Selena Gomez opens up on being misdiagnosed before bipolar diagnosis

Selena Gomez has opened up about the challenges she faced before receiving her bipolar disorder diagnosis, describing a long and complicated journey that involved multiple misdiagnoses and mental health hurdles.

Speaking on the March 3 episode of the Friends Keep Secrets podcast with husband Benny Blanco, Gomez, 33, explained that she had long suspected something was wrong but was initially misdiagnosed. “I knew something was wrong, but I think I was misdiagnosed,” she said. “People were just assuming, and I would try multiple therapists. And that’s why it’s hard. It’s actually really hard when we’re talking about these things. And for me to go get a therapist, all of it is so f---ing complicated.”

Gomez shared that navigating the mental health system and finding the right diagnosis and treatment required consulting with “multiple different people,” an experience that ultimately helped her understand herself better. Blanco, 37, added that Gomez still occasionally experiences moments of mania, which she may not immediately recognise. “She’ll start to realize she’s having it after it’s happening, and sometimes she doesn’t even remember when it’s happening,” he said.

Despite these challenges, Gomez emphasised that she is not ashamed of her manic episodes. “I’m not ashamed at all because I can catch them a bit quicker,” she said. She highlighted the importance of having a supportive partner who understands the nuances of her condition, helping her navigate these intense moments.

The singer-actress credited her time at four different rehabs with helping her gain clarity about her diagnosis. She explained that her bipolar disorder affects the way she experiences emotions and reacts to situations. “I would act out of fear, I would act out of love, I would act out of passion. It was all inconsistent, it was crazy,” she said.

As Gomez continues to understand and manage her bipolar disorder, she said she feels freer than ever before to live authentically. “That’s the problem with misconception,” she noted. “The whole hypocrisy of shaming people for therapy or people not understanding it is that it’s just not for you. But for me, it finally allowed me to go, ‘Oh, that’s why I handled things the way I handled it. That’s why all the other people were able to get over things so quickly and I wasn’t.’”

Gomez’s candid reflections add to the ongoing conversation about mental health awareness and the importance of proper diagnosis and support, illustrating the complexities many face when seeking care for bipolar disorder.