Downton Abbey star reveals ongoing battle with illness

One of Downton Abbey’s most beloved stars has spoken out publicly about her ongoing health battle.

Jessica Brown Findlay, who played Lady Sybil Crawley on the hit show, says she has been dealing with an eating disorder since she was 14 years old and related mental health issues.

“I’ve had an eating disorder since I was 14,” she told The Daily Telegraph. “And I think that we can feed certain ideas of what beauty is and what success is, and I just feel there has to come a time where those aren’t the rules anymore, and then we can have a mature conversation about what that is about, and about depression.”

She said she was scared to speak publicly about her mental health for years, but finally found the courage to speak out after working through it privately.

While mental health was a taboo topic for many years, experts now agree that speaking openly and educating people on the issue is an important part providing the right treatment.

“If you are lucky enough to speak and be heard, it might be something that could be useful to others,” she said.

“The more we have brave discussions like that going forward, the easier it is to talk about things, and the less alone we can feel. It’s certainly made me feel less alone.

“I felt so alone for so long, and I just hid and then I started talking and held my head up, and instead of saying ‘sorry’ decided to tell myself that I matter.”

Findlay said she finally learned to come to terms with her eating disorder and mental health after attending therapy to talk through her fears and anxiety.

“It’s about learning to stand up and say, ‘This is me, and that’s OK,’” she said. “I’m not going to be a better actor if I’m a dress size smaller. It’s nothing to do with my brain.”

Do you think it’s important to speak more openly about mental health? Did you watch Jessica in Downton Abbey?