Jonas explained that “something intervened” and his life was saved, saying that he went to a treatment facility and he “couldn’t be more grateful for the fact that I’m alive today because my world has changed so beautifully and so astronomically, and I am not that person anymore. I couldn’t be more grateful that I’m alive and happy.”
In an earlier video, Jonas referred to himself as a “sober drug addict” who is currently attending Columbia University, which he admitted he’s conflicted about sometimes. “I don’t belong there! It’s okay that I feel that, but it doesn’t make me less than anyone else, it doesn’t make me more than anyone else,” he said. “It’s also good to understand that imposter syndrome can sometimes lead to a messiah complex, and that’s not good either. But it’s okay to be in the middle.”
The former child actor and youngest Jonas brother has appeared in the films Ponyo and Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, but unlike his siblings has not actively pursued a life in front of the camera. However, starting in October 2020, he began to amass a growing TikTok following with this @iamfrankiejonas account, which has nearly two million followers who eat up his playful jabs at his famous bros alongside his silly stunts.
“It doesn’t matter if I get A’s or F’s — I f—ing made it,” Frankie said. “Like, the middle of the pack is a great place to be as long as I’m comfortable with myself. My mental health, stability and love of life is the priority. If I can use that while learning, then let’s get it.” The confessional video followed one from last week in which Frankie said after years of struggles he’s learned one of life’s most valuable lessons: that it’s “okay not to be okay.”
“There was a point in my life a little over a year and a half ago where after many, many years of struggles where I thought it wasn’t okay to not be okay, it was between me or the ledge and someone asked me, point blank — before I made the worst mistake of my life — if I was actually okay,” he said in a video posted on March 14. “They asked me to stop lying, and I said, ‘No.’ It saved my life. I couldn’t be more grateful to the universe for putting that person and those words in front of me to understand that it’s okay to not be okay because I wasn’t. I needed help.”
If you or someone you know are struggling with mental health and/or substance abuse disorders, you can call SAMHSA’s National Helpline: 1-800-662-4357.
