Rose McGowan says she has been the ‘sleep 30 hours kind of sad’ in candid post about mental health

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Rose McGowan has opened up about being ‘deeply sad’ and ‘very low’ in a candid post to her Instagram stories.

On Thursday, June 3, the actress posted an update telling her 777,000 followers that she hasn’t been posting because of her mental health struggles. 

“Depression is an intense beast,” Mcgowan said. “If you’ve read my book I speak openly [about] depression, trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). I speak of my history with a mind that wants me to sleep forever. It blocks the sun for so many of us.” 

Offering some words of support to others who might be struggling, she said she has been reminding herself that many people suffer from depression and that she is not alone.

“If you suffer from this, I want you to know you are not alone. I want me to know I’m not alone, no matter how hard my mind whispers thoughts of the sleep 30 hours kind of sad. The crying & don’t know why sad. The I just want it to stop sad,” she continued.

Explaining her absence on the social media app, McGowan said she “will never put up a false front to the world and post a false joy” she is not feeling. 

“Depression is a beast to dance with. Sometimes the beast holds your head down,” she said, adding that she remains optimistic.

“But what I know is that there will be light again. For all of us. And the day will come when the weight of sadness will disappear. And we will raise our faces to the sun,” she concluded.

McGowan, who was one of the first women to come forward with allegations of sexual abuse against Harvey Weinstein, detailed her depression and PTSD in her 2018 autobiography, Brave.

In the book, she recalls growing up in Italy where her parents were part of the Children of God cult. She was allegedly beaten by cult members.

“We left because they started advocating child-adult sex and that was too far for my father, so we escaped,” she told The Irish Times in 2019. 

You can find helpful tips on how to start a conversation, or if you are worried about someone else, on the Samaritans website.

You can contact the Samaritans helpline by calling 116 123. The helpline is free and open 24 hours a day every day of the year.

You can also contact Samaritans by emailing jo@samaritans.org. The average response time is 24 hours.