Chance The Rapper Opens Up About Coping With Anxiety
Chance the Rapper recently opened up about his personal experiences with anxiety in a sit-down interview with Complex. When asked if he has anxiety, Chance honestly answered, "Yeah, definitely." But he immediately alleged, "I don't know if it's necessarily more than anybody else in the world."
The "No Problem" rapper, who made headlines last week when he donated $1 million to Chicago schools, then relayed, "I think anxiety is also something that I'm just now being exposed to. A really big conversation and idea that I'm getting introduced to right now is black mental health. 'Cause for a long time that wasn't a thing that we talked about. I don't remember it. I don't remember people talking about anxiety; I don't remember, when I was growing up, that really being a thing."
In this moment, Chance importantly addressed a larger systemic issue: a lack of discussion surrounding mental illness in the black community. Bustle delved deeper into this, highlighting the National Alliance on Mental Illness, which indicated several reasons some African Americans may be hesitant to seek treatment for mental health, two of which are particularly relevant to Chance's experience: lack of information and faith.
Chance openly expressed these issues and fears when the discussion with Complex turned to the possibility of having PTSD, stemming from traumatic experiences as a teenager: "I don't ever want to convince myself that I'm hindered by any of my experiences. I also believe in G-O-D. Everything that's happened in my life, [someone] already knows that that sh*t happened, and what's going to happen, and put things in place for certain things to happen."
He also admitted that while "now I'm starting to get a better understanding of that part of my life," he is still coming to terms with how to treat his anxiety and is wary of medication: "I'm cool with self [medication]—I like to smoke weed and sh*t, to chill out, but...I'm not really trying to try no new drugs, even if they're prescribed."