In the past decade, we’ve made serious strides in talking about mental illness. While we still have a long way to go in de-stigmatizing mental illness, we can appreciate the recent growth we’ve experienced in that area. Not only is it less taboo to go to therapy and/or take medication for mental illness, it’s also more common to be open and honest about having mental illness.

Celebrities have realized this and many of them are using their fame as a public platform to let people know that mental illness crosses all income levels, cultures, and generations.

Celebrities opening up about having mental illness themselves helps people in several ways: First, many people (especially young people) idolize celebrities, and hearing that they have mental illness can help inspire them to open up and seek help for their own. Second, celebrities often have a great deal of public influence and can persuade news and media outlets to change the dialogue we use to discuss mental illness. Third, celebrities generally have a very large audience and can use their mental illness struggles as a way to introduce the concept (post-partum depression and Brooke Shields come to mind) to the greater public.

Today, we’ll take a look at some of the celebrities who have, in fact, helped evolve the dialogue we’re having about mental illness. Some of these celebrities deliberately opened the dialogue, while some more tragically opened the dialogue by dying from a mental illness-related cause.

15. Chrissy Teigen

Chrissy Teigen is no stranger to being candid with her fans. From publicly sharing photos of her stretch marks, to admitting she rarely wears underwear, it’s clear she’s not afraid of being judged because she’s confident in her own skin. Last year, in a magazine interview, Teigen shared yet another facet of her personal life with fans: She suffered from post-partum depression after the birth of her daughter. Teigen talked about not wanting to get out of bed, let alone leave the house, how guilty she felt, and the tremendous amount of confusion that comes along with this disorder. She also shared that she sought help and works hard everyday to feel her best, now that she knows her diagnosis. Kudos to Chrissy for sharing her struggle, but also encouraging others to seek help themselves!

14. Ryan Tedder

It might be difficult to imagine One Republic’s resident frontman struggling with anxiety, since he performs in front of thousands of fans on a regular basis and has for over a decade. However, Tedder recently wrote a public post about his own very serious struggle with anxiety. It become so severe, he shared, that at one point he told his manager to cancel everything. He said he felt on the verge of a nervous breakdown and wasn’t sleeping. It was to the point where even his prescribed medication couldn’t help. The things that used to give him life were no longer bringing him joy at that point. However, it sounds like he did get the help he needed because he announced he was starting to work on new music again now!

13. Gabourey Sidibe

Gabourey Sidibe is going to be remember for a lot more than her role in “Precious.” With the release of her first memoir, “This is Just My Face,” Sidibe is opening up about her struggle with mental illness. Sidibe says that she has struggled with bulimia, anxiety, and depression throughout her life. At times, she revealed she hated everything about herself and would cry almost constantly, but was turned away when she told her mom she wasn’t feeling okay. She said many people told her to look to Jesus to help her get better with these issues, but she found solace in therapy, not church. Today, Sidibe has recovered from disordered eating and still goes to therapy routinely.

12. Demi Lovato

Demi Lovato is a musical artist and actress best-known for her powerful anthems of strong femininity and resilience. She is now a body icon, known for promoting strong, healthy bodies. However, Lovato did not always feel so powerful and comfortable in her own skin. Like many people, Lovato suffered from comorbid addiction and bipolar disorder. She also has suffered from bulimia, which is not uncommon for people dealing with anxiety or other mental illnesses. She became obsessed with her looks, feeling fat even when weighing just 105 pounds. Eventually, Lovato realized she needed treatment and checked into a rehab facility. Since then, Lovato has been an outspoken advocate for mental health.

11. Kendall Jenner

The Kardashian family is never one to keep private struggles private, always using their platform to speak about the issues that affect them as individuals and as a family. Whether it’s Rob talking about his weight, Kim about psoriasis, or Khloe about body image, this family is supportive about being honest in one’s struggle. Kendall, however, is the most recent family member to open up about her own mental illness: Anxiety. She shared on the show that her anxiety is so bad that she can barely get on airplanes and suffers from bouts of sleep paralysis. Once she was open about it, her family supported her in seeking professional help for the debilitating condition.

10. Emma Stone

It’s hard to believe anyone has had a better couple of years than Emma Stone. Stone is young, but has been working diligently in Hollywood since she was just a child, recently earning her more critical acclaim than almost any other actor in recent years. With the awards-show success of “Birdman” and “La La Land,” Stone has had a lot of press opportunities and uses such publicity to talk about the importance of treating mental illness. Stone herself suffers from anxiety, which she said has greatly affected her life since the age of seven. She has said that therapy has helped her “so much” and encourages parents to identify and help their own children’s anxiety, as well.

9. Amanda Seyfried

Amanda Seyfried is known a one of Hollywood’s most respected and cerebral young female actors. After he breakout role in “Mean Girls,” Seyfried has starred in blockbusters such as “Mama Mia!” and “Les Miserables.” With her success, Seyfried has used her publicity to shed a lot of light on a mental illness she knows all too well: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) with anxiety. She shares that these cohabitant illnesses cause her to have a hard time relinquishing control and have tremendous worries about things like leaving the stove on. She also has struggled with feeling she has health conditions, like brain tumors, due to her anxiety. She is an advocate for seeking professional help for mental illness, as she herself as been on Lexapro since she was a teenager.

8. Rachel Bloom

Rachel Bloom has sky-rocketed to a cult following in the past few years. She is the creator and star of hit musical comedy series “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” and has won awards for the show. She is a strong advocate for mental illness and acknowledges the tongue-in-cheek use of the word “crazy” (a word often misused in the media and cultural lexicon) in her show’s title. It may seem like Bloom should be the happiest person on earth, but we know that is not how mental illness works. Depression doesn’t just avoid people who are finding financial and critical success. She said once her show was picked up as a pilot, she was engaged, and her birth control changed, and she found herself in a downward spiral of depression she wasn’t sure she’d ever escape. That’s when she sought help from a psychiatrist and began undergoing therapy sessions and taking prescribed medication. She is now an advocate for getting help when dealing with depression, stating antidepressants do not just “numb you out,” they actually help.

7. Kid Cudi

Unfortunately, Kid Cudi’s mental health took the stage last year in the worst way. After opening up publicly about his struggle with mental illness (severe anxiety and depression, to be exact), rapper Drake dissed Cudi. This was especially disheartening because Cudi was using his fame as a rapper to help break the silence and stigma that largely exists in the hip hop community surrounding mental illness. Instead of applauding his courage to open an honest dialogue, Drake rapped a line about Cudi being on medication in his song. However, Cudi has taken the high road and credits checking into a rehab facility as saving his life.

6. Wayne Brady

When you think of the name “Wayne Brady,” what do you think of? I, for one, picture the svelte host grinning, about to make a witty remark. Doesn’t it seem like he is always smiling? After he rose to fame on “Whose Line is it Anyway?,” Brady has found constant work as a charismatic, upbeat comedian with relatable humor. However, it turns out that Brady’s life isn’t just all laughs and quick wit – in fact, he’s more relatable than we ever realized. Brady has struggled with depression and has recently opened up about his own struggle. He said he had a mental breakdown when he was coming to grips with his mental illness, feeling like he was “horrible.” Now, he hopes others are inspired to be open to and compassionate towards mental illness.

5. Mel Gibson

Chances are, Mel Gibson doesn’t conjure up the same cheery thoughts in your brain as Wayne Brady. Gibson has had some very public displays of mental unrest over the years. From chilling voicemails to violent outbursts, Gibson has opened the conversation about mental illness just by living his life, to some extent. However, in 2008, Gibson revealed that he was in fact diagnosed with bipolar disorder. In an interview, he shared he recently found out that he is manic depressive. He was sure to point out some of the strengths that can come from the diagnosis, like enhanced creativity, but also the downside of his illness: “Very low lows.” His public battle with mental health continues.

4. Emma Thompson

Emma Thompson is known for being one of the most talented actresses of our time. A true chameleon, Thompson can be the villain, hero, best friend, or songstress of any film or play she chooses to be in. It’s safe to say Thompson has thought a lot about empathy, by putting herself in such diverse shoes to play all these roles. It is with this empathy that she talks about depression, the mental illness that has affected her own life. She says acting actually saved her from “going under” from a time of severe depression, because it required her to get out of her own head.

3. Paula Deen

Paula Deen has had her fair share of controversy over the years. The once reigning queen of comfort food has had a fall from grace in recent years, thanks to some revealing racist remarks. However, it is less known that Deen also struggled in a very personal way before her rise to Food Network fame. Decades ago, when her children were very young, Deen suffered from an anxiety disorder called agoraphobia. This social anxiety disorder refers to a profound fear of leaving the house. It’s hard to believe that Deen went through a time when she couldn’t comfortably go to the grocery store, but she has said it really was the serious. It wasn’t until she eventually started an in-home catering business that her life turned around.

2. Elton John

Elton John is known for his tremendous talent, songwriting, and humanitarian efforts. Known for his contributions to the LGBTQ and HIV/AIDS community and charities, John is never one to shy away from taboo topics. It turns out that he may feel strongly about helping people during crises because he has struggled within his own life. John has struggled with eating disorders and opened up about his bulimia and disordered eating habits in a rare interview. Not only did he have bulimia, but he also suffered from a much less talked about eating pattern of chewing and spitting. Luckily, it seems John was able to get the help he needs and he continues to help others through his many charitable works.

1. Amanda Bynes

We all remember the very public downfall of Amanda Bynes. Not since Britney Spears shaved her head has Hollywood seen such a public cry for help in the media. While many media outlets incorrectly called Bynes “crazy” and handled the situation with heavy-handed misogyny, others knew that she was exhibiting signs of mental illness. Later, it was revealed that Bynes has schizophrenia. Schizophrenia can result in hallucinations, delusions of grandeur, dissociative personality, and self-medication. Since then, Bynes has sought treatment and seems to be doing well.