“THE struggle is real!”
Yan ang pagpapatunay ni Julia Barretto sa pagkakaroon ng anxiety disorder na halos limang taon na rin niyang pinaglalabanan.
Ayon sa Kapamilya actress, isang seryoso at sensitibong issue ang pagkakaroon ng ganitong mental condition na hindi dapat ipagsawalang-bahala.
Naikuwento ito ni Julia sa isang podcast na ipinost niya sa YouTube kasama ang younger sister niyang si Claudia Barretto na umamin may pinaglalabanan ding mental condition kaya ang naisip niyang advocacy ay ang mental health awareness.
“It’s such a sensitive topic and it’s a part of me that really absolutely nobody knows about. So few people know,” simulang pahayag ni Julia.
Hindi ito naging madali para sa dalaga lalo na noong una niya itong ma-experience dahil hindi pa niya naiintindihan ang nararamdaman, “I think there are certain things that really hit it or, like, triggered it. It’s just, like, one day you get it.
“The first few days, the first time you get it, you don’t understand. It makes you so frustrated. Like, ‘What’s going on with me? I don’t know what’s happening,’” aniya pa.
Paliwanag pa ng Kapamilya star, “When I get attacks, I can’t move, I can’t talk. I’m always just staring, and I’m not aware anymore what I’m doing, or, like, what others are doing.
“It’s like I’m under this really, really dark cloud. People try to talk to me, talk me out of it. When they ask me what’s happening, what’s wrong, it’s like my tongue can’t move.
“I really can’t, and it makes me so frustrated, because you’re trying to get a word out, just one word, and it won’t come out,” pahayag pa ni Julia.
Inamin din niya na minsan na rin siyang nagalit nang may pagsabihan siya tungkol dito, “There’s this one person who saw it was happening to me, and the person was just saying, ‘It’s all in your head, you can do it. You can get out of it. Just don’t think about it.’
“It made me so, so, so furious. I really got so mad because if it really was just in my head, I had total control over this thing. Why would I want to be going through this?
“I wouldn’t wanna be going through this because it’s a super difficult situation, it’s a dark place. It happens to a lot of people. I’m not just making it up,” sabi pa ng aktres. Pero naiintindihan daw niya ang taong nakausap niya noon kaya talagang mahalaga na maging aware ang lahat tungkol dito.
“With my journey with it, because I get panic attacks, I get anxiety attacks, and I get super anxious. I mean, I get it so frequently, but I’ve also… it’s a process, it’s getting to know yourself.
“I think I’ve grown a lot of awareness already, like, what happens to me when I’m getting an attack.
“I’ve seen a life coach, I’ve attended an anxiety… you know, those groups when they talk about anxiety and then they teach you how to deal with it and stuff like that.
“You also have to help yourself try to find out what works for you. I’ve also just been blessed that I’ve been surrounded by people who totally know how to deal with me when I get an attack,” aniya pa.