In fact, Close’s participation in the series isn’t about her own mental well-being as much as it’s about her family’s deep-rooted history of mental illness. Decades ago, one of the Close sisters’ uncles committed suicide, while another was diagnosed with schizophrenia. In more recent years, the 67-year-old Jessie and her son, 39-year-old CalenPick, were respectively diagnosed with bipolar 1 disorder and schizo-affective disorder. Her sister and nephew’s struggles are what inspired Close to become one of the world’s most outspoken advocates for de-stigmatizing mental illness and normalizing talk around mental health. (Being physically closer to family, meanwhile, inspired Close’s relocation in 2019 to Bozeman, Montana, where Jessie and Pick live. As Glenn told Parade last month, she and Jessie are now next-door neighbors!) Now that all episodes of The Me You Can’t See are available for streaming on Apple TV+, keep reading to find out the long history behind Close’s tireless championing of a cause that’s near and dear to her heart.
Glenn Close’s upbringing in a religious cult was psychologically traumatic
As Close discusses in The Me You Can’t See, when she was just 7 years old, her father relocated her family overseas due to his devotion to Moral Re-Armament, a conservative religious group that she defines in the doc as “basically a cult.” Close adds, “Everyone spouted the same things and there’s a lot of rules, a lot of control… Because of how we were raised, anything you thought you’d do for yourself was considered selfish. We never went on any vacations or had any collective memories of stuff other than what we went through, which was really awful.” Looking back on that tumultuous time, Close says, “I think that’s childhood trauma, because of the devastation, emotional and psychological, of the cult.”
Glenn Close’s sister, Jessie Close, was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2004
Even when the Close sisters were kids, it was evident that mental illness was a genetic component of their family. “On my mom’s side, there was a lot of depression,” Glenn told PEOPLE recently. “Her uncle had schizophrenia. Nobody ever talked about it. I did know that her half brother had committed suicide and that her own mother was depressed. She was also depressed and took meds for it.” Still, Glenn and Jessie were both surprised when Jessie, who’d weathered a turbulent life that included alcoholism and several failed marriages, suddenly turned to Glenn one day in 2004 and asked for help. “I told her that I had a voice in my head, telling me to kill myself over and over again,” Jessie once recalled to WebMD. “The week after that, I was at McLean Hospital in Boston. My sister takes things in hand.” That was when Jessie finally received her diagnosis of bipolar disorder at the age of 51.
Glenn and Jessie Close co-founded Bring Change 2 Mind in 2010
It would take another diagnosis in the family to finally spur Glen and Jessie into taking a bigger step toward combatting mental illness stigmas. That moment came when Pick received his diagnosis. “I called Glennie and said, ‘Can you please help?’ Because the prejudice against mental illness is overwhelming,’” Jessie told PEOPLE this month. “And she did.” As Glenn likewise told Parade, “The stigma [they experienced] was just as bad as their chronic illness.” Their now-11-year-old organization is dedicated to providing tools and resources that can help foster sharing and conversations around mental health. The group’s impressive roster of ambassadors includes actress Madchen Amick, talk-show host Ricki Lake, NBA star Kevin Love and NFL player Solomon Thomas, who tragically lost his sister to depression and suicide earlier this year. Glenn will even be sitting down soon for a virtual BC2M fundraiser with AndersonCooper and DemiLovato to discuss “courageous stories of resilience and honest revelations.”
Glenn Close was honored as WebMD’s People’s Choice Award winner in 2015
Glenn’s advocacy has not gone unnoticed, as she was honored with WebMD’s People’s Choice Award in 2015 for her work. The company’s executive director, Pamela Harrington, praised Close at the time for the way her outreach has “confirmed the topic of mental health is important and deserves the same recognition as any physical illness.” (For proof, just search for her name on YouTube and you’ll find that the list of Q&As in which she opens up about mental health is endless!)
Jessie Close released Resilience, a memoir about her mental illness, in 2015
While Glenn has leveraged her fame to open up conversations surrounding mental health, Jessie did the same in book form when she published Resilience: Two Sisters and a Story of Mental Illnessin 2015. The memoir includes first-person accounts from Glenn about what it was like to watch her sister struggle for so many years without a proper diagnosis. In one passage, Glenn recalls, “Even though Jessie had tried to kill herself twice…none of us ever thought that she might be suffering from a mental disorder. The possibility simply wasn’t in our consciousness and was never part of any conversation.”
Glenn Close admits she suffers from “low-grade depression”
While Glenn’s focus has been on helping her sister and nephew, as well as others who suffer from mental health afflictions, the actress did tell PEOPL this month that she hasn’t been unaffected herself. “I wouldn’t label myself as a depressed person, but I think what I’ve lived with probably a good portion of my life is a low-grade depression that can sometimes feel like a mist or like there’s a veil over you,” she explained. “I take a daily dose of antidepressants and it helps, it really helps. I’m just not afraid to talk about it…For me, it’s part of being a human being. It’s part of the human condition.” Next, read everything Prince Harry’s ever said about his mental health and anxiety.
