Years after her mother’s death, actress Iza Calzado courageously shared the story for the first time about how she lost her because of depression.
Iza talked about it during a featured story with She Talks Conversations with Sarah Meier.
She shared how doctors diagnosed her mother Mary Ann Ussher for being manic depressive and finally saying she was bipolar.
“As a child, I grew up with a mother who was battling this. She felt people could not understand her as well. People were not talking about it. So I grew up with the stigma. Yung nanay ko baliw,” she said.
Iza shared how she also saw her mother’s struggles when she was a child.
What contributed to her struggles was the death of her younger son in 1988. She underwent postpartum. Her best friend was also murdered.
Iza was also a witness to how her mother attempted to kill herself until one day in 2001, they found her lifeless. They were able to rush her to nearby St. Luke’s Hospital but she was later declared dead.
Iza opened up about this in time for the observance of the World Mental Health day last Oct. 10.
In her Instagram post where she shared a short clip of the video, Iza said sharing her mother’s story was her hope of breaking the stigma and normalize conversations around mental health and a part of her own healing.
“You are not alone. Together, we can work for a brighter tomorrow for everyone,” she wrote on her caption.
She Talks Conversation is part of the She Talks Asia, a movement that celebrates the modern woman, providing a space for inspiration and support among women across multiple platforms.
Iza is among the co-founders of the movement.
