- Lady Gaga's mother, Cynthia Germanotta, opened up to Sheinelle Jones of the Today show about the difficulties of raising a young daughter dealing with mental health issues and depression.
- “I felt where I made mistakes was I didn’t really know the warning signs to look for,” admitted Germanotta.
- Gaga has been refreshingly open about her mental health struggles in the past, admitting she experiences PTSD and is a sexual assault survivor.
Lady Gaga’s mother shared insight into her superstar daughter’s lifelong journey with managing her mental health.
Cynthia Germanotta revealed the difficulties of raising a teenage daughter dealing with depression on the Today show’s digital series Through Mom’s Eyes, hosted by Sheinelle Jones. Per People, according to Germanotta, a young Gaga dealt with severe bullying while attending school, starting at a very young age.
“In middle school, because she was unique, she started experiencing a lot of struggles,” said Germanotta. “You know, feeling isolated from events. Humiliated. Taunted. And she would start to question herself and become doubtful of her own abilities. And that’s when she developed depression.” Germanotta admitted that she and her husband, Joe Germanotta, did their best to help Gaga cope, but as parents, didn’t always know the best ways to go about helping their daughter.
“I felt where I made mistakes was I didn’t really know the warning signs to look for,” admitted Germanotta.
After Gaga’s sudden rise to fame, the singer and her mother started the Born This Way Foundation, which aims to help the next generation of youth conquer and control their struggles with mental health. Germanotta shared that at first, she wasn’t sure why her daughter decided to be so open about the emotional hardships in her life, but then realized that her transparency with revealing her struggles ended up eventually helping her heal.
Lady Gaga has spoken out previously about living with PTSD, being a survivor of sexual assault, and grappling with suicidal ideation.
“I wish there had been a system in place to protect and guide me. A system in place to empower me to say no to things I felt I had to do. A system in place to empower me to stay away from toxic working environments or working with people that were of seriously questionable character,” said Gaga during an awards acceptance speech last year. “There were days I struggled or couldn’t make it to work, and I don’t want that for other artists, or for anyone.”
