Pia Wurtzbach gets real about her mental health after winning Miss Universe: 'I became anorexic'

Pia Wurtzbach winning Miss Universe 2015 might look like a Cinderella story for a lot of people. While some parts of her journey really did seem so, the beauty queen revealed that her experience was far from rainbows and unicorns.

In her 15-minute TED Talk uploaded on YouTube, Pia opened up for the first time about the struggles that she had to face alone during her reign.

"I was diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder and major depression. All of the pain and suffering I endured all my life caught up to me and manifested itself in a fully self-destructive way," she said.

"You'd think that the crown and the title would be the bandage to all of that. You'd think that it would be enough to make sense of all the pain and the rejection, but it didn't," she added.

Pia said she was one of those people who had high functioning anxiety, where she's able to do all that is needed from her despite her thoughts. Nevertheless, the pain remains.

"I never missed a day of work, and I just kept going. But as soon as the doors of my room closed, I was a different person. The thoughts, doubt, worry in my head were louder than the cheers."

"I became anorexic and I was self-harming. I was pulling my hair—a condition called Trichotillomania—and in the four corners of my room, I also abused alcohol. I was deteriorating."

Pia said she was of course was grateful and honored to win. However, Pia said the pain was something one couldn't "escape no matter how successful you become" given her past.

"It was nothing like the life people thought I had. I realized that all of the things I didn't address when I was younger came back to me in a big and harmful way," she said. "It was like poison slowly killing me."

Among the painful experiences Pia shared were financial issues, her family breaking apart, her journey to the crown, and an abusive relationship.

Pia said she was lucky to have the Miss Universe organization help her with what she was going through that time and treat her like family.

"I went through multiple therapy sessions in New York and in [Los Angeles] and they gave me the tools that I needed to be okay," she said. "I was able to keep my privacy during this very difficult time."

"They could've let me go or have the first runner-up replace me, but I was determined to stay strong to continue my mission, my purpose, and to turn things around," she added.

Finally being able to surpass that difficult time in her life, Pia said she is now "breaking free" from other people's expectations of who she must be. She is encouraging others to do the same.

"I want to paint a picture, not of a perfect beauty queen, but of a real person with real life experiences. There's no shame in admitting that you aren't perfect and that you need help," she said.

"You are not alone," she added. "Whoever you are and whatever you've been through, you are not alone, and talking about your struggles is okay."

Pia earlier revealed in January that she suffered from depression, and has since been encouraging that it's okay to not be okay through social media.

—Franchesca Viernes/MGP, GMA News