Lady Gaga’s parents "tried their best" to help her through depression.
Cynthia Germanotta has told how the ‘Poker Face’ hitmaker – whose real name is Stefani Germanotta – began struggling with her mental health after being bullied from a young age but she and the star’s father, Joe, did what they could to support her.
Speaking on ‘Today’s digital series ‘Through Mom’s Eyes’, she said: "In middle school, because she was unique, she started experiencing a lot of struggles.
"You know, feeling isolated from events. Humiliated. Taunted. And she would start to question herself and become doubtful of her own abilities. And that’s when she developed depression.
"We tried our best as parents to help her, but didn’t know everything."
Cynthia thinks she made some "mistakes" as she never understood the extent of the ‘A Star is Born’ actress’ depression because she wasn’t as informed about the condition as she is now.
She said: "I felt where I made mistakes was I didn’t really know the warning signs to look for."
In 2012, Gaga and her mother launched the Born This Way foundation to help the next generation with emotional and mental struggles and Cynthia admitted the cause still feels "very, very personal" to them.
She said: "It’s something that’s very, very personal to us and it goes back to the struggles Stefani had growing up.
"She envisioned a world where young people were better equipped to deal with her struggles than she was.
"As her career took off and we were traveling the world and talking to young people, we realised how many other young people had similar experiences."
And while Cynthia didn’t understand why her daughter spoke so openly about her own issues, she eventually realised it was "very healing for her and also her fans."
In 2016, the 33-year-old singer told a group of homeless LGBTQ teenagers that she suffered from PTSD and credited the support of her loved ones for helping her through her darkest times.
She said at the time: "I told the kids today, ‘I suffer from PTSD.’ I’ve never told anyone that before. So here we are. But the kindness that’s shown to me by doctors as well as my family, and my friends, it’s really saved my life."
Two years later, she revealed her PTSD was sparked after she was sexual assaulted when she was 19.
Lady Gaga’s supportive parents
