Harry Styles Reflects on Starting Therapy After One Direction Hiatus

Harry Styles shared that he was reluctant of going to therapy because he didn't want to seem "broken," but once he started tending to his mental health, he felt rooms within himself open up.

By Steven Vargas May 10, 2022 1:57 AMTags
Watch: Harry Styles Reveals He Felt "Ashamed" of His Sex Life

It's not the same as it was for Harry Styles.

The "As It Was" singer opened up on his mental health in a new extended digital version of his profile with Better Homes & Garden, explaining that he was reluctant to start therapy because he feared being a music industry cliché.

"I thought it meant that you were broken," he told the publication. "I wanted to be the one who could say I didn't need it."

The 28-year-old began therapy five years ago and started to "open up rooms within himself," he said. Explaining how he would "emotionally coast" instead of fully understanding his emotions prior to seeking therapy, Harry continued, "I think that accepting living, being happy, hurting in the extremes, that is the most alive you can be."

He added, "Losing it crying, losing it laughing—there's no way, I don't think, to feel more alive than that."

In his interview, Harry also shared that some of his trauma comes from his time being in One Direction.According to the former boybander, he previously sought to please people and felt he had to keep up a friendly persona to be likable. He said it wasn't until he signed a contract for his 2017 self-titled solo album that he "felt free."

 

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Harry Styles' Star-Studded Dating History

And though many consider him to be a sex symbol, Harry hasn't always been comfortable with the title.

"For a long time, it felt like the only thing that was mine was my sex life," he explained. "I felt so ashamed about it, ashamed at the idea of people even knowing that I was having sex, let alone who with."

As someone who's been in the public eye since his teenage years, Harry admitted that he previously struggled with knowing who he could trust with intimate information about his life.

"At the time, there were still the kiss-and-tell things. Working out who I could trust was stressful," Harry said. "But I think I got to a place where I was like, why do I feel ashamed? I'm a 26-year-old man who's single; it's like, yes, I have sex."

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As for question his sexuality, Harry believes the expectation to label himself is "outdated."

"I've been really open with it with my friends, but that's my personal experience; it's mine," he said. "The whole point of where we should be heading, which is toward accepting everybody and being more open, is that it doesn't matter, and it's about not having to label everything, not having to clarify what boxes you're checking."

Harry released "As It Was," the first single off his upcoming album Harry's House, on March 31. Describing the track a "metamorphosis," the star said he is now at a point in his career where he doesn't have to worry about "commercial success" and is instead focused on making "fun" music.

He added, "I just want to make stuff that is right, that is fun, in terms of the process, that I can be proud of for a long time, that my friends can be proud of, that my family can be proud of, that my kids will be proud of one day."

Harry's House is expected to release May 20.

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