McFly star Tom Fletcher revealed that he 'just cried' after he was finally diagnosed with bipolar disorder after years of uncertainty regarding his condition.
The musician-turned-author, 39 will soon make his debut as a The Voice UK judge alongside bandmate Danny Jones, 38.
Tom, Danny, and Harry Judd, 38, and Dougie Poynter, 36, are McFly, a pop-rock band which turned 21 this year.
However, before he found success as a teenager, Tom, now married to blogger Giovanna Fletcher, knew he was not like other children.
The father-of-three said in 2020: 'Ever since I was a child, I've always been highly emotional.
'I'd feel excited one moment, then the polar opposite the next. But, I think everyone just thought that's who I was.'
He was later diagnosed with bipolar disorder - a brain disorder which causes unusual and often sudden changes in mood and energy levels.
At the start of McFly, his weight 'became an issue' and he 'basically just drank coffee'. Tom recalled: 'It was so unhealthy.
'I would struggle with down periods —I'm sure I was a nightmare to be with, but I kept much of it from Giovanna. Like many men, quite often I would hide it from the people I was closest to.
'In late 2011, I watched a documentary by Stephen Fry called The Secret Life Of The Manic Depressive. He shared his story of bipolar disorder and depression, and it sounded exactly like me. I just cried.'
Tom went to therapy and later received his diagnosis. He added: 'I'd never thought about it being a definable mental health condition before, and I decided to speak to a therapist.
'For a long time, I still didn't tell anyone about it. I was later diagnosed with bipolar. When I told my friend, Harry, he said: "Ahhh, that makes so much sense."
'Since then, more and more people have spoken out about their mental health. It's nothing to be ashamed of.'
He added: 'Having kids was the best thing that happened to me.
'They’ve taught me more about myself than I thought was possible. Parenthood helps you be less selfish, because you don’t care about anything as much as you do them.
'Since becoming a dad, my mental health has been in the best shape ever. Being a children’s author has been another part of that — I love seeing my kids get lost in a good book.
'I’ve learned that it’s OK not to have all the answers in life. After meeting my own idols, I’ve realised that no one else really has a clue what’s going on either. You wing it and learn as you go.'
Tom shared in 2015 that the birth of his first child, son Buzz, helped him beat depression.
He and Giovanna are now also parents to sons Buddy, 7, and Max, 4.
