Simon Cowell wishes he had started therapy 20 years earlier after suffering from depression and not seeking help.
Appearing as the first guest on British newspaper the Mirror’s new Men in Mind podcast, Simon opened up about his own mental health and why he hopes he can now help others.
Often dubbed Mr Nasty during his time as a TV talent show judge, Simon has previously rubbished the notion of his grumpy persona.
And now he’s laid bare more of his true self than ever before.
“When I see my friends, the first thing I talk about is how therapy has had this super positive effect on my life,” Simon told journalist Tom Bryant. “I wish I had done this 10 or 20 years ago... it’s like a weight has lifted off my shoulders.
“I’ve suffered from depression over the years... but that was just something I just thought, ‘Well, that’s my character trait. I get down,’ and it’s something you deal with.”
However, the Covid-19 pandemic proved to be the catalyst which eventually saw the 63-year-old get help for his deteriorating mental health.
After witnessing close friends become extremely ill with the deadly virus, the X Factor creator began to worry he, fiancée Lauren Silverman and their son Eric, nine, would also get sick.
“I didn’t know what was true or not, I just didn’t have a clue other than I was petrified about catching it. Just petrified,” he revealed.
“As things started to calm down a bit and it was almost like now I’ve got to go from there back into the real world, how do I feel about that? So, I started to read up about stuff, teach myself. Then fortunately I met some friends who had benefited from therapy. And that’s when I thought, ‘You know what? I’ve kind of looked after my body through diet, and exercise, pretty well over the years, but what have I done about my brain and my mind?’”
