Katherine Heigl Felt She'd 'Rather Be Dead' After Being Labeled 'Difficult' in Hollywood

Katherine Heigl has opened up about how her mental health was affected after she was branded "difficult" to work with in Hollywood, which eventually caused her to seek treatment.

In an interview with The Washington Post published Thursday, the actress explained how the negative perception began to filter through the ranks of Tinseltown.

"I may have said a couple of things you didn't like, but then that escalated to 'she's ungrateful,' then that escalated to 'she's difficult,' and that escalated to 'she's unprofessional,'" she claimed. "What is your definition of difficult? Somebody with an opinion that you don't like? Now, I'm 42, and that s--- pisses me off."

The trouble started during her stint on "Grey's Anatomy" from 2005 to 2010, when she withdrew her name from Emmy consideration a year after winning the award.

"I did not feel that I was given the material this season to warrant an Emmy nomination" she said in a statement at the time.

A year later, she complained about her 17-hour work day at the hit medical drama during an interview on "The Late Show with David Letterman."

The backlash was quick and concise.

"At the time, I was just quickly told to shut the f--- up," Heigl said to the Post. "The more I said I was sorry, the more they wanted it. The more terrified and scared I was of doing something wrong, the more I came across like I had really done something horribly wrong."

But her successes with "Knocked Up," "27 Dresses" and "The Ugly Truth" made Heigl think she'd be able to weather the storm.

"You can be the most awful, difficult, horrible person on the planet, but if you're making them money, they're going to keep hiring you," she claimed. "I knew that whatever they felt I had done that was so awful, they would overlook it if I made them money -- but then my films started to make not quite as much money."

As her career and public persona began to spin out of control, Heigl knew she had to make a change.

"I asked my mom and my husband to find me somewhere to go that could help me because I felt like I would rather be dead," she said. "I didn't realize how much anxiety I was living with until I got so bad that I had to really seek help. You can do a lot of inner soul work, but I'm a big fan of Zoloft."

The decision to seek treatment helped her get back on track, as she awaits the debut of her new Netflix series "Firefly Lane."

"I've grown into accepting that ambition is not a dirty word, and that it doesn’t make me less of a feminine, loving, nurturing woman to be ambitious and have big dreams and big goals," she added. "It’s easier to be happy because I have a little more gentleness for myself."