Harry Styles Struggled With the Need To Be ‘Likable” While With One Direction

Harry Styles has revealed that counseling has made him feel "more alive" and has helped him open up. This, after he struggled to handle his fame, finding it the need to be constantly "likable." 

The 28-year-old musician also admitted he had illusions about therapy before undergoing treatment, stating that he "felt it meant you were broken."

Harry acknowledged that since he began counseling five years ago, he has been able to confront challenges and his mental health instead of ignoring them. 

In a recent interview with Better Homes & Gardens for their June cover story, Harry stated that treatment has "opened up places within himself" that he did not know existed. 

In addition, the "As It Was" singer stated that he was no longer "emotionally coasting" through life. 

He said he was reluctant about therapy because it might seemed he was not strong enough to handle his personal issues, but he was shocked to find out firsthand that it amplified how he lived his life. 

"But I think that accepting living, being happy, hurting in the extremes, that is the most alive you can be. Losing it crying, losing it laughing-there's no way, I don't think, to feel more alive than that," he explained, referring to what going to therapy did to him in effect. 

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The former One Direction star also revealed that lockdown allowed him to calm down from his frantic lifestyle, allowing him to reflect on a number of events that occurred during his climb to prominence with the boyband because he was obsessed with being liked in the past. 

He added that he and his therapist have attempted to determine why he feels the need to be so "likeable." 

Referring to his post-X-factor days, the singer claimed that he was encouraged to "give so much away" in order to be appreciated. 

Harry explained to the publication that he feared making a mistake during interviews when in One Direction. 

Terrifying him, they revealed that their contracts contained "cleanliness clauses" that would render them null and void if he did anything allegedly unsavory.

Harry Styles' recent announcement of a London concert has severely diminished the likelihood of One Direction reforming.

A few months ago, the odds of One Direction reforming by the end of 2022 were 4/5. However, Ladbrokes has suddenly substantially reduced those odds to 5/1. They attributed the reduced chances to Harry Styles' blossoming career, which just means going solo has been working out great for him. 

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