Live Well, Be Well: Series Two

Gary Barlow

“It’s not the things happening, it’s how you get back up on your feet.”

Musician, Gary Barlow shares his personal story with us at the Be Well of his struggles throughout his life after Take That. Dealing with the attention and pressures that came after fame, weighing largely on comparing himself later in life, he faced personal struggles with weight gain leading to the development of an eating disorder, bulimia. 

Like many young men, Gary found opening up about these issues extremely challenging admitting that he wasn’t “a good talker” and explains  that at the time, doing so was seen as a sign of weakness. This led to Gary’s denial of what he was going through and so perpetuated the negative cycle of shame.

Sharing his story with the Be Well now, stating “the Be Well is a movement”, Gary encourages men and women to speak out and share their stories, to help normalise the discussion of mental health, closing the cycle of negativity and shame.