Selena Gomez gets candid about mental health journey: "I had my rock bottom"
Austin, Texas - Selena Gomez has opened up about her mental health journey in a candid conversation at SXSW.
On Sunday, the 31-year-old star took the stage at the Mindfulness Over Perfection: Getting Real On Mental Health panel alongside her mom, Mandy Teefey.
During the chat, Selena reflected on how far she's come since the days of filming her vulnerable 2022 documentary, My Mind & Me, which focused heavily on her mental health struggles.
"It makes me sick to hear the things that I was saying about myself in the beginning. It bums me out," she said of the movie, per PEOPLE.
"It's important to speak to yourself with kindness, but I don't think I really understood that," she added.
The Rare Beauty founder, who has been open about her experience with bipolar disorder and other mental health issues, has previously admitted that she "will never watch" My Mind & Me again due to how "hard" it is emotionally.
Still, she remains "very proud" of her work on it and the conversations it's created.
Selena Gomez reflects on mental health struggles
"There [were] a lot of people that cared about me more than I cared about myself that really wanted me to do things I wasn't ready for," Selena said at SXSW. "I had my rock bottom, and I had to do it in my time."
"It took a couple of tries, but I like to think and hope I'm in a much better place now."
Over the years, the Disney Channel alum has taken many measures to improve her mental health, including frequent breaks from social media.
Despite being the most-followed woman on Instagram, Selena has reiterated that space from the platform is vital to her well-being.
"At one point, Instagram became my whole world, and it was really dangerous. Taking a break from social media was the best decision that I've ever made for my mental health," she revealed in 2022.
Selena has also helped provide funding for mental health services with the Rare Impact Fund, which donates a portion of sales from her Rare Beauty brand to philanthropic groups.
Cover photo: IMAGO / ZUMA Wire