Lele Pons is continuing to open up about her struggles with mental illness. In the latest episode of her YouTube series, The Secret Life of Lele Pons, the comedian goes in depth about her struggles with her Tourette syndrome and her dependency on her family. The episode explores the conversations and tough moments that the star has to overcome with her parents, friends and even therapist.
Lele opens up about how her mental illness has created a dependency on those who are closest to her – including her mother. The Venezuelan star admits that she doesn’t have control of her wallet, doesn’t cook or do laundry because she has her mother to do it for her. “My mom does everything I should be doing for me,” she told the camera. “Cooking, cleaning, laundry, everything, just all the chores I should be doing. She treats me like I’m 10, and she takes way too much care of me if that makes sense.”
Lele shared that there was a time where she stepped away from her household and everyone who enables her behavior. “It was a way better atmosphere, where I am,” she says as she cries. “I actually wanted to get better.” One major part of her life that her millions of followers haven’t seen is her daily struggle with her Tourette’s. Lele admits that she has been able to hide her ticks from the world, but became emotional as she worked through them with her therapist on camera and through the embarrassment.
“I have a lot of ticks, my head hurts. I’m just like embarrassed right now,” she shares. “I’m just crying because they are filming. If I was here with just you, you wouldn’t judge me.” She continues about the neurobiological reaction: “All those ticks come into one. I’m ashamed of having ticks. I’m motivated to get better. I don’t want to continue like this.”
Earlier this year, the superstar influencer revealed why she created the series. “We started filming this (the series) two years ago, and there came a point where I couldn’t keep this anymore. I told my team and my friends, and they took it very well, and then I had treatment for a month. I met many patients who were fans and they said to me: ‘Why have you never talked about this? You can help many people,” she said. “That was very important to me so I decided to do this…and show my fans that we are not alone.”