Chappell Roan, Who Has Bipolar II, Says TikTok Follower Surge Triggered Hypomania: 'I Wasn’t Sleeping'

The singer talked to 'Rolling Stone' about her lifelong struggle with bipolar disorder — and how she’s learning to maintain boundaries with fans

• Chappell Roan talked to Rolling Stone about living with bipolar II disorder — and how a surge in followers triggered a hyponomania episode

• Hypnomania, which the Cleveland Clinic says is a "a revved up energy or activity level, mood or behavior," is a common symptom of bipolar disorder

• The "Good Luck, Babe!" singer was candid about her ongoing mental health struggles and how she's maintaining boundaries with fans

Chappell Roan is looking back on how her bipolar II disorder manifested during her skyrocketing success — particularly when she began gaining followers on TikTok in 2021 — in her October cover for Rolling Stone.

The singer-songwriter, 26, shared with the outlet that while posting memes and videos about dating in Los Angeles — bolstered by the success of her single, “Pink Pony Club”  — “I started gaining a lot of followers when I was being really insane on TikTok.”

Roan, who was diagnosed with bipolar II disorder in 2022, shared that the initial surge in followers triggered hypomania, which she would later learn is a symptom of bipolar II. According to the Cleveland Clinic, it's “a condition in which you display a revved up energy or activity level, mood or behavior."

“Hypomania is a less severe form of mania, and both are commonly part of bipolar disorder,” the Cleveland Clinic says — adding that bipolar itself is a "chronic mood disorder that causes intense shifts in mood, energy levels and behavior."

“I wasn’t sleeping,” Roan, who was born Kayleigh Amstutz, tells Rolling Stone. “I was on the incorrect meds. I had the energy and the delusion and realized that this app [TikTok] is fueled off of mental illness. Straight up.”

The "Good Luck, Babe!" singer saw another surge in followers after her viral 2024 performance at New York’s Governor’s Ball where she was dressed as the Statue of Liberty.

“I was getting almost a hundred thousand followers a day. At first, I was in severe denial,” she told the publication.

Related: Chappell Roan Reflects on 'Cuckoo' Rise to Stardom and Says Fellow Pop Stars Have Reached Out to 'Help'

“They would literally show me some stats and the only thing I could do is say, ‘No, no, no. It’s not like that.’ I couldn’t say, ‘I am gaining success.’ ”

Looking back, Roan says her bipolar diagnosis “saved” her family.

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“I was like, ‘I can’t go my whole life hating my parents for not knowing how to handle a really, really sick child.’ I was just miserable,” she said, adding that growing up in Willard, Mo., “I felt so miserable for my whole childhood.”

“I was just a freak and really shy and self-conscious and modest,” she told the outlet. “All my parents could do was try their best.”

Roan talked about how she struggled with her success, sharing that in 2022, she sought treatment after sharing she’d been thinking about suicide.

“I realized I can’t live like this. I can’t live being so depressed or feel so lost that I want to kill myself. I just got my shit together,” she told the outlet.

Related: Why Fellow Pop Stars Like Taylor Swift and Chappell Roan Make Lady Gaga Emotional: 'My Heart Is in it with Them'

“I would not have been able to handle any of this even a year ago today. It would’ve just been too much.”

These days, she’s maintaining boundaries — even if it means rethinking her relationship with her fans, although, she says, “I don’t want to be agoraphobic.”

In August, Roan shared videos blasting fans for “creepy” behavior.

“I don’t care that abuse and harassment, stalking, whatever, is a normal thing to do to people who are famous or a little famous,” Roan said in one video.

As she told Rolling Stone, fans “need to see me as a random bitch on the street.”

“You can’t yell at a random bitch who’s on the sidewalk that you don’t know. It’s considered catcalling or harassment.”

If you or someone you know needs mental health help, text "STRENGTH" to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.

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