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'I don't have anything to hide': Passion Pit singer broadcasts live bipolar treatment.

'I don't have anything to hide. I think this is an amazing treatment.'

Michael Angelakos, lead singer of the band Passion Pit, began a Facebook Live video in quite the unexpected way on April 4, 2017.

He was about to start a procedure many of us have never even heard of, let alone have had performed.

“So, everybody, this is Bobby," he explained to the tens of thousands of fans watching, a medical professional by his side. "And I’m getting TMS today — transcranial magnetic stimulation."


TMS stimulates nerve cells in the brain associated with mood control, and is typically used as a treatment for certain mental illnesses.

Update 4/5/17: Angelakos' original Facebook Live recording has been removed, but he shared this video reflecting on the procedure shortly after.

In 2012, in an interview with "Pitchfork," Angelakos opened up about having been diagnosed with bipolar disorder at 18.

The disorder — characterized by dramatic shifts in mood, energy, and activity levels — affects nearly 3% of U.S. adults.

It can be deadly.

"It's a constant thing," Angelakos explained candidly to "Pitchfork." "I'm on suicide watch all the time."

Photo by Victoria Will/Invision/AP.

But Angelakos is getting the important care he needs and deserves, and he's not afraid to share the experience with millions of others tuning in.

He captioned in the Facebook Live video: "this is what getting help looks like," to make a point of de-stigmatizing mental illness and empowering others to seek help.

As he explains in the video:

"The whole point is like, everyone says, 'Oh, I don’t want to show people what I do, I don’t want to talk about therapy.' If we don’t talk about it, it’s quite literally why no one understands what we’re talking about. So, I don’t have anything to hide. I think this is an amazing treatment."

Need help? Call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-8255 or connect to the Lifeline Crisis Chat, both accessible 24/7.

This post was updated on 4/5/2017.