J Balvin is Destigmatizing Mental Illness for Young Latinxs

Over the weekend J Balvin opened up about his mental health struggles, sharing that he’s finally feeling better after suffering for two months because of anxiety and depression

Photo: Instagram/@jbalvin

Photo: Instagram/@jbalvin

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By  Virginia Isaad

Over the weekend J Balvin opened up about his mental health struggles, sharing that he’s finally feeling better after suffering for two months because of anxiety and depression. While the 34-year-old Colombian reggaeton singer has been open about his mental health struggles in the past, this particular tweet urged fans and followers alike to assess their own mental health struggles and think about seeking professional help if needed.

“Después de 2 meses de infierno ya voy sintiendo el cielo de nuevo , la ansiedad y la depresión es una realidad . Busca ayuda profesional,” he wrote.

He didn’t share any more details but did retweet a comment about how few people understand how depression affects the body and that just because someone has the motive to be happy, doesn’t necessarily mean they are capable of it.

Historically, the Latinx community is known for stigmatizing mental illness and instead choosing to deal with problems like this on your own. But it’s important that high profile artists (and men) like J Balvin are opening up about their own struggles.

Previously, in an interview with The Guardian, he shared that even he was initially reluctant to seek professional help a few years ago, assuming it was for “crazy” people. He eventually did go to therapy and get the medication he needed but it was his last resort but it “was the most important one.”

“It was the worst time in my life,” he said. “There’s a lack of information about depression. There’s one thing – being sad – which is emotional, the other thing is depression, which is a chemical thing in your brain. Depression is some different kind of monster that you cannot deal with if you don’t have the right medication.”

His fans on Twitter have been supportive and some have thanked him for his honesty and support of seeking help from mental health professionals.

But many have also tweeted how he has all the money he could ever need and others suffer without financial support and how that somehow that can negate the severity of his depression, an aspect he quickly shot down during this interview with The Guardian. 

“Yes, I have everything. Yes, I’m depressed. It’s not related and anyway it depends on what ‘everything’ is to you,” he said.

J Balvin has also changed his lifestyle completely. He wakes up at 5 a.m. to meditate, he doesn’t drink, smoke, or do any other drugs. Plus, he takes his prescribed medication and continues to attend therapy.

At the time of the interview earlier this summer, J Balvin was at the top of his game. He had officially become the most viewed artist on the planet on Youtube, he had also released a collaboration with Puerto Rican artist Bad Bunny. What’s more? He also made history when he became the first Latinx artist to headline Lollapalooza and that’s after he shared the stage with Beyoncé at Coachella in 2018.

While on the outside, it looks like nothing positivity and success. On the inside, J Balvin was struggling with more.

In an interview with Billboard in 2014, he shared how he was working so hard and achieved so much success that he began to feel the pressure and suffered panic attacks and again, it was therapy and meditation that helped him.

“It’s still a lot of stress,” he says. “But I’m not as afraid as I used to be. Now when bad things happen, I’m just like, ‘OK, I got over it once. I’m going to get over it until it’s done.’ “

When a mega-successful Latinx star like J Balvin opens up about his struggles with mental health, it helps to chip away at the stigma surrounding mental illness and getting help. This is something that’s desperately needed in the Latinx community.

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