When Darryl McDaniels of Run-D.M.C. suffered anxiety or panic attacks, he turned to alcohol. He was fully functional while drunk - never late, never causing problems - so he didn’t recognize he had a problem until his first day in rehab. His wife told him, “You are killing yourself. You are commiting suicide.” and it opened his eyes.
Admitting you have a problem and getting help is not an easy thing to do, and often, it is not a socially acceptable thing to do, but McDaniels has a new outlook. “Therapy is the most gangster thing anybody can do for themselves. Going to therapy is the most powerful move that you can make that will help you heal, solve, or alleviate the stress and struggles of the battles with depression,” he says.
McDaniels is now an advocate for opening up and sharing your feelings. He is has been doing a lot of interviews and spreading awareness that we need to get rid of the stigma around mental health. “Most of all, I want to keep talking about it. When you break your calf, you talk about it until the cast is off and the healing is done. I want people to talk about mental health in the same way,” McDaniels says. He has even come up with a rhyme to help you remember: “if you don’t admit how you feel, whether good or bad, you will never heal.”
Read more about McDaniels in the Men’s Health article, “Darryl 'D.M.C.' McDaniels: Admitting Mental Health Issues Isn't Soft — It's Powerful”.