An insight into Gomez’s complex mind and what she did to understand it.
We grew up with her on our TVs and our iPods, but behind the promotions, tours, and shows is just a regular person who also deals with struggles. Selena Gomez’s new documentary, “My Mind and Me”, portrays how the superstar has coped and dealt with her mental health issues for the past six years.
“Everything I wished for I have, and I am humbled for it, but it has killed me because there is always Selena.”
Selena has publicly faced heartbreak, Lupus, Bipolar Disorder, and scrutiny over the last couple of years. I remember hearing about her mental breakdown and health issues, but just like everyone else, I did not understand the extent of them. Selena’s new documentary gives us a look into these hard times and tribulations. It is a raw account of what it’s like to struggle with anxiety and depression under public scrutiny.
What I appreciated about this documentary is how Selena showed her experiences, but not in a way to get pity or to explain herself. She used it to start conversations about something millions of people have to fight every day to overcome. She states that she wanted people to understand how she gives her heart and her words and lets people decide what it means to them. She is broadcasting the thought process in her head and normalizing a stigma that reaches so many people.
The documentary dives into the past six years. Starting with her 2016 Revival Tour, which she canceled after 55 shows because of a psychotic breakdown. The tour took place after her breakup with Justin Bieber, so she was already in a vulnerable state. The opening credits show her criticizing her performance of “Who Says”, ironically a song about being confident and not wanting to be anyone else but herself. The film shows Selena crying about how she feels like she “sucks” and had voices in her head telling her she’s not “good enough.” She voices her struggles with her body image, pressures from the public, and her recent heartbreak.
“I wish you could feel like what it feels like to be in my head”, she tells her team.
Moments like these add to the realness and inspiration that stems from “My Mind and Me”. She is fighting the battle in her head as well as the physical toll of Lupus. These specific clips, such as breakdowns in dressing rooms, physical defeat when she wakes up and watching people talk about her in the media foreshadow her health journey.
“When I am going to be good enough just by myself. Not needing anybody to be associated with?”, she cries out.
After canceling the tour, Selena paused everything to get the help that she needed. This can be applied to people who also struggle with mental health. She teaches us that sometimes, the best thing you can do for yourself is pause and attack what you have been running from head-on.
After her diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder Selena visits her hometown. She does this to assess her roots and to remember who she was and where she came from. She visits her family and old high school. She remembers what it was like to be “normal” but also notes that God gave her a platform for a reason.
Selena’s healing process wasn’t easy, but in reality, no one’s ever is. She shows how she still gets incredible performance anxiety, deals with health concerns from Lupus, and fights to have confidence. But what matters is that she turned her diagnosis into a goal. She wants to pass a bill to include emotional education in school curriculums and has joined the ‘White House Conversation on Youth Mental Health.’ She has also given dozens of testimonials of her own experience.
I think “My Mind and Me” is well worth watching. It helped me understand myself better and it made me feel okay to have emotions and feelings that aren’t just happy or sad. It is okay to be confused, but Selena teaches us that it is also okay to fight for yourself.
You can watch “My Mind and Me” on Apple TV+. In addition, since the documentary came out, Apple TV+ is offering a two-month free trial so, everyone can watch it.