It’s become increasingly common for celebrities to be willing to discuss their mental health issues during interviews. These mental health issues can come in many forms; depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder are all challenges that many celebrities deal with in their daily lives and are happy to discuss.

It’s rarer though for a celebrity to come out as having Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). Part of this is likely just a numbers game. There are more reported cases of depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder than there are BPD. However, some of it could be that there is still more of an unknown factor to BPD and therefore more stigma attached.

Despite this though, several celebrities have stepped forward with their experiences of living with BPD. These shared experiences help to shed light on the condition and the challenges it brings. They can also help people who are struggling to put a label on the issues they’ve been having.

The first I’d ever heard of BPD was when NFL wide receiver Brandon Marshall openly discussed his diagnosis in 2011. At the time, it was rare for an athlete to discuss their mental struggles and Brandon Marshall’s openness in discussing BPD and how it affected him was eye-opening to me. As a man in my early twenties at that time, it felt like a revelation to hear a wealthy, dominant athlete admit to having mental health problems. Some of the symptoms and problems he talked about also resonated with me and might have been the first time I considered that my own mental health problems were more than just depression.

That is why I believe celebrities can have a big impact on the stigma behind mental health; because I’ve felt that impact myself.

This is why I’ve curated this list of celebrities who’ve openly discussed being diagnosed with BPD. This list doesn’t contain any speculation about celebrities who may or may not have BPD, only those who’ve confirmed it themselves. I hope to celebrate the openness and honesty of these people and share their stories.

Pete Davidson

The SNL comedian has been open about his mental health struggles, stating that he’s been “in and out” of mental health facilities since he was just nine years old. Pete Davidson’s father was a NY firefighter who tragically lost his life during the September 11th terrorist attacks when Pete was seven.

He’s reported struggling with intense emotions, BPD rage, dissociative amnesia, and severe depression. It wasn’t until Pete Davidson was 23 that he was officially diagnosed with BPD after he received unsuccessful treatment for bipolar disorder.

Pete Davidson has spoken publicly about undergoing Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) as well as being on medication. He also decided to quit social media entirely to benefit his mental health.

Madison Beer

In 2020, the New York singer-songwriter revealed that she’d been diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder after a “tough year” that had included the end of a relationship.

In her memoir The Half of It, Madison Beer disclosed many of the traumatic incidents in her life that may have caused her BPD. These include two cases of being the victim of sexual assault, being relentlessly bullied on social media, being dropped by her record label at the age of 16, and having suicidal thoughts after nude images of her leaked online.

After being diagnosed with BPD, Beer underwent therapy. “[But] once I was given a diagnosis, going through therapy three times a week, I was getting more in touch with my emotions and figuring out how to be stable. I was able to write better and understand myself better. So I could just write the story how I wanted it to be told.”

Janet Devlin

The Northern Irish singer-songwriter shot to fame at the age of 16 after appearing on X Factor. She has stated that she felt a lot of “self-hatred” during her time on X Factor and felt increasingly lonely throughout the process of recording the talent show. Janet shared that these feelings of loneliness led to an addiction to alcohol, having hit “many rock bottoms”.

In 2022, Janet Devlin uploaded a video to YouTube where she discussed being diagnosed with BPD and bipolar disorder. In the video, she discusses splitting on people to the point of kicking them out of her life, being abnormally obsessed with her boyfriend, being ghosted by said boyfriend, contracting whooping cough and being worried she might never be able to sing again. Devlin also discusses her diagnosis process and the relief she felt when she finally got her diagnosis and began treatment.

“I got medicated, I’ve never known peace like it,” she said on Ireland AM.

It’s a fascinating video and a great insight into what it’s like to live with BPD. I’ve attached the video before if you’d like to watch it for yourself.

Sunmi

The Korean singer-songwriter confessed to having been fighting mental illness for “a long time”. Sunmi left Wonder Girls after being in the K-pop group for over three years to focus on her studies and her mental health. She returned as a solo artist before rejoining the group until it disbanded.

In 2019, Sunmi released the song Borderline about her struggles with BPD which included relatable lyrics for those with Borderline Personality Disorder such as:

Unstable eyes
Hands, hair, and words are all over the place
Feels like a bird is livin’ in my head
Please don’t piss me off (oh no no)

Sunmi also released a follow-up to Borderline titled Oh Sorry Ya which contains more BPD-coded lyrics like:

I blacked out
Don’t even know
If it’s day or night
Feel dead inside out
And see the girl
Why is she smiling, how?
What have you done to me
I’m dizzy
Why do I go up and down
Like crazy

Darrell Hammond

The former SNL star known for his iconic impressions of Bill Clinton as well as Sean Connery in Celebrity Jeopardy has faced a lifelong battle with his mental health stemming from abusive parenting. In his memoir God, If You’re Not Up There, I’m F*cked, he came forward about the abuse he suffered at the hands of his mother. In one instance, his mother told him to put his hand on the frame of her open car door before slamming the door on his hand. “My mom did some things which have cost me dearly,” he said.

His father, a World War II veteran, suffered PTSD as a result of his experience fighting in the war and also struggled with alcoholism. While he wasn’t abusive to Darrell, he was either unaware of the abuse his son was the victim of or did nothing to stop it.

Darrell himself went on to battle alcoholism as well as cocaine addiction. Hammond also revealed that he would frequently self-harm by cutting himself backstage while filming Saturday Night Live and was once taken from the studio to a psychiatric ward.

Raven Numan

The alt-pop artist and daughter of Gary Numan revealed in 2024 that she had been diagnosed with BPD. The singer of Overwhelmed shared that the extensive touring her parents did while she was a child had a deep impact on her mental health, leaving her with social anxiety, mood swings, and a fear of abandonment.

Raven has confessed that she struggled to cope with the situation during her younger years.

“The loudness of this lifestyle, the shows, my dad’s fame, the unpredictability, the fans, the unnecessary hate all because I was born caused so much stress and it was a lot for me to handle.”

“[Overwhelmed is about] totally shutting down and dissociating because everything was very overwhelming.”

Bucie Nkomo

Singer and songwriter Bucie Nkomo revealed that she was diagnosed with BPD after her sister, who also has BPD, advised her to see a psychologist.

The South African R&B singer stated that she struggled to control her anger. “I used to freak out in my anger. I am calm, that’s me. I like being like this. I like laughing, and I don’t want to be mad. When I’m mad, it’s like something switches, and I just see red, and when I snap out of it, it’s always like, did I do that?”

Bucie says she’s in a better place now mentally and that she and her sister do their best to support each other through the ups and downs of BPD.

Brandon Marshall

The former NFL wide receiver had a reputation for being supremely talented on the field but volatile off the field during his early days in the league. Marshall eventually sat down with his agent and assistant and decided to seek a program that would help him.

After a three-month stay in an outpatient program, Marshall was diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. Marshall believes that his BPD was born from genetics and his environment growing up. His father was a volatile personality and a drug dealer, creating an environment in which a young Brandon Marshall didn’t feel safe.

Brandon Marshall spoke openly about his diagnosis and mental health battle during his NFL career, something that was a rarity at the time. “There’s a lot of stigma around mental health, so I like to do things differently,” he said.

During his playing career, Marshall wore green cleats to raise awareness of mental health issues. Wearing colored cleats was against NFL policy and resulted in a fine of over $5000. “The money the league will fine me is nothing compared to the awareness raised tonight,” Marshall wrote on his Twitter.

Brandon Marshall continues to be an advocate for Borderline Personality disorder and mental health awareness now his NFL career is over.