Miss International 2016 Kylie Verzosa Advocates for Mental Health

Newly-crowned Miss International 2016 Kylie Verzosa has chosen to be a mental health advocate. She declared as much during one of her first interviews since she came back to the country. She also bravely admitted that she herself battled with depression at some point in her life.

Mental Health Advocacy Close to Her Heart

During an interview with News To Go on GMA 7, she said that mental health issues were close to heart because she personally saw family members suffer from it. She witnessed with her own eyes how illnesses such as depression and bipolar disorders can affect one’s life.

Through her advocacy, she wants the public to be aware of mental illnesses and how real they are. She also wants to let others know that they should not judge those who are suffering from these diseases. As it is, mental disease carries with it a stigma that usually prevents those who have it from seeking treatment.

Kylie: “Different Journeys” For Different Persons

According to Kylie, each person who suffers from mental disease have different experiences. Dealing with the disease therefore may need to be different as well.

For her, the first step was to be aware that she had it. After awareness and proper diagnosis, treatment should follow. She said, “I went through it naturally. I didn’t know what I was going through until I was brought to a psychiatrist. It’s a very difficult situation and I do think it’s a big problem of the youth today.”

In a separate ABS-CBN report, she said that she experienced depression for six to seven months prior to her becoming a model.

“Addiction Is A Sickness”

Kylie also shared her view about addiction, saying that it is a “sickness” rather than a crime. She cited depression as one possible cause of addiction: “A lot of depressed people turn into…they look for something to get high again, get happy again…they turn to drugs.”

According to another GMA report, she said that finding a cure to addiction means dealing with what possibly ails them mentally.

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