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| Taeyeon, a member of Girl's Generation, reveals she is receiving medical treatment for depression, Sunday. / Korea Times file |
By Jung Hae-myoung
Taeyeon, a member of K-pop girl group Girl's Generation, reveals she is suffering from depression through her Instagram story, Sunday.
Taeyeon disclosed her illness during an "Ask me anything" session with her fans. For most of the questions received she replied with just "No," and some fans showed dissatisfaction at her brief replies.
One fan asked, "How do you overcome hard times?" She replied, "I couldn't, so I am living with it." Questions followed about why she has not been active on social media these days, to which she said "I have been ill for a while, please understand why I have kept to myself."
Still some followers wanted to know more, asking questions including, "Are you bipolar? Tsk tsk," to which she replied, "I have been suffering with depression."
"I am trying to get better with medical treatment. Please don't be dismissive of people with illnesses, whether it is bipolar disorder or depression. We are all suffering from an illness," Taeyeon continued.
To her reply, many fans sent her warm messages to cheer her up. Some sent her messages saying they would wait for her to get better. Taeyeon replied, "This really brings me comfort. This is why I try to communicate with you guys."
"I started this conversation to get my energy back. I received a lot of good energy from you guys. I will be fine. Sorry I made you guys worry, but I think this is also part of knowing each other better. I will try hard to take care of myself better," she said, and ended her Instagram story with gratitude to all of her fans.
Until recently, Taeyeon communicated frequently with her fans through social media. However, she did not post anything for two weeks after June 1, and there were no video clips uploaded on her personal YouTube channel, "Taengoo TV," for over a month.
Many of her fans are sending support and consoling messages after she opened up about her depression in comments and her Instagram posts.
Taeyeon participated in the May edition of "Monthly Yoon Jong Shin 2019," released on May 21. She recently finished her first solo tour in Japan, which started from April 13 in Fukuoka and ended in May 31 in Tokyo.
