Over the weekend, Gabrielle Union participated in Gwyneth Paltrow’s In Goop Health virtual summit. During their conversation, Union addressed her mental health journey and revealed she was dealing with suicidal ideation.
“I’ve had so many rock bottom moments as an adult, starting with being raped at 19 at gunpoint at my job; it just felt like every so many years there was some major catastrophic event that was happening in my life. You know, divorce, career setbacks, relationship issues. There’s always something that just lands you on your ass, and you’re like, ‘There’s no way I can move on from this, I’ll never recover, I’ll never be the same.”
Union was diagnosed with perimenopause in her 30s, which is the transitioning process into menopause. She told Paltrow that her symptoms got real bad around the fall of last year.
“I thought I was losing my mind, “I thought I had early-onset dementia, Alzheimer’s. I gained 20 pounds overnight of water retention, inflammation, bizarre. I couldn’t think. Now, when I have to public speak in the last few months, I’m so anxious because I’m like, ‘Am I going to remember words?'”
The Bring It On star got real candid during their discussion and said another symptom of her perimenopause was depression and suicidal thoughts. Union is no stranger to therapy and has opened up previously about her PTSD in her book “We’re Going To Need More Wine”, but confirms that this time was like no other.
“I fell into something so dark in December that it scared me, “I had a stupid argument with D [Dwayne Wade], and instead of my usual problem-solving…immediately, my brain, that little inner voice said, ‘He’s never going to get it unless you’re dead.’ Only because I’ve been in therapy for half my life that I was like ‘No, I don’t know who is talking now, it’s not my intuition.'”
She added, “I was able to get through it with talk therapy and diving into how I can regulate my hormones. Luckily I was at home, and I alerted everyone. Separating the symptoms from who you really are…to say that it’s a challenge, I don’t think I really have the words, or I lost them, to describe what these last few months have been,”
This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is at risk of suicide please call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255, text HOME to 741741 or go to SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional resources.
Photo Credit: CBS News
