JoJois opening up about mental health.
In anew interviewwithVerywell Mind, JoJo opened up about the role her mental health has played in her personal life, music and upbringing — and said holding her story back was felt more “burdensome” than sharing it.
“I never felt ashamed. It was so common, at least in my family and people that I had really close dealing with,” JoJo, 30,told the outlet. “It felt like a very natural progression to talk to my fans about it — it wasn’t something that I’ve necessarily wrestled with. It felt more burdensome to hold something like that back than to share it.”
JoJo.Felisha Tolentino
This is what, she says, her new album,Trying Not to Think About It— out Friday — revolves around — and how she drew her inspiration.
“I realized that I was trying to just push through and not think about the things that were eating me up, thinking about my concerns for my family, my fears, the state of the world, my personal accountability,” the “Too Little Too Late” singer said.
She continued, “All these things, I try not to think about them. But I realized that was probably making it worse. So then through writing, not only for the albums but journaling and starting to talk to my therapist again. That’s where all these songs came from.”
When it came to coping with her mental health, JoJo said she returned to antidepressants, which proved to be a “turning point” for her.
“I needed a little help,” she added. “And I’m not ashamed that I did that. It was an important turning point for me.”
JoJo also touched on what it was like growing up a child star, and said it gave her a “false sense” of her self-worth.
“It gives you a false sense of your self-worth. You believe that your self-worth is directly related to what you produce and how that performs. I don’t think that’s healthy, particularly to be instilled in a 13-year-old,” JoJo said. “And it’s taken time to realize that I am more than that and that my value is actually in who I am intrinsically.”
JoJo released the first single from her album titled “Worst (I Assume)” with a music video on Aug. 20, and told PEOPLE at the time that she wrote the song from a “protective mechanism.”
“I wrote it from the protective mechanism that sometimes I have, of bracing for the worst in a relationship — whether it’s romantic, or professional, even though that might not be what ends up happening,” JoJo said.
Trying Not to Think About Itis out now.
If you or someone you know needs mental health help, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.
source: people.com
