Janet Jackson overcame depression and found true happiness after giving birth to her son
Featuring in the cover story of Essence, Janet Jackson opened up about her struggle with depression and how she eventually found happiness in her journey to attain peace in life. In an open letter to the readers of Essence, the 52-year-old musician wrote, "When it comes to happiness, I’m no expert... I have only my life experience as a guide. I’ve known great happiness and great sadness. But I guess the key question is, What do I really know about happiness?”
The Grammy winner also noted that she struggled to find happiness in her 40's. She wrote, "In my forties: Like millions of women in the world, I still heard voices inside my head berating me, voices questioning my value... Happiness was elusive. A reunion with old friends might make me happy. A call from a colleague might make me happy. But because sometimes I saw my failed relationships as my fault, I easily fell into despair."
Jackson was recently on the news for her latest battle, according to People, with her husband Wissam Al Mana over an argument that was sparked for the WiFi access for the couple's nanny. The couple apparently does not see eye-to-eye when to comes to parenting their one-year-old son Eissa.
People also quoted a source, who said, "Since their divorce, they are trying to raise their son together. Their cultural differences, that also ended their marriage, are tricky to work around though... They have very different ideas about how to raise Eissa. Janet has expressed frustration about this in the past.” The couple split in April 2017, three months after their son's birth.
In the cover story, Jackson confessed that it is her son who brings her actual happiness. She said,"The height of happiness is holding my baby son in my arms and hearing him coo, or when I look into his smiling eyes and watch him respond to my tenderness... When I kiss him. When I sing him softly to sleep. During those sacred times, happiness is everywhere. Happiness is in gratitude to God. Happiness is saying, ‘Thank you, God, for my life, my energy and my capacity to grow in love."
The entertainer also pointed out that low-esteem can stem out of inferiority complex suffered in childhood. However, social issues such as racism, too, have a big role to play in putting an individual's confidence down. "And of course there are always the societal issues of racism and sexism," she said. "Put it all together and depression is a tenacious and scary condition. Thankfully, I found my way through it.”
