Mental Entrapment: Catherine Zeta-Jones removes 'stigma' from her bipolar disorder

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Published time: November 15, 2012 10:04
Edited time: November 15, 2012 14:04

The star of Intolerable Cruelty, the Oscar-winning Welsh-born actress Catherine Zeta-Jones has revealed what it’s like to suffer from manic depression, in an effort to "help remove any stigma attached to it".

­“I'm not the kind of person who likes to shout out my personal issues from the rooftops but with my bipolar becoming public, I hope fellow sufferers will know it is completely controllable,” Zeta-Jones owned up in an interview with the US edition of InStyle magazine.

“I hope I can help remove any stigma attached to it, and that those who don't have it under control will seek help with all that is available to treat it.”

A year and a half ago the 43-year-old was diagnosed with bipolar disorder II and was admitted to rehab where she reportedly spent a week.

Then came months of worry and anxiety as her husband, Michael Douglas fought throat cancer. Zeta-Jones married the 'Basic Instinct' star Douglas, who is 25 years her senior, in 1998. The couple have a daughter and a son together.

Bipolar disorder is an imbalance in the brain's mood regulating system that can cause manic depression and can be fueled by stress and depression.

"You find out who you really are and who you're married to. You find things inside yourself you never imagined were there," the actress revealed in the December issue of InStyle.

"You can't escape what people say, and if you're human it can be painful," the actress says. "The smartest thing I did was to stop going online. I'm the sort of person who will just look for the negative," she added.