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Kendall Jenner’s Secret War With Panic Attacks Revealed — Fame, Money No Insulator From Mental Illness

By Bradley Ryder
Published on: 01:47 PST, Jan 9, 2017

Getting this one thing off her chest is a big step toward healing from her hidden mental health battles.

Finally, Kendall Jenner broke her silence about swirling rumored anxiety issues and, thankfully, she is on the road to recovery thanks to a strong support system and dealing with her panic attacks directly. In a recent Harpers Bazaar report, Kendall shared how the mental disorder nearly got the best of her and how she has managed to cope with being anxious at times.

Kendall Jenner had one helluva 2016. The gorgeous model celebrated some milestones last year: she bought a home, celebrated turning 21 and graced the covers of several Vogue magazines.

By all accounts, Kendall was living the dream. But just below the surface, she was quietly waging a courageous — admittedly, scary at times — war against bouts of anxiety and panic attacks.

On the Kendall Jenner Official App, the reality TV star and entrepreneur put it all out there for her fans about her personal struggles. She began with a celebration by saying she learned how to stay calm when things felt like they were falling apart.

“Anxiety was a huge hurdle for me to deal with this past year (and security concerns didn’t help). But I think I’m finally learning how to cope.”

A humbled Kendall admitted that at times, she has to remind herself that she is not bulletproof. She described one of her moments when things in her mind and body suddenly went bonkers.

“I once had a really bad attack on a plane and just had to ride it out,” she wrote, adding that “I felt my heart beating a million miles an hour and I even went a little numb.”

As previously reported by Inquisitr, Kendall Jenner struggled with a “mystery illness” last year that was reaching a point of being debilitating. In a clip from a Keeping Up with the Kardashians episode, the then-20-year-old supermodel complained about waking up “in the middle of the night,” to the point in which she couldn’t move.

While speaking to her mother, Kris Jenner, about it her momager suggested that she might be suffering from symptoms of anxiety and she may need to take some time and look after herself. Still, Kendall thought her feelings of being unwell were something more serious.

Her close friend and fellow model Cara Delevingne tried to help her cope by admitting that she too had suffered from anxiety in the past. However, even then, Kendall, according to her friends, said she wasn’t interested and maintained that it was something more serious.

Things turned on a dime for her over the summer when she posted a snap of a tiny plastic bag on Snapchat. It soon sparked rumors that she was suffering from a drug problem and needed rehab.

“Twitter shared screengrabs and started commenting on Jenner’s Snapchat story, accusing the model of using drugs. Some even poked fun at her for saying that she was sharing her “coke addiction” with the world. Jenner has frequented her share of Hollywood parties, so she must know what the bag is commonly used for. Either, she knows that the baggie is used for drugs and thought it was adorable anyway, or she had no clue of the bag’s association.”

As WebMD suggests, anxiety and panic disorders are all in a person’s mind and are not the same as “normal” fears involving real events. Still, they are serious and can occur without warning.

“Symptoms of panic disorder include sudden attacks of fear and nervousness, as well as physical symptoms such as sweating and a racing heart. During a panic attack, the fear response is out of proportion for the situation, which often is not threatening. Over time, a person with panic disorder develops a constant fear of having another panic attack, which can affect daily functioning and general quality of life.”

We applaud Kendall Jenner for facing her fears and realizing them for what they are. The good news is she appears to have a handle on things and knows how to lessen the impact from episodes. She’s learned that breathing exercises bring relief and allow her to calm down, especially when she’s traveling and is away from family for long stints.

And here’s another secret: Kendall uses color to cope with anxiety. She painted her room a “calming” color of pink.

[Featured image by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images for Victoria’s Secret]

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