Taraji P Henson Opens Up About Her 'Dark' Moments During This Pandemic

Actor Taraji P Henson opened up about her mental health issues in her show named Peace of Mind with Taraji. She talked about how the pandemic pushed her into a dark place where she wanted to end it all.

The show streamed on Facebook and Henson was joined by Dr LaShonda Green. Henson shared that she had a dark moment during this pandemic. “For a couple of days, I couldn’t get out of bed, I didn’t care. That’s not me. Then, I started having thoughts about ending it.” she also said that these thoughts came to her after she purchased a gun.

Also read: How to keep your Mental Health in Check during Pandemic times

Henson recalled thinking of ending her life for two nights in a row and that worried her. She also talked about how she thought that her 26-year-old son will “get over” her death. She talked about feeling that she was withdrawing and she wasn't responding to people who were calling her during those days. Henson after being worried about her thoughts decided to open up to her friends. “I just blurted it out, ‘I thought about killing myself’. I felt like, if I don’t say it, it becomes a plan. “What scared me is I did it two nights in a row. First, it was like, ‘I don’t wanna be here’ Then I started thinking about going to get the gun and that’s why when I woke up the next morning, I blurted it out,” she said.

Henson had started The Boris Lawrence Foundation in 2018 in the memory of her father who suffered from mental health issues as the result of the time he served in the Vietnam War. The foundation aims at doing away with the stigma around mental health issues in the African-American community.

Also read: Taraji P. Henson Works to Eradicate Mental Health Stigmas in Black Communities

Image credit: Variety