Selena Gomez spearheaded the inaugural Rare Impact Fund Benefit gala in New York last Oct. 4, 2023, at the NYA Studios, in New York City.
The "Only Murders In The Building" star has been a fierce advocate and champion for mental health since she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2020.
Since then, Gomez has been passionate about providing accessible mental health resources to children and the youth.
Selena Gomez Explains The Rare Impact Fund Benefit Origins
Selena Gomez tearfully recalls how she started the initiative in her speech last Wednesday at the Rare Impact Fund Benefit ball.
Apparently, the benefit "stemmed from some of the darkest moments" in the singer's life. In her vulnerable and critically acclaimed documentary, "My Mind and Me," Gomez gave everyone a rare sneak peek into what was going through her head during the time she received her lupus diagnosis and her bipolar disorder - two things she has been very public about.
"I struggled with the world inside my head for a long time and I felt lost and I felt hopeless at times. And in 2020, I received my diagnosis of bipolar disorder. And to be honest, everything quickly changed," she went on to say, as quoted by People Magazine.
For Gomez, she earned the knowledge and the answers to the questions she had been eager to learn since then, adding that understanding her illness made her become "more aware" and "less afraid" than she was before.
"With that knowledge, I could seek out the support I needed to be myself, to find my joy again," she furthered. "And tonight I'm very proud to say that I have and I've been working really hard every day and I'm so happy just to be alive and to be here with you guys today."
Noting that the gala was "probably the most important thing" that she has ever done, Gomez hoped that she's "hopeful" for the future that the generation for her 10-year-old sister Gracie would be "a better one, a kinder one, a clearer one, a more connected one with support and access" to mental health care and resources.
READ ALSO: Selena Gomez Regretting 'My Mind and Me' Documentary: 'I Will Never Watch It Again'
Selena Gomez's Bipolar Diagnosis
In the documentary "My Mind and Me," Gomez unpacked what she was going through after being diagnosed with bipolar disorder, undergoing a kidney transplant, and living a life with an auto-immune disease.
In 2020, Gomez revealed to the world for the first time that she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, on Miley Cyrus's Instagram Live. (via The Hollywood Reporter)
"Recently, I went to one of the best mental hospitals in...America, McClean Hospital, and I discussed that after years of going through a lot of different things, I realized that I was bipolar," Gomez told Cyrus at the time. "And so when I got to know more information, it actually helps me. It doesn't scare me once I know it."
READ MORE: Francia Raisa Opens Up About Feud with Selena Gomez: Did Actress Regret Donating Kidney to Singer?
