Cara Delevingne has revealed that she struggled with depression as a teenager and said her mother’s heroin addiction has had a major impact on her life.
The 22-year-old is one of the most popular faces in modelling and is known for her outgoing personality but in a candid interview with Vogue, Delevingne spoke out about having to grow up quickly due to her family circumstances.
“It shapes the childhood of every kid whose parent has an addiction. You grow up too quickly because you’re parenting your parents. My mother’s an amazingly strong person with a huge heart, and I adore her. But it’s not something you get better from, I don’t think. I know there are people who have stopped and are fine now, but not in my circumstance. She’s still struggling,” she said.
She also used the interview to open up on the challenge of mental illness, saying that she was on a “cocktail” of drugs and therapy as a teen.
“This is something I haven’t been open about, but it’s a huge part of who I am. All of a sudden I was hit with a massive wave of depression and anxiety and self-hatred, where the feelings were so painful that I would slam my head against a tree to try to knock myself out. I never cut, but I’d scratch myself to the point of bleeding. I just wanted to dematerialize and have someone sweep me away,” she said.
“The worst thing was that I knew I was a lucky girl, and the fact that you would rather be dead . . . you just feel so guilty for those feelings, and it’s this vicious circle. Like, how dare I feel that way? So you just attack yourself some more.”
Delevingne is now dating musician Annie Clark, better known as St Vincent, and said that having a healthy relationship and being honest about her sexuality has hugely improved her self-confidence.
“I think that being in love with my girlfriend is a big part of why I’m feeling so happy with who I am these days. And for those words to come out of my mouth is actually a miracle.”
