From 2013 to 2015, João Carreiro – who died, this Wednesday (3), in Campo Grande – was away from the stage to treat depression and a serious case of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). After the treatment, the countryman did not hesitate to talk about the disease and how he overcame it.
In an interview with “Encontro”, with Fátima Bernardes still in charge of Globo’s daily program, João Carreiro recalled that he received the diagnosis in September 2012, at the height of his career, together with Capataz.
“I had depression and OCD. At the time I felt really bad, the duo was at the best moment of their career, nobody understood that. They didn’t understand why I stopped. When I went to see the psychiatrist, he asked me to stop that day. It was September, I had a schedule until December. I needed to fulfill my commitments, I finished that year, but it was very difficult”, recalled the countryman.
Depression was serious, as the singer considered during his lifetime. Regarding OCD, Carreiro had a specific picture. The countryman had hallucinations and repetitions of fragments of what he experienced.
In “Encontro”, Carreiro reported that he saw tragedies repeating themselves in his mind. “As I decided to stop, I thought everyone thought I was a liar. I saw the people I loved, those close to me, killing and harming me.”
“What I saw in my mind was real. The only people I confided in were my wife and my psychiatrist. I was sure that was going to happen. If I had an image of a friend, then I went to see him in person and that person came out, I thought he was going to kill me. That didn’t happen, my head formed another tragedy”, she commented during the conversation.
João Carreiro returned to the stage in 2015. It took two years of psychological and psychiatric treatment. During the chat, the countryman recalled that it was only with medical help that he was able to understand the illnesses.
“The doctor managed to convince me that it was all in my head. I took anti-hallucinogens, anti-depressants and anxiolytics. Faith in God helped me a lot, the foundation in my family too.”