Molly O’Connell recently opened up about how ketamine infusions served as treatment for her depression and Complex Post-Traumatic Disorder (CPTSD).
The Southern Charm star, who officially joined the Bravo series as a cast member this season, appeared on Tuesday’s (March 4) episode of The LadyGang podcast and told co-hosts Becca Tobin, Jac Vanek and Keltie Knight about how she has discovered “new therapies” that have worked for her.
“Like ketamine infusions completely changed my life,” she shared. “I was in a deep, deep depression. I struggle with depression and anxiety. I have PTSD — CPTSD.”
The America’s Next Top Model alum recalled being in “a real rut” where she “couldn’t get out of bed” and “wasn’t showering for long periods of time.”
“I wouldn’t leave my house, I would just order DoorDash. I wouldn’t do anything, wouldn’t let anybody come over,” she continued. “And I wasn’t in a place where I could even do the therapy I needed to get better.”
O’Connell credited fellow ANTM alum Lisa D’Amato for posting about how ketamine infusions “changed her life.”
“I messaged her and she told me about it. So had she not posted that publicly, I wouldn’t have known to do that,” she said.
She also explained that during a ketamine infusion, she was “playing 80s rock ballads,” which led her to ask herself why she “quit music.”
“Why would I do that? Why would I let my anxiety stop me from something that I loved so much and that I’d done since I was three, four years old. It was just ridiculous,” she said. “I shouldn’t have needed ketamine to have that realization, but it just kind of hit me like a ton of bricks. Like what are you doing? So then I was able to kind of get out of that rut enough to do the hard work that I needed to do and start DBT, Dialectic Behavioral Therapy.”
O’Connell has gotten the chance to share her musical talents on Southern Charm, where her cast mates attended her performance as part of the Charleston Concert Band.
In an interview with DECIDER, fellow Southern Charm newbie Salley Carson reflected on how she and O’Connell have been transparent on the show about the different cosmetic procedures they have undergone, explaining how she feels like Charleston is “a hard place to be a woman because there’s just so many girls and they’re all beautiful.”
“And I think there’s just this pressure to kind of stay looking young,” she added. “And I feel like a lot of girls get insecure and stuff and that’s why they do it. But I think if it makes you feel good, do whatever you got to do. I mean, I got my boobs in because I thought it would make me feel good and it actually made me feel worse. So there are ups and downs to cosmetics and plastic surgery and stuff. But if you do it right and it makes you feel good and you’re doing it for the right reasons.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with their mental health, call or text the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) hotline at 800-950-NAMI (6264).