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— zayn (@zaynmalik) June 11, 2016
His replies were full of fans reaching out to him, letting him know how much they love and support him, some of them acknowledging their own anxiety and/or panic attacks. Unfortunately, however, for every supporter there was a naysayer, brushing off Zayn's condition with "get over it" and arguing that because Zayn happens to be rich and famous he couldn't possibly suffer from a silly thing like anxiety. It also didn't help that the Daily Mail put his decision to pull out down to "nerves" and Dan Wootton from The Sun tweeted when the news broke claiming that Zayn appeared at an event the night before and, therefore, should have been perfectly fine to perform the next day. Dan not only came across as completely ignorant but his dismissal of the disorder that affects up to 1 in 6 adults in the UK is so dangerous.
Zayn wasn't so anxious last night... #justsaying pic.twitter.com/vDIzTiBFt1— Dan Wootton (@danwootton) June 11, 2016
Anxiety isn't always there. You can go weeks at a time without an 'episode' (for want of a better word) and then suddenly the feeling of complete and utter fear takes over your whole mind and body. You can - as Dan rather crassly pointed out - be living the high life one day then be glued to the spot and crippled with panic and fright the next. The main thing, and really bloody annoying thing, about anxiety is that it's unpredictable. You can't tell when it will strike and make you so scared and panicked by both everything and nothing at all that you can't bring yourself to put a sausage roll in the oven let alone perform in front of thousands of people on stage at Wembley Stadium.
When Sheridan Smith was forced to take a break from playing her much lauded lead role in Funny Girl last month due to stress the tabloids were quick to comment on her inevitable breakdown and focus on her supposed drunk performances. Mental health is as important as a person's physical health but when the press continue to brush it off or scandalise it for the sake of a headline, it doesn't only affect the person involved, it affects the millions of others who are suffering. Calling Zayn out as lazy or posting photos of Sheridan looking dour at the BAFTAs doesn't help anyone. Very much like a doctor telling someone they "don't look depressed" because they've put make up on is so dismissive it beggars belief.
A high profile star admitting to suffering with these problems is a chance to open a dialogue and bring such issues to the forefront of peoples minds. Pop Kulture is full of admiration for Zayn for speaking out about his battle because it has started a conversation in mainstream media which is a step in the right direction (no pun intended) towards people understanding and grasping the importance of a person's mental health.
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