Mental Health: Unravelling the dark side of Ghanaian celebrity

“If you are not ready for the bullying and backlash that comes with being a celebrity, never pray to God to give you fame.” Kwadwo Nkansah “Lilwin,”, a famous Ghanaian actor and musician, has said.

Stardom comes with blessings and challenges in the lives of those who live in the limelight, exhibiting their God-given talents.

For many, attaining stardom comes with the chance of making a positive impact on society as well as enjoying the wealth and fame that come along.

However, many are not able to manage the disadvantages of attaining “celebrity” status and that could have dire consequences on their career. The cons, which include cyberbullying, have an impact on various aspects of their lives, particularly their mental health.

Sharing perspectives with Ghana News Agency, Kwadwo Nkansah “Lilwin” said there was enormous pressure that comes along with being a celebrity in Ghana because some people “will love you for what you do while others hate you for nothing.”

He said one could be depressed for most parts of his or her life if, for instance, social media or cyber bullying is not handled properly.

“Once you become famous, people will raise questions about your source of money and begin to call you all sorts of names, but as a star, you should be ready for this kind of thing.

“I have been through instances where people make allegations about me, and some things I do not think about it because I know they are untrue. As far as you have people who love you, others will also hate you,” the award-winning actor said.

Okyeame Kwame, another award-winning Hiplife artiste, also shares a perspective. “being a celebrity came with many blessings; however, every blessing could also be a curse, because there is no action without friction.”

“Once you become a celebrity, you will not enjoy your privacy because your family circle is being monitored by people. Sometimes you could become broke and want to buy some cheap kinds of stuff or drive a particular kind of car, but because of your stature, it becomes very difficult to do because of people’s perception, but for me, I do whatever I feel like,” he said.

The “Rap Dacta” as he is often called, says the new media had added to the stress many celebrities go through because they want to gain trends and traction.

Okyeame Kwame said some media outlets were quick to use images and headlines for clickbait for certain stories, which, according to him, affected the image of celebrities and could even kill their talents.

”I think that mental health issues with regard to being a celebrity are a bit more severe than if you were a teacher, because of the social and economic pressure that comes along; however, there are mental health issues everywhere.

“When I was going through my midlife crisis, the fact that I was a celebrity added up to my stress. It also gave me the experience to be able to talk about stress because I felt it and had the mental resilience to deal with it,” he said.

According to Dr. Isaac Newman Arthur, a clinical psychologist, instances of trolling, insults, rumours could worsen the mental plights of celebrities.

He shares some solutions as to how celebrities can deal with societal pressures, which according to him are virtually unavoidable.

“Society makes them celebrities because of societal approval of their craft. Some stresses are also self-inflicted due to individual differences and expectations, and the desire to gain advantage, maintain standards and relevance, deal with family-related stress and conflicts, and participate in other activities, including pursuing other career paths, all contribute to societal pressures,” he said.

Dr. Newman Arthur advised that to deal with these pressures, they (celebrities) should develop a positive mindset because the negative evaluation of events surrounding their craft could worsen the impact of stress.

He also opined that celebrities should build positive, close friendships because the kind of friends they picked influenced their career and could either make them successful or damage their career.

Dr. Newman also advised celebrities not to harbour negative emotions because it was self-destructive and to develop a positive self-identity, by appreciating their uniqueness and focusing on their strengths more than their weaknesses.

“There should be a desire to be a better version of themselves and not a photocopy of another person. I will also urge them to set realistic goals and expectations for themselves because unrealistic expectations could create undue perceived stress and anxiety.

He urged celebrities to employ the services of psychologists to help build better mental resilience, maximize their mental well-being, and also deal with interpersonal relationship issues, career issues, crises, and trauma.

“They should seek help whenever necessary because if they don’t, they will struggle to cope and adjust to life’s challenges, form and maintain meaningful relationships, pursue their life goals, develop a healthy and positive self-identity, live independently, and contribute meaningfully to society,” he ended.

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The mental well-being of Ghanaian celebrities does matter, and perhaps society should limit their expectations of our talented gems because they are humans and more prone to issues of depression and serious mental health crises.