to say, I wanted to know everything about it. And it took the fear away.'

It's not the first time Selena has been open about her mental health, making a personal announcement when she returned to social media last year, after she was hospitalised for a breakdown in 2018.

She continued: '[When I was diagnosed] I was equal parts terrified and relieved – terrified because the veil was lifted, but relieved that I finally had the knowledge of why I had suffered with various depressions and anxieties for so many years.

'I never had full awareness or answers about this condition. When I have more information, it actually helps me, it doesn’t scare me once I know [about] it.'

We applaud Selena for speaking so candidly and hope this encourages others to open up. Here's to this becoming the norm.