Singer and future Oscar nominee Lady Gaga was recently honored for her philanthropic efforts. Gaga, government name Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, and her mother, Cynthia, were presented with the Global Changemakers Award at a Children Mending Hearts’ fundraiser on Sunday.
Gaga and Mama Gaga were recognized for the efforts of their Born This Way foundation, with its mission to “provide youth with genuine opportunities, quality resources and platforms to make their voices heard.” During the awards presentation, Gaga discussed the organization’s efforts, explaining:
“We bring people together to have real, honest conversations and to be kind. Kindness is not an afterthought to our work. It is the driving power for everything we do. It is the lens we view every challenge through. It is framing the way we put everything around every possible solution. To me, almost every problem you can think of can be solved with kindness. At least it could be made better. Kindness has a soft undertone. Sometimes people think it is weak. It is tremendously powerful. It can change the way that we view each other. The way that we view our communities and the way that we work. Even the way that we feel about ourselves, by being kinder to ourselves. We need more kindness in the world.”
This focus on kindness is nothing new for Gaga and the foundation. Back in November, she told the audience at a concert in Indianapolis, “Don’t pity someone [who struggles with their health]. Offer your kindness instead.”
Gaga, who had already revealed that she suffers from PTSD, went on to tell the crowd on Sunday that, “I have struggled for a long time, both being public and not public about my mental health issues or my mental illness. But, I truly believe that secrets keep you sick.” She went on to add, “I realize that it’s actually safer to say how I feel.”
She also took an opportunity to address the topic of suicide, reading excerpts of a letter from her friend, Breedlove, who confessed he had suicidal thoughts and urged people feeling the same way to seek help. He observed that “there is so much help out there if you have the courage to be honest with yourself and others about what you are going through.”
The singer wrapped up her speech with a sweet shout out to her mother, stating:
“Thank you Mom for not being afraid of my darkest thoughts and for doing what many don’t realize goes very far: just holding my hand and running an organization that helps hold the hands of others and join the hands of others. I love you. Suicidal ideation feels like a spell and we have to have empathy. Be kind and help each other break that spell and live and thrive.”
On Monday, Gaga shared her support with the LBGTQA+ community via Twitter. She posted a photo with mother, wishing the community “HAPPY PRIDE!!!” on behalf of her foundation.
My mother and I, as well as the whole @BTWFoundation wish you a HAPPY PRIDE !!! 🎉🌈💕 pic.twitter.com/mIz0qVbyje
— Lady Gaga (@ladygaga) June 11, 2018
Say what you will about Gaga, I think she’s really trying to help make a difference, and I truly admire her for that. Oh, and if you’re still on the fence about the new A Star is Born, the remake got an endorsement (of sorts) from the OG diva herself, Barbra Streisand. Streisand told the Associated Press, “What I saw of it was very good. It’s just it feels reminiscent of mine, but they added some new things which I liked, too….I’m sure it’ll work.” That’s all I needed to hear.
Photos: Getty Images, WENN.com
I appreciate what Gaga has to say here. I have a teenage daughter going through severe depression and anxiety. She’s had suicidal thoughts and sometimes it has been scary.
We’re lucky because my husband and I are on the same page, she has an amazing therapist, a caring GP and an incredible school that is on board with doing whatever it takes to help her through. There is a plan and we are her team. It all starts with the kindness to make the effort.
*hugs*
I am so sorry you are going through that. My teenage son just confessed that he is feeling like that and it’s been scary. We are just beginning and I am willing to do anything to help him. It’s heartbreaking but we’re working through it.
I am grateful for Gaga for bringing awareness to mental illness. I have also struggled and have PTSD as well (due to an ex). I get dark thoughts and get down it’s a struggle and I’ve been battling my whole life and awareness and compassion would be so helpful. I still hide it – when I was open about it people were not very nice .. so I hide it as well as I can.
I’m so grateful that people are becoming more willing to talk about mental illness. The more people open up and discuss it, the more aware those who were too scared and embarrassed to admit they have a mental illness will be about the fact that they’re not alone. Talking with people and my therapist about my depression and anxiety makes things a lot better, and my bipolar mother has been doing better after opening up about it
The same thing goes for trauma. I’m glad that people are both moving away from stigmatizing people who have mental health issues as well as beginning to recognize the role that trauma plays in so many of our lives. Although there is still a lot of insensitivity out there people are becoming both aware and empathetic. That’s a good thing.
Peace.
I kept a secret bottled up for about nine years and didn’t tell anyone. I finally did and it was a relief.
I wish I had done it sooner
go gaga. also there is mdma therapy to help people with depression anxiety and ptsd. it can work. it does work for many. maps.org
I love her openness and empathy. When I was young and struggling terribly with mood disorders, these things simply weren’t spoken of and were regarded as personal moral failures by the people I knew. The resulting isolation and shame were crippling on top of an already enormous challenge. If only I’d been able to hear someone like Gaga or Anthony Bourdain speak so openly about this aspect of the human condition, it would have made such a difference in not feeling so alone and irredeemably flawed. Gaga’s doing good work, and she’s become such an articulate spokesperson for these hard issues.
It’s so awesome when celebrities use their star power to promote a cause that they clearly believe in, that helps so many other people.
Gaga is already an Oscar nominee…
We as a society need to learn that people who suffer mental illness are no different than anyone else. Depression and other mental illnesses are assholes and they lie to the people who suffer from it. I have battled depression my whole life and have listened to the lies in the past. The best thing for we as a people is to learn to slow down, get off our phones, look up and say too those around us “I’m here.” It costs nothing to be kind and to care about others and to listen when they need to talk. Sometimes we need to be the sanity for someone who is in the depths of depression or PTSD or anxiety or the myriad of other illnesses because the person suffering is not capable of sorting out the BS from reality. Just think how much better this world would be if we just took the time to care.
We as a society need to learn that people who suffer mental illness are no different than anyone else. Depression and other mental illnesses are assholes and they lie to the people who suffer from it. I have battled depression my whole life and have listened to the lies in the past. The best thing for we, as a people, is to learn to slow down, get off our phones, look up and say to those around us “I’m here.” It costs nothing to be kind and to care about others and to listen when they need to talk. Sometimes we need to be the sanity for someone who is in the depths of depression or PTSD or anxiety or the myriad of other illnesses because the person suffering is not capable of sorting out the BS from reality. Just think how much better this world would be if we just took the time to care.
She’s right about secrets making you sick
That’s a fierce leather coat.