KD Estrada gets honest about mental health

February 8, 2022 | 12:00 am

MANILA, Philippines — KD Estrada’s last name may be associated with the prominent political and showbiz clan, but it is in no way related to them. In fact, he is the “first artist” of his family.

“I get that a lot or any Estrada in general. Kasi when you listen to Estrada, there’s a lot of Estrada talaga in show business. In my family I am the only artist”, clarified the actor and singer in an exclusive interview with The STAR.

The 18-year-old’s parents are entrepreneurs just like his grandparents. However, he somewhat inherited his penchant for music from his great-great-grandfather, who was a violinist and brother of his father, who is a musician in the United States.

However, he thanked his parents for supporting his decision to join show business, which has been his dream since he was a child. He recalled going to auditions for commercials at the age of nine, but “he didn’t get the parts because he used mestizo kasi dati yung, as in yung (foreigner) talaga na kid. During the auditions, I was the only Talaga kid who looked Filipino. Lahat sila may lahi, ako lang hindi. And it would put me off a little bit.”

So he took a break for a few years until he turned 16 when he was selected to be a Star Magic artist. “Maybe he just needed to wait a few years until he could get into show business. For me, I don’t want to start too young because I think he would be overwhelming.”

Despite his “slow-growing career,” as he put it, he continued to pursue his passion. “Even if I wasn’t getting the recognition, I still love what I was doing. I still love making music and doing projects. I’m really looking forward to making this talaga. I just have to be patient if I want to get the recognition.”

Then came the Pinoy Big Brother (PBB) opportunity, which has given him a much-needed boost to his career, he said. “At first, I didn’t expect people to like who I am. First of all, I don’t have much backstory before PBB. He was a slow rising Star Magic and Star Music artist. I didn’t get the most views, the most attention. The spotlight is mainly on the other artists.”

He continued, “I was growing slowly while others were saying, boom! Their careers are skyrocketing. But then I got PBB and that is the biggest boost for a person here in the Philippines. You could make it or break it at PBB.”

KD admitted that he was “nervous, anxious and super scared” and it especially showed during his first week on the reality show.

When he left, the first thing he did was check his mobile phone and “I ordered two boxes of pizza and he ate it all in one sitting.” His main takeaways from his time at PBB are “self-confidence, self-esteem, and self-love.”

During his stay at the house, the famous former roommate was diagnosed with depression by PBB’s resident psychologist and psychiatrist, Dr. Randy Dellosa.

“I couldn’t open my depression inside the house because I think people can use that against me to nominate me to get out of the house. I know what the PBB din strategies are… But the thing is, I’m fine naman. I only have certain moments na talaga na mada-down ako but that doesn’t mean I’m going to give up,” said the rising talent.

When asked more about how he is coping right now, he said, “There are talaga na minsan mada-down ka days even if you are taking medication. You still have thoughts. But compared to before, it’s more manageable now, she told The STAR. “If you have a mental condition, it would take talaga time, (be) patient because with time it will improve. You have to give yourself time to help yourself. And of course reach out to others din na todo (ang) support sa’ yo”.

“Find your core group or support group like your family or friends,” he advised.

One of the ways that KD learned to deal with it within the PBB house was by working with Albie Casiño. “Kuya Albie is very helpful kahit her stay was short nearly two weeks lang siya. But, within a span of two weeks, Kuya Albie really helped me. She made me feel less alone. I would say that open up kasi baka yung tao na kinakausap mo is going through the same thing, they can (also) relate to that person and they can help each other,” she shared.

“You are not alone,” he reminded his fellow youths who have the same struggle as him. “It’s really hard when you have both na hindi mo ma-explain and hindi mo ma-open (up) in your head but I mean you’re not alone.”

“Just take it day by day. Take baby steps because you don’t want to overwhelm yourself again,” she said of dealing with anxiety. “You just have to give yourself the slightest push. The smallest push can go a long way.”

Meanwhile, KD is open to having housemate Alexa Ilacad as his love tag team partner. “She is a great friend of mine. She is my best friend. I would love to work with Alexa din talaga”, he said about the actress.

“To be honest, inside the house, I’ve seen clips of me and Alexa, ang sweet pala namin. Alexa and I are very sweet inside the house. We always tell each other na, ‘Hey, you’re beautiful’. Hey, you’re handsome,’” KD shared, and he also noticed the “kilig factor” when they were together.

“But I am not wearing the kilig in any way. Me and Alexa are real talaga between us. I am not using Alexa for any calendar. Alexa knows that noise. I really want to grow as an artist and if it’s with Alexa, great, ”she explained.

Would your status “improve” to the next level (romantic)? “Career mune. But I would say that Alexa and I have a genuine love for each other and that’s not going to go away anytime soon.”