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It can’t be easy raising a superstar. And Lady Gaga’s mom, Cynthia Germanotta, recently shared that in fact, as with any other child, it hasn’t been. The worst part for the mother of two? Finding out later all that she hadn’t been aware of.

Lady Gaga and her mother, Cynthia Germanotta
Lady Gaga and her mother, Cynthia Germanotta | John Lamparski/WireImage

Here’s how Gaga, aka Stefani Germanotta, and her mom have taken a difficult time and made it better, not just for themselves, but for so many others.

Gaga’s struggle as a teen

Germanotta talked to the Today show last month about her daughter’s struggle with depression and her feeling of helplessness in not knowing how to be there for her. Since her daughter wasn’t really opening up to her, Germanotta wasn’t aware of how bad the situation had gotten and revealed to Today co-host Shenielle Jones how the singer’s depression deepened in severity.

“In middle school, because she was unique, she started experiencing a lot of struggles,” the 65-year-old said. “You know, feeling isolated from events. Humiliated. Taunted. And she would start to question herself and become doubtful of her own abilities. And that’s when she developed depression. We tried our best as parents to help her, but didn’t know everything.”

“I felt where I made mistakes was I didn’t really know the warning signs to look for,” she continued.

When Gaga opened up about her mental health

In 2016, Lady Gaga told Today about her visit to an LGBTQ homeless shelter for teens and how she told them something she hadn’t been public about: her painful experience with PTSD.

“I told the kids today, ‘I suffer from PTSD.’ I’ve never told anyone that before. So here we are,” Gaga said. “But the kindness that’s shown to me by doctors as well as my family, and my friends, it’s really saved my life.”

The 33-year-old told the morning show about her emotional visit with the teens and how much she could relate to the pain they live with.

“These children are not just homeless or in need. Many of them are trauma survivors. They’ve been rejected in some type of way,” Gaga, 30, said. “My own trauma in my life has helped me to understand the trauma of others.”

Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation

Lady Gaga speaks up frequently on behalf of the LGBTQ community and against bullying in general. In 2011, she founded the Born This Way organization. At the time, she stated that the heart of the organization was “to establish a standard of bravery and kindness, as well as a community worldwide that protects and nurtures others in the face of bullying  and  abandonment.”

Her biggest Born This Way Foundation supporter and co-laborer? Her mom, of course.

“It’s something that’s very, very personal to us and it goes back to the struggles Stefani had growing up,” Germanotta continued in her conversation with Today about the creation of the foundation. “She envisioned a world where young people were better equipped to deal with her struggles than she was.”

“As her career took off and we were traveling the world and talking to young people, we realized how many other young people had similar experiences,” she said.

It’s a beautiful and lasting legacy that mother and daughter are creating for a kinder, more understanding world.

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