Stan Walker opens up about his struggles with anxiety - 'we all need help'

Kiwi-Australian singer Stan Walker has opened up about his struggles with anxiety to raise awareness around mental health.

The Take it Easy star, 29, had his first anxiety attack five years ago, which he said felt like a heart attack or being possessed "by a demon", he told news.com.au. The attack sent him running from his apartment "panicking" to the shopping centre below.

"I yelled out so loud 'no' and ran downstairs to people because I didn't want to be by myself," he said.

"I thought I was getting attacked and didn't know what it was."

Walker said he finally recognised what he was going through by "watching and listening to others".

"I was stressed at the time over deadlines for music and things weren't going good."

He said the pressures of the music industry, and the fame and scrutiny which comes with it, was "a beast" which helped fuel his battles with depression and anxiety.

"One moment you're at the top of the food chain and the next you're at the bottom scrambling for scraps with nothing," he said.

"Fame is sacrifice. Fame is no sleep. Fame is being told you're nothing. It's failure.

"You feel replaceable like there's no true value to you and (the message is) 'we can get another one of you'."

However, Walker said battling stomach cancer, which he was diagnosed with in 2017, was easier than his struggles with his mental health.

"Cancer was the easiest part," he said. "It's the mental stuff that lasts."

The musician, who won Australian Idol in 2009, said while he has thought about committing suicide numerous times, his close friends, family and mentors have helped him pull through.

Walker said he has since learned to talk about his struggles and to reach out to others who are going through a similar experience "before it's too late".

"I know what anxiety and depression feels like," he said. "I talk about it all the time but it doesn't mean I’m cured.

"At the end of the day we’re all human.

"We all need help."