KUALA LUMPUR: Singer Deja Moss has revealed that she had once coped with depression for four years, and even pushed her to have suicidal thoughts.
"My bout of depression was caused by many reasons. I couldn't fall asleep at nights and my mind was restless. I felt a feeling of emptiness inside me, and at the time I was living alone," said the 47-year-old artiste in a news report yesterday.
Deja, whose full name is Sharifah Hadijah Wan Moss, said she had penned this dark episode of her life in her biography, Hidupku Takdirku, which was launched virtually yesterday.
"It was during 2004 and 2008, sometime before I married my former husband Azfendy Azzuddin. I went to get professional help and treatment. I was relying heavily on medication," she said.
After Deja was diagnosed with depression, she kept it a secret from everyone.
"At the time, I was ashamed to share my condition with others for fear of their negative perception. People may just assume I'm a crazy person.
"I've kept it under wraps for so long and only wrote about this dark episode in my book. I decided to write about my journey of living with depression so that it can help others going through the same thing," said Deja who has since managed to beat her depression.
"Never ever be ashamed about what others may think of you. Depression needs to be dealt with professional help and treatment," she said.
She also said that the book was her final 'gift' to her fans before joining her husband in Chicago, the United States, soon.
Deja married businessman Maher Khani, an American-Syrian, in June 2019, six months after her divorce with Azfendy.