Joe Jonas on how he coped with disappointing album sales

Disappointing sales from Joe Jonas' first solo album led him to experience panic attacks and eventually seek therapy.

The singer made the admission on his podcast Hey Jonas!, which he hosts with his brothers Nick and Kevin.

It was his 2011 solo album Fastlife that he had expected to be just as successful as the Jonas Brothers' music. He had tied his self-worth to how well it performed.

“Somewhere in my core, I was like, ‘If I do that, then I matter,’” he told his brothers on the show.

The album reached number 15 on the US charts, and its lead single peaked at number 92, which Joe considered disappointing at the time. 

“I started having panic attacks and started having physical pain,” he recalled, and said he saw a doctor, who said he was healthy but recommended he see a therapist.

At first, Jonas was hesitant about the idea and instead tried coping by going on long bike rides without his phone. 

“I was like, what do you mean a therapist? I don’t need a therapist. Why would I need a therapist?” he remembered saying.

Eventually, he decided to try therapy and said it helped him a great deal, both during that difficult time and later in life.

“I finally spoke to somebody and, after crying through the first question for an hour, [I] realised how great it was. It definitely was so helpful during that season and it has been throughout my life for other major life things that I’ve gone through.”

Jonas returned to solo music last year with a new album, his first under his own name in 14 years.