Chrissy Teigen has quickly owned social media. Between calling out haters on Twitter and being full-on couple goals on Snapchat, she feels like your best friend and your idol at once. But she has recently become even more relatable in a different way. In a rare serious moment, she let the world even more into her life than they already were.
She took to Instagram to make a confession: She has been suffering from postpartum depression. And she was shown an immense amount of support from fans. Just looking at her social media platforms, you would think that the model has no cares in the world. She seems to have it made. John Legend is her husband, Luna is possibly the cutest baby, a post-baby bod that anyone would want pre-baby and endless amounts of pizza. Teigen explained the depression more in depth in the April issue of Glamour. In the full letter, Teigen becomes even more relatable.
Like when she explains the feeling of not being worthy of complaining.
"But postpartum does not discriminate. I couldn't control it. And that's part of the reason it took me so long to speak up: I felt selfish, icky, and weird saying aloud that I'm struggling. Sometimes I still do. I know I might sound like a whiny, entitled girl. Plenty of people around the world in my situation have no help, no family, no access to medical care. I can't imagine not being able to go to the doctors that I need."
It's a feeling that so many people can relate to: The feeling that we do not have the right to complain. When you are upset, someone usually comforts you by saying "It could be worse" and yes, it could be. But that does not make your sadness any less valid. It is not a magic realization that makes you think "You're right, I have no reason to be upset because someone else has it worse."
When she was completely honest about her lowest points.
"When I wasn't in the studio, I never left the house. I mean, never. Not even a tiptoe outside. I'd ask people who came inside why they were wet. Was it raining? How would I know—I had every shade closed. Most days were spent on the exact same spot on the couch and rarely would I muster up the energy to make it upstairs for bed. John would sleep on the couch with me, sometimes four nights in a row. I started keeping robes and comfy clothes in the pantry so I wouldn't have to go upstairs when John went to work. There was a lot of spontaneous crying."
When she acknowledged asking for help.
"John has been incredible over the last nine months, bringing me my medicine and watching horrible reality TV with me. He is not the goofiest guy, but he has gone out of his way to indulge my sense of humor. When I was having a good day, he would go to Medieval Times with me and put on the crazy period hat! He sees how much my eyes light up when he does that stuff, and he knows that's what I need. I know he must look over at times and think: My God, get it together. But he has never made me feel that way. He wants me to be happy, silly, and energetic again, but he's not making me feel bad when I'm not in that place."
While we will always love Teigen for her high-quality tweets, it all comes down to her honesty. Whether it is postpartum depression, anxiety, or any other struggle, we can all take note from the strength Chrissy Teigen shows.
