Ronan Keating said he sees a therapist when he is feeling “fragile” as he opened up during Loose Women’s first all-male panel.
The ITV show rebranded as Loose Men for one day only to mark International Men’s Day on Thursday.
Keating, who was joined by JLS star Marvin Humes, Love Island narrator Iain Stirling, and radio presenter Roman Kemp, opened up about his mental health struggles.
'Don't be scared to speak about it.'
Ronan tells the #LooseMen why he hopes his generation can end the stigma and get people talking about mental health.
Helplines ➡️ https://t.co/gOfpIgUaYz#BritainGetTalking pic.twitter.com/jzh62OEkz6
— Loose Women (@loosewomen) November 19, 2020
The former Boyzone star, who is a father of five, said: “It’s easy to just ignore it and move away from it. Live your own life. But it’s there in black and white.
“And our generation, we can be at the forefront and make the change and not be scared to speak about it.
“We have young kids in our household and to be able to be more open about it and be able to tell your kids you love them.
“My parents, my dad in particular, he came from a generation where he found it hard to say he loved us and put his arm around us.
“But we have very much changed. Please God, today we can be big enough to be able to speak about it in the household.”
Keating, 43, who shares two young children with his wife Storm, 39, said she often suggested he should visit his therapist when he was stressed.
He said: “I get help whenever I am feeling fragile, if I need to lean on somebody.
“My wife can tell if I am overstressed, working too hard, things are getting on my back or maybe it’s a certain date that reminds me of something that’s happened, someone who has passed away.
“I talk to my therapist Dan. I will say to Storm, ‘Do you think it’s time to speak to Dan?’
“Storm and I can have conversations … He speaks to maybe 20 other people every day so I am another person.
“He gives me tools and I can take those home and maybe be a better person.”
Capital Breakfast DJ Kemp, 27, agreed and called for better mental health education for schoolchildren
He said: “We need to be teaching boys at school to open up. It’s important to learn to defend yourself against your own brain.
“I was at school not long ago and I didn’t once get taught how to deal with stress and my own mental health.
“There needs to be more done for the kids – 50% of schools these days don’t have any form of counselling and that for me isn’t good enough.”
The episode saw the panel share their own personal experiences, discuss the issues of the day and interview Hollywood star Matthew McConaughey.
Earlier this year, Loose Women launched the Stand By Your Men campaign, focusing on male mental health and highlighting how important it is for men to ask for help if they are struggling.