Missy Elliott Gets Candid About Struggles With Anxiety: ‘We All Go Through S**t’

etcanada.com:

Missy Elliott exudes confidence onstage, but in a candid new cover story for Essence she opens up about her lifelong struggles with anxiety.

As she explained, she grew up in a culture in which issues surrounding mental health were typically addressed in church, not a doctor’s office. “I think that a lot of things were brushed up under the rug for me growing up, and probably also for a lot of people,” she said, admitting the isolation she experienced during the pandemic was particularly difficult. READ MORE: Missy Elliott Shares What ‘Really Kept Me Going’ In The Rap Industry  “I had so much time to just think of childhood stuff, and all kinds of stuff,” she shared. “But that’s what makes me human.” She also references a dark period in her life when she battled depression for nearly two years, while also grappling with being diagnosed with Graves’ disease, an autoimmune disorder. “Now I’m fine with being like, ‘Hey, I got anxiety’ or ‘I went through depression,’” she said. “Even the biggest artist, or just the regular everyday working person, we all go through s**t.

We all do. And it’s okay to say, ‘Hey, I’m not okay today.’ Probably we would keep a lot of people around if we were that open, because we would be able to uplift each other.

We’d know that I’m not going to look at you crazy if you say, ‘Hey, I’m having a rough day.’ Maybe you’re thinking things that you shouldn’t think, or whatever the case may be.” READ MORE: Missy Elliott Speaks Out After Becoming First Female Hip Hop Artist To Nab Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Nomination During the interview, Elliott also teased some new music on the horizon — big news for fans, considering her last studio album to contain new songs came out nearly 20 years ago. “I