Catherine Zeta-Jones 'so brave to reveal struggle with mental illness'

Catherine Zeta Jones was today praised by mental health organisations for publicly revealing her battle with bipolar disorder.

The Welsh actress, 41, spent five days in a clinic in the US last week for the condition, which she developed while struggling to cope as her husband Michael Douglas, father of her two young children, fought cancer last year.

She was treated for bipolar II disorder. A less extreme version of bipolar I, it is characterised by longer episodes of depression and fewer "up" periods.

Her publicist Cece Yorke said: "After dealing with the stress of the past year, Catherine made the decision to check into a mental health facility for a brief stay. She's feeling great and looking forward to starting work this week on her two upcoming films."

Vicki Prowt, of Mind mental health charity, said: "Mental health is one of the last taboos. People find it difficult to talk about and don't know how to react to it. When people like Catherine come out and say, 'This is me, I've got bipolar', it's a good thing. It's trending all over Twitter, it's on the news and people are learning more about it.

"People can see it's not the end of the world, it won't change who she is and she will get back to normal."

Mark Davies, from the charity Rethink Mental Illness, said: "She deserves great credit. There is still a lot of stigma around mental health which often means that people stay silent and try to fight the illness on their own.

"When people such as Catherine Zeta-Jones speak out it makes a big difference to the millions of others facing mental illness. It shows them they are not alone and that mental illness can affect anyone." Wall Street actor Douglas, 66, was diagnosed with throat cancer last August and had chemotherapy and radiotherapy. In January he announced the tumour had gone but was warned he must have regular check-ups.

Zeta-Jones hinted at her depression last year when she said: "I don't just bring myself down, I bring everyone around me down. It's like a dark cloud."