Tanya Tucker reveals battle with depression

Recording artist Tanya Tucker poses for a portrait, Thursday, July 9, 2009 in New York. (AP)

Tanya Tucker is know for her brash and outspoken personality, but in a new interview, she reveals a hidden battle with depression.

"I lost my mother last year,” the iconic country star tells Closer Weekly, adding, “You try and mentally prepare for it, but when it comes, you are not prepared for the emotional toll it takes.”

Tucker also suffered a frightening accident that threatened her singing ability, after undergoing a routine dermal abrasion skin treatment.

“Something went wrong and I suffered second and third-degree burns all over my face, in my nose and down my lungs. It was awful, she recalls. It also changed my voice, which has been another obstacle I've had to overcome. I've had to struggle to reach certain notes, which I never had to do before.”

The stress of all those hard times happening at once threw the singer into a deep depression.

"I probably spent half a million dollars on doctors,” she admits. “I took medications, did shock treatments and tried everything with the exception of being put into a straitjacket. And yet somewhere in the midst of all this, I cut 10 tracks for a new album!

Tucker credits that for helping her regain her balance, saying that she is now feeling significantly better. “It's my music that really saved me,” she reflects. “When people hear these songs, they will know [they] came from my heart.

Elsewhere in the interview, Tucker talks about her romance with Glen Campbell, whom she calls the love of her life. That issue of Closer is currently on newsstands.

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