A YOUNG actress who starred alongside Mel Gibson in Braveheart has opened up for the first time about her battle with depression.

Glasgow-born Mhairi Calvey was just six when she won the role of Young Murron in the Oscar-winning epic.

Raised by a single mum on the Isle of Arran, she turned down the chance to be a child star, shunning the Hollywood circuit.

But she was bitten by the acting bug and after leaving school, Mhairi opted to study drama at Guildford School of Acting, whose well-known alumni include actor Bill Nighy and singer Michael Ball.

Now 26-years-old, Mhairi has landed her big break in science fiction thriller Abduct, directed by visual effects expert Ilyas Kaduji of Harry Potter and The Chronicles of Narnia fame.

However, it hasn't come easy to the young actress who has struggled with bouts of debilitating depression.

She said: "I've always suffered it on and off since I was young, and last year it came to play a lot in my life. A long-term relationship ended, I lost my flat through that and I had no money. I also went through an operation.

"I was in London at the time and I had no support network around me. I was struggling to get up in the morning. I stopped taking care of myself. I thought I wasn't worth anything.

"It was only through almost losing everything that I found someone who could help me. But it was luck that I stumbled across a good therapist at that time."

Mhairi has recovered from the depressive episode but still feels let down by the system after struggling to find the support she needed.

She said: "I went to doctors and I didn't get any help through that. It was waiting lists, especially if you're in a big city.

"You have to wait about two weeks and in your first session they examine you to see how bad you are. Depending on how severe your case is, that will determine when you are seen again. There is no instant help."

The actress hopes to set up her own charity which will help people with depression and tackle the stigma often associated with the illness.

She explained: "I think depression affects more people than people realise.I think people that have it don't want to talk about it because people don't know how to respond.

"That's why we should raise awareness that it's ok to have it if you've got it and that it's curable. You can actually overcome it. It doesn't take that long to actually recover if you get the right help.

"I've started a Facebook page called Think Differently Do Differently that has tips about how to manage depression and how to find a support team.

"I'm going to put up a range of different things and I just hope it grows. I would love to make it into a national or international charity. I just think there has to be more awareness of depression.

"There's a lot of stigma. That needs to change."

Mhairi is now based in York near her jewellery designer mother, Dominique Calvey, who ran a gallery on Arran for many years.

She said: "I have a very good relationship with her. She's very down to earth so she's a good person to have at my side. She's really supportive of me and really proud of me."

Her father and brother still live "just outside Glasgow, in the countryside" and she remains firm friends with people she grew up with in Arran and Glasgow.

The actress is now looking to the future and the upcoming release of Abduct, which also stars William B Davis of X-Files fame, and Sienna Gullory of Resident Evil and Eragon.

But she'll never forget her time on the set of Braveheart. Mhairi said: "It was a perfect place to start. I remember it really clearly, chatting to Brian Cox when we were filming and working with Mel Gibson who directed me on the set. You learn a lot from people like that.

"After Braveheart I was invited on to the child Hollywood scene but my mum wasn't a pushy parent so she decided I could go down that road when I was older.

"It's worked out well. My life has started falling back into place and things are going great. I've turned everything around in a year."

peter.swindon@eveningtimes.co.uk

THOUSANDS of people experience mental health problems at some point in their lives, according to campaigners.

However, many still face discrimination when they try to seek help from health services.

Judith Robertson, who head up anti-stigma campaign See Me, said: "In Scotland one in four of us will have a mental health problem at some point in our lives. That's more than the combined population of Glasgow and Edinburgh.

"However 81% of people with mental health problems still report facing stigma and discrimination. This is unacceptable.

"Everyone has the right to be treated equally, but as Scotland's national programme to end mental health stigma we still see discrimination in Scotland's workplaces, with children and young people and, as we see with Mhairi, in health and social care."

Ms Robertson warned that up to 75% of people with mental health problems are not getting the vital help they need.

She said: "A recent survey found 85% of doctors thought there was a lack of support for patients with mental health problems.

"Often this is due to mental health not being valued equally to physical health.

"Misconceptions about mental illness mean people are less willing to talk if they do have a problem.

"This contributes to around three-quarters of people with mental health problems not receiving proper treatment."

For more information about the See Me campaign, visit seemescotland.org.uk.

For help with mental health problems call Breathing Space on 0800 83 85 87.