Grammy-winning rapper Cardi B shared an extraordinarily vulnerable conversation on the “On Purpose with Jay Shetty” podcast released on October 6, 2025, revealing her deepest struggles with depression, the pain of a failing marriage, loneliness, and the long journey to reclaiming her mental health and independence.
The Deepest Depression of Her Life
Cardi B disclosed that approximately a year ago, she experienced the worst depression she had ever faced. “I fell in the deepest depression that I had ever had. And with that depression, I couldn’t function. I couldn’t function at nothing,” she revealed. The severity was so extreme that basic activities became impossible: “I couldn’t eat. I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t do nothing. So that just halted everything that I had”.
This period coincided with the deterioration of her marriage and mounting career pressures. “It was just a lot of pressure from my career and I also felt like my marriage like I felt the love dying,” she explained, adding that the loneliness was self-imposed as she tried to break free from a painful cycle.
The Struggle Between Heart and Mind
Cardi described the internal battle between knowing she needed to leave and her heart not being ready. “I kept telling myself I will not contact this person for a month. I will not give in. I will not forgive this easy. I will not go back. I will not go to the pattern. I will not go through it. But I was crying every day. I was hurt every day,” she shared. She found herself isolated in Los Angeles: “I was out here in LA in a mansion by myself. I was thinking about it every single day”.
The difficulty intensified when she became pregnant with her third child during this tumultuous period. “I told myself, I’m pregnant. I’m going to accept my flaws, the flaws that I bring in this marriage, I’m going to apologize for it and I’m going to work on it,” she said. But when her vulnerability was met with indifference rather than reciprocation, it devastated her further: “When I take accountability and you take advantage of me taking accountability and you take that as a see I know she be back instead of me taking accountability and you taking advantage of that. It really just killed everything”.
Therapy, Time, and Finding What Works
Cardi attempted various healing methods, including therapy sessions via Zoom. However, she admitted therapy wasn’t as effective for her as she’d hoped: “I did saw a therapist. She’s really good by the way. It was like on Zoom and it was like I was telling myself like it’s like I can’t believe I’m telling a whole stranger my feelings, my thoughts, my personal business for three hours straight”. After six sessions, she realized, “They ain’t gave me no nothing”.
Instead, Cardi found that time became her greatest healer. “I just feel like I just had to let it die on its own. Let things die on its own,” she explained. She emphasized to listeners: “Don’t think that like you shouldn’t try to get help because it’s like therapy didn’t really help me like that… But it will be time that will heal it. It will be time. Time just heals everything”.
Public Criticism and Mental Health Toll
Beyond her personal struggles, Cardi revealed how public criticism severely impacts her mental health, particularly when releasing new music. “Last week when I put out a song and it’s not really the criticism in the song, the way that people ate me up, tore me up, chew me up just because of one song. I feel like I didn’t deserve that,” she shared emotionally.
She compared the pain of rejection to deeply personal wounds: “That’s like a guy fucking you and you think you have the best pussy in the world and they tell you your pussy’s trash. You should never fuck nobody no more. That’s just how I feel”. The overwhelming negativity makes her question continuing: “When it’s millions and millions and hundreds of thousands of people, like it’s like not only are they criticizing the song, they criticizing you as a whole… you just got to ask yourself sometimes, is it even worth it?”.
The Hidden Quiet Side
Contrary to her bold public persona, Cardi revealed her deeply introverted nature. “I’m naturally quiet though… I’m naturally in my room just deep in my thoughts and just deep deep. I might just talk to you the whole day as a friend on the phone, but I don’t really want to see you, which is so weird,” she explained. This need for solitude has been present since childhood: “There’s like a hundred people and I feel like it’s been like that since I was 5 years old that talk in my head and plan things out, plan my future, plan my life”.
Emerging Stronger Than Ever
Despite the darkness, Cardi emerged with renewed strength. “I overcame that. And I am the strongest that like I have ever been. Like I almost feel like when was I ever my strongest? My the I felt my strongest when I was 22, 23, 24. That’s when I felt like my strongest… And that’s how I feel right now. Like I feel like I live in a power,” she declared.
The transformation required her heart to finally align with her mind: “It took months for the heart to say you’re done. Instead of my mouth and my brain. My heart had to be like you’re done. Cuz you could say it and you could take actions but even if you take actions if you’re not done you’re not done”.
Faith as Foundation
Throughout her healing journey, faith remained central. During her darkest moments, Cardi leaned on prayer and spiritual guidance to navigate her pain and find purpose beyond the suffering.
Moving Forward with Independence
Cardi’s experience reinforced her long-held belief about female independence. “As a woman, even if you get with a man with money, you should have your own,” she stressed, drawing from observations of family members who struggled when relationships ended. This principle guided her life: “I always wanted to have kids. So, it’s like I have to have my own shit before I become a mom. And that’s exactly what happened”.
Now a mother of three with dreams of having six children total, Cardi has rebuilt her life on her own terms, proving that even the deepest depression can be overcome with time, self-reflection, and unwavering determination.
