Jed Madela reveals how he battled depression

OPM singer Jed Madela has admitted that there was a point in his career that he wanted to give up because he thought he felt "irrelevant."

"There was a point I kinda felt irrelevant. I kinda felt insignificant. Ang daming naglalabasang bago, ang daming naglalabasan na mas magaling, mas nakakagat ng audience," said Madela, during an interview on "Tonight With Boy Abunda" on ABS CBN.

"There was a point na talagang sinabi ko na pagod na ako. No matter how hard I tried, no mater how hard I pushed myself, I tried to conform kung ano'ng uso, sige sundan natin. Sumasakay ako pero wala;

"(That was) roughly five or six years ago. 'Yun lang I'm so blessed that I am surrounded by the right people. It really helps when people talk to you," said Madela.

When asked if depression has something to do with it, Madela said: "That started everything. I started questioning myself....parang am I really fit for this industry? Gusto pa ba akong pakinggan ng tao? Parang kulang."

"Parang kulang yung acceptance ng tao sa mga projects ko. I just had anxiety attacks. I had panic attacks for no reason at all. Hindi ako makahinga;

"I couldn't breath properly. When we breath di ba parang it's second nature, wala lang. Andyan lang sya. But I really have to make an effort na talagang stop and breath;

"Nagpa-panic talaga ako. I'm better now. I realized na you don't need a lot of people around you. You just need a few good ones to keep you sane," said Madela.

Abunda gave his unsolicited advise to Madela and told him to think about his fan who flew four times to Manila just to watch his concerts last year.

"As a manager, when you feel down, think about this fan who traveled all the way from Cagayan de Oro to be in Manila just to listen to you, just to be with you," said Abunda.

"I mean what kind of affirmation you still want? Isipin mo lang yung pagmamahal, yung paniniwala ng taong ito," the television host added.

Madela said: "Thank you for being one of those pillars. She is the one who keeps everybody together."

"You have to attach to that love. You have to go back to that love every time na nanghihina ka," Abunda said. - ROBERT REQUINTINA